Kaine Robertson
Encyclopedia
Paul Kaine Robertson is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
in 1998.
Once restored to health, Robertson joined the Viadana and first played for their junior squad; he made his debut for the senior squad on 22 September 2001 at Padua
Padua
Padua is a city and comune in the Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Padua and the economic and communications hub of the area. Padua's population is 212,500 . The city is sometimes included, with Venice and Treviso, in the Padua-Treviso-Venice Metropolitan Area, having...
against Petrarca.
Robertson contributed to Viadana's victory in the 2001–02 Italian Championship with 12 tries that made him the Italian seasonal top try scorer; he went on winning two Italian Cups (in 2003 and 2007), and was part of the side that got to the Championship's final in 2008–09, who eventually lost to Benetton Treviso
Benetton Rugby Treviso
Benetton Rugby Treviso are an Italian professional rugby union club currently competing in the RaboDirect Pro12 and the Heineken Cup.They are based in Treviso in Veneto, and owned by the Benetton clothing company....
.
He was also top try scorer in 2006–07 (9 tries) and 2008–09 (11 tries).
Auckland born Kaine Robertson moved to Italy in 1998, previously he played in the same Auckland Grammar school team as the All Blacks
All Blacks
The New Zealand men's national rugby union team, known as the All Blacks, represent New Zealand in what is regarded as its national sport....
leading try scorer Doug Howlett
Doug Howlett
Douglas Charles Howlett is a professional New Zealand rugby union player of Tongan descent. He is primarily a wing but he has also covered fullback at national and international levels. He currently plays in Ireland with Munster. He is the brother of former Tongan rugby league international Phil...
.
Robertson made his Italy
Italy national rugby union team
The Italy national rugby union team represent the nation of Italy in the sport of rugby union. The team is also known as the Azzurri . Italy have been playing international rugby since the late 1920s, and since 2000 compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland,...
debut against Romania
Romania national rugby union team
The Romania national rugby union team , nicknamed The Oaks , is the representative side of Romania in rugby union. Long considered one of the stronger European teams outside the Six Nations, they have participated in all six Rugby World Cups, and currently compete in the first division of the...
in 2004, after becoming eligible through residency, he scored on his debut.
His pace and power made him an immediate hit with his club side Viadana, he contributed to Viadana's victory in the 2001–02 Italian Championship with 12 tries that made him the Italian seasonal top try scorer; and was part of the Viadana side that won two Italian Cups (in 2003 and 2007). He was also top try scorer in the Italian league in 2006–07 (9 tries) and 2008–09 (11 tries).
He made his Six Nations
Six Nations Championship
The Six Nations Championship is an annual international rugby union competition involving six European sides: England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales....
debut as a replacement against Ireland
Ireland national rugby union team
The Ireland national rugby union team represents the island of Ireland in rugby union. The team competes annually in the Six Nations Championship and every four years in the Rugby World Cup, where they reached the quarter-final stage in all but two competitions The Ireland national rugby union...
in 2005, but it was in 2007 that he had his finest moment in an Italy shirt. Robertson scored one of Italy's four tries against Scotland
Scotland national rugby union team
The Scotland national rugby union team represent Scotland in international rugby union. Rugby union in Scotland is administered by the Scottish Rugby Union. The Scotland rugby union team is currently ranked eighth in the IRB World Rankings as of 19 September 2011...
at Murrayfield
Murrayfield Stadium
Murrayfield Stadium is a sports stadium located in the west end of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Its all-seater capacity was recently reduced from 67,800 to 67,130 to incorporate the largest permanent "big screen" in the country though it still remains the largest stadium in Scotland and one...
to secure Italy's first ever away Six Nations win.
He was selected by then Italy boss Pierre Berbizier
Pierre Berbizier
Pierre Berbizier is a French former rugby union footballer, and currently head coach of Top 14 side Racing Métro. His usual position was at scrum-half. He played 56 times for France.-Biography:Berbizier was born in Saint-Gaudens...
for Italy's 2007 World Cup
2007 Rugby World Cup
The 2007 Rugby World Cup was the sixth Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. Twenty nations competed for the Webb Ellis Cup in the tournament, which was hosted by France from 7 September to 20 October. France won the hosting rights in 2003,...
squad, playing in three matches as the Azzurri were knocked out at the group stages.
Robertson was back in action for the 2008 Six Nations, playing in four of five Tests before touring Argentina
Argentina national rugby union team
The Argentina national rugby team, nicknamed Los Pumas, represents Argentina in international rugby union matches. The team, which plays in sky blue and white jerseys, is organised by the Argentine Rugby Union .Argentina played its first international rugby match in 1910 against a touring British...
and South Africa
South Africa national rugby union team
The South African national rugby union team are 2009 British and Irish Lions Series winners. They are currently ranked as the fourth best team in the IRB World Rankings and were named 2008 World Team of the Year at the prestigious Laureus World Sports Awards.Although South Africa was instrumental...
in the summer. He then featured in all three of Italy's autumn internationals as they went down to Australia
Australia national rugby union team
The Australian national rugby union team is the representative side of Australia in rugby union. The national team is nicknamed the Wallabies and competes annually with New Zealand and South Africa in the Tri-Nations Series, in which they also contest the Bledisloe Cup with New Zealand and the...
, Argentina
Argentina national rugby union team
The Argentina national rugby team, nicknamed Los Pumas, represents Argentina in international rugby union matches. The team, which plays in sky blue and white jerseys, is organised by the Argentine Rugby Union .Argentina played its first international rugby match in 1910 against a touring British...
and the Pacific Islanders
Pacific Islanders rugby union team
The Pacific Islanders rugby union team is an international rugby union team, started in 2004, that represents Fiji, Samoa and Tonga. While Niue and the Cook Islands are not members of the Pacific Tri-Nations competition, they did supply players to the squad for the Pacific Islanders' tour in 2004...
.
He continued to be an constant member of the Italy side up until 2010. He joined the inaugural Aironi
Aironi
Aironi Rugby are an Italian professional rugby club competing in the RaboDirect Pro12 and the Heineken Cup. They represent the Italian regions of Lombardy and Emilia Romagna.- Home ground :...
side for the 2010/11 season, but didn't play until January after suffering an injury in pre season, throughout his time injured he lost his place on the right wing, a place he has held most of the time since his debut.