Tani Fuga
Tanielu "Tani" Fuga (born 14 July 1973)[1] is a Samoan rugby union player. Born in Apia, he was brought up by his grandparents, Iosia and Salavao Fuga and they moved to Auckland in 1986 for him to study.[1] He attended Waitakere College in Auckland and played for the Waitemata club.
| Birth name | Tanielu Fuga | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | July 14, 1973 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Samoa | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 16 st 3 lb (103 kg) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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He played as hooker and, after playing for Samoa in 1999, decided to move to the UK as one of his idols, Keith Wood played there for Harlequins.[1] Tani joined Quins in 2000 and made his debut as a replacement against London Wasps on 9 September that year. He scored his first try for the club in the European Challenge Cup victory over Périgueux at the Twickenham Stoop on 7 October 2000. He retired from playing after a benefit year organised at Harlequins in 2010 and returned to New Zealand.[2]
He won nine caps for Samoa and scored a try in his second game against New Zealand back in June 1999. He was a member of the Samoan squad at the 2007 Rugby World Cup finals.
Fuga opened a branch of Nando's in Ponsonby Road, Auckland, New Zealand on 6 September 2011 for the 2011 Rugby World Cup.[3]
References
- "The Big Bang". Rugby Unplugged. Retrieved 7 March 2021.
- "Winning end for Harlequins". PlanetRugby. 10 May 2010. Retrieved 7 March 2021.
- "Nando's franchise fight heats up". New Zealand Herald. 28 November 2013. Retrieved 7 March 2021.