Laumape the latest ex-All Black to commit to Tonga
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Assistant coach Nili Latu has revealed that former All Blacks star Ngani Laumape has made himself available to Tonga ahead of the World Rugby Pacific Nations Cup in August and September.
Laumape, whose parents are from Tonga, first declared his interest in playing for the ‘Ikale Tahi when World Rugby introduced the birthright ruling in 2021 and he has been eligible since November last year.
Unlike the five other ex-All Blacks in the squad, the centre’s three-year stand-down period hadn’t quite run its course in time for him to be considered for Rugby World Cup 2023 selection.
But the Kobelco Kobe Steelers star, who won the last of his 15 All Blacks caps in November 2020, is now free to become a dual international and has put his hand up for selection under the new management team of Tevita Tu’ifua and Nili Latu.
The prospect of Laumape lining up in Tonga’s midfield alongside another ex-All Black in Malakai Fekitoa is one to excite Tonga fans ahead of a busier-than-normal year of Test rugby.
Tonga have two additional Tests against Italy and Spain as well as a match against Queensland Reds in Tonga before competing in the revamped Pacific Nations Cup, which gets underway on August 23.
Meanwhile, Israel Folau is still keen on playing for Tonga having returned to action after a nine-month injury lay-off.
The former 74-cap Wallaby scored four minutes into his comeback match for Urayasu D-Rocks in Japan League One at the end of March and is hoping to add to the one Tonga cap he won back in July 2022.
Folau is now 35, Fekitoa is 32 and Laumape turns 31 later this month, so the next Rugby World Cup in 2027 could be beyond all three players.
Nili Latu, Tonga’s new assistant coach, has recognised that the age profile of the squad needs addressing and has been given a player pathway manager role in addition to being new head coach Tevita Tu’ifua’s number two.
Latu was in Apia on Monday to see Tonga A play Manuma Samoa in the World Rugby Pacific Challenge in the hope of identifying new Test players, although it is debatable whether he will have found that many positives from the 56-17 defeat.
The raw talent is there in Tonga and in the huge ex-pat population in New Zealand, but Latu wants to ensure it is harnessed in the right way for the benefit of the Moana Pasifika Super Rugby team and, ultimately, the national side.
“Our priority now is to qualify for the World Cup so there is still a use for those players and bringing their leadership into the group. And at the same time, we have got guys like Ngani Laumape, who has put his hand up to come in,” he revealed.
“Over 80% of the World Cup squad are over 30 and as we’re looking to build some of those players may give us a year or two.
“I think it is really important that we do keep some high-profile players to lead the way for the next generation. A few of the boys have already asked for time off for family reasons and, for me that gives opportunity for the next person.”
Latu, who was brought up in Tonga by his grandparents before emigrating to New Zealand, says a union-backed high performance academy in Auckland will be set up with hubs planned elsewhere, in Australia and back in the homeland.
“We never run out of stock but it is finding our way and setting up a system that means we can keep our players in the islands,” he said.
“I think it is brilliant to have Moana in New Zealand now and we are looking to set up a High Performance Academy for first the time.
“We understand there is a lot of hard work to be done because it has never been done before, but that is the only way to sustain our players and realign everything.
“For us to be strong and sustainable we need to start building from the ground up, from the grassroots. It is about creating a pathway and hopefully, we can get the ball rolling as soon as possible.”
Latu knows from first-hand experience how natural talent has not always been harnessed the right way, with a lack of direction and resources preventing Tonga from fulfilling their potential.
Tonga’s record caps holder until Sonatane Takulua overtook him recalls how the team roughed it in the build-up to Rugby World Cup 2007 in France whilst they were staying in a budget hotel in England on the eve of the tournament.
“It was four to a room but in ours, it felt like five because we had two of the props, including Taufa’ao Filise.
“There were 45 of us in the squad and after every training session in the parking lot, a truck would turn up with a whole cooked chicken for each of us. As players, we were on about €80/week until Epi Taione got in touch with his mate, Paddy Power, and they topped it up after he agreed to change his name to Paddy Power and dye his hair green! That’s how we prepared for the World Cup. People don’t realise what we went through.”
Latu, who won 48 caps for Tonga, wants more for the players playing under him and cites a lack of support in the right areas as the reason why a squad containing players of the calibre of RWC 2015 winner Fekitoa and Charles Piutau, Vaea Fifita, Augustine Pulu, Ben Tameifuna and Adam Coleman failed to win more than one game.
“If you look at the World Cup team it is are probably the best team Tonga has ever put out at a World Cup but they never came through and it was through those issues that we never got to see their potential. Hopefully, we won’t go down the same path.
“On our day, we can win games that nobody gives us a chance in.”
As a hard-tackling, hard-running back-row forward in Super Rugby with the Hurricanes and the Chiefs in Super Rugby and then at Newcastle in the Gallagher Premiership, Latu never saw any obstacle as insurmountable.
This never-give-up attitude has carried over into his coaching and in just over four years he has risen up to Test rugby via stints as head coach at Auckland Premier side Papatoetoe and Marist North Harbour in New Zealand and as an assistant coach of the Moana Pasifika. Latu was also head coach of the Tonga women’s national team during the 2023 Oceania Rugby Women’s Championship.
“What I love about the job is that I am learning every day and that brings an edge to the way I coach and understand the game,” he said.
“I never thought I would get into the position I am in today through rugby. I never give up, I find ways of getting things done. That never-give-up attitude was implanted into me quite early.”
Comments on RugbyPass
Ben Smith Springboks living rent free in his head 😊😂
67 Go to commentsGood to hear he would like to play the game at the highest level, I hadn’t been to sure how much of a motivator that was before now. Sadly he’s probably chosen the rugby club to go to. Try not to worry about all the input about how you should play rugby Joey and just try to emulate what you do on the league field and have fun. You’ll limit your game too much (well not really because he’s a standard athlete like SBW and he’ll still have enough) if you’re trying to make sure you can recycle the ball back etc. On the other hard, you can totally just try and recycle by looking to offload any and everywhere if you’re going to ground 😋
1 Go to commentsThis just proves that theres always a stat and a metric to use to justify your abilities and your success. Ben did it last week by creating an imaginary competition and now you did the same to counter his argument and espouse a new yardstick for success. Why not just use the current one and lets say the Boks have won 4 world cups making them the most successful world cup team. Outside of the world cup the All Blacks are the most successful team winning countless rugby championships and dominating the rankings with high win percentages. Over the last 4 years statistically the Irish are the best having the highest win rate and also having positive records against every tier 1 side. The most successful Northern team in the game has been England with a world cup title and the most six nations titles in history. The AB’s are the most dominant team in history with the highest win rate and 3 world cups. Lets not try to reinvent the wheel. Just be honest about the actual stats and what each team has been good at doing and that will be enough to define their level of success.
19 Go to commentsHow is 7’s played there? I’m surprised 10 or 11 man rugby hasn’t taken off. 7 just doesn’t fit the 15s dynamics (rules n field etc) but these other versions do.
7 Go to commentsPick Swinton at your peril A liability just like JWH from the Roosters Skelton ??? went missing at RWC
14 Go to commentsLike tennis, who have a ranking system, and I believe rugby too, just measure over each period preceding a world cup event who was the longest number one and that would be it. In tennis the number one player frequently is not the grand slam winner. I love and adore the All Blacks since the days of Ian Kirkpatrick when I was a kid in SA. And still do because they are the masters of running rugby and are gentleman on and off the field - in general. And in my opinion they have been the majority of the time the best rugby team in the world.
19 Go to commentsHaving overseas possessions in 2024 is absurd. These Frenchies should have to give the New Caledonians their freedom.
21 Go to commentsBell injured his foot didn’t he? Bring Tupou in he’ll deliver when it counts. Agree mostly but I would switch in the Reds number 8 Harry Wilson for Swinton and move Rob Valentini to 6 instead. Wilson is a clever player who reads the play, you can’t outmuscle the AB’s and Springboks, if you have any chance it’s by playing clever. Same goes for Paisami, he’s a little guy who doesn’t really trouble the likes of De Allende and Jordie Barrett. I’d rather play Carter Gordon at 12 and put Michael Lynagh’s boy at 10. That way you get a BMT type goalkicker at 10 and a playmaker at 12. Anyways, just my two cents as a Bok supporter.
14 Go to commentsThanks Brett, love your articles which are alway pertinent. It’s a difficult topic trying to have a panel adjudicating consistently penalties for red card issues. Many of the mitigating reasons raised are judged subjectively, hence the different outcomes. How to take away subjective opinions?
9 Go to commentsYes Sir! Surprising, just like Fraser would also have escaped sanction if he was a few inches lower, even if it was by accident that he missed! Has there really been talk about those sanctions or is this just sensational journalism? I stopped reading, so might have missed any notations.
9 Go to commentsAI is only as good as the information put in, the nuances of the sport, what you see out the corner of the eye, how you sum up in a split second the situation, yes the AI is a tool but will not help win games, more likely contribute to a loss, Rugby Players are not robots, all AI can do if offer a solution not the solution. AI will effect many sports, help train better golfers etc.
45 Go to commentsIt couldn’t have been Ryan Crotty. He wasn’t selected in either World Cup side - they chose Money Bill instead. And Money Bill only cared about himself, and that manager he had, not the team.
26 Go to commentsYawn 🥱 nobody would give a hoot about this new trophy. End of the day we just have to beat Ireland and NZ this year then they can finally shut up 🤐
19 Go to commentsTalking bout Ryan Crotty? Heard Crotty say in a interview once that SBW doesen't care about the team . He went on to say that whenever they lost a big game, SBW would be happy as if nothing happened, according to him someone who cares would look down.. Personally I think Crotty is in the wrong, not for feeling gutted but for expecting others 2 be like him… I have been a bad loser forever as it matters so much to me but good on you SBW for being able to see the bigger picture….
26 Go to commentsThis sounds like a WWE idea so Americans can also get excited about rugby, RUGBY NEEDS A INTERNATIONAL CALENDER .. The rugby Championship and Six Nations can be held at same time, top 3 of six nations and top 3 of Rugby championship (6 nations should include Georgia AND another qualifying country while Fiji, Japan and Samoa/Tonga qualifier should make out 6 Southern teams).. Scrap June internationals and year end tours. Have a Elite top six Cup and the Bottom 6 in a secondary comp….
19 Go to commentsThe rugby championship would be even stronger with Fiji in it… I know it doesen’t fit the long term plans of NZ or Aus but you are robbing a whole nation of being able to see their best players play for Fiji…. Every second player in NZ and AUS teams has Fijian surnames… shame on you!!! World rugby won’t step in either as France and England has now also joined in…. I guess where money is involved it will always be the poor countries missing out….
86 Go to commentsNo surprise there. How hard can it be to pick a ball off the ground and chuck it to a mate? 😂
3 Go to commentsSometimes people just like a moan mate!
9 Go to commentsexcellent idea ! rugby needs this 💪
19 Go to comments9 Brumbies! What a joke! The best performing team in Oz! Ditch Skelton for Swain or Neville. Ryan Lonergan ahead of McDermott any day! Best selection bolter is Toole … amazing player
14 Go to comments