Olamide Sodeke

Olamide Sodeke
Date of birth (2005-07-26) 26 July 2005 (age 19)[1]
Height205 cm (6 ft 9 in)[2]
Weight120 kg (265 lb)
Rugby union career
Position(s) Lock/Flanker
Current team Saracens
Senior career
Years Team Apps (Points)
2024- Saracens ()
2024- → Ampthill (loan) ()
International career
Years Team Apps (Points)
2024- England U20

Olamide Sodeke (born 26 July 2005) is an English rugby union player who plays as a second row forward for Saracens.

Early life

His father Adewale and mother Mobola moved from Nigeria to raise him and his sister in Abbey Wood in southeast London. His father works for the NHS and his mother is a housing officer. A Formula One and football fan as a child, he only began playing rugby at school when he was aged 11 years-old. He later joined Blackheath, before joining the academy at Saracens.[3]

Club career

He played on-loan for RFU Championship side Ampthill RUFC in 2024.[4] He was included in the Saracens match-day squad for the first time, named as a replacement for the Rugby Premiership match against Bristol Bears on 4 January 2025, and made his debut as a late replacement for Tom Willis.[5][6]

International career

He played for England's Under-17 and Under-18 sides,[7] before being part of the England U20 side which won the 2024 Six Nations Under 20s Championship.[8] He was part of the England U20 side that won the 2024 World Rugby U20 Championship in South Africa.[9][10]

Personal life

He attended Gravesend Grammar School where he was head boy, prior to reading economics and business management at King's College London.[11][5]

Honours

England U20

References

  1. ^ "O.Sodeke". All.Rugby. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
  2. ^ "O.Sodeke". It’s Rugby. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
  3. ^ Kelleher, Will (14 March 2024). "'They're all freaks' – the England pack driving towards Under-20 title". The Times. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
  4. ^ "LOAN WATCH: AMPTHILL GAIN FIVE-POINT WIN OVER CALDY". Saracens.com. 16 October 2024. Retrieved 4 January 2025.
  5. ^ a b Coles, Ben; Morgan, Charlie (3 January 2025). "Introducing England's next big things: 6ft 9in Saracens lock and explosive Bath hooker". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 4 January 2025.
  6. ^ "Saracens rebound from heavy loss to beat Bristol". BBC Sport. 4 January 2024. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
  7. ^ "Kent Boys In U18 England Match Against South Africa 19th August". Kent-Rugby. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
  8. ^ "Under-20 Six Nations: England come from behind to beat France and clinch title". BBC Sport. 15 March 2024. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
  9. ^ Meagher, Gerard (19 July 2024). "England dominate France to claim fourth World Rugby under-20 title". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
  10. ^ "England overpower France to win Under-20 World Cup". BBC Sport. 19 July 2024. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
  11. ^ "O.Sedeke". kcl.ac.uk. Retrieved 16 March 2024.