Atunaisa Moli (born 12 June 1995) is a

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

player who currently plays as a

Prop A prop, formally known as (theatrical) property, is an object used on stage or screen by actors during a performance or screen production. In practical terms, a prop is considered to be anything movable or portable on a stage or a set, distinct ...

for the in

Super Rugby Super Rugby is a men's professional rugby union club competition involving teams from Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. It previously included teams from Argentina, Japan, and South Africa. Building on various Southern Hem ...

and in the

Bunnings NPC Bunnings Group Limited, trading as Bunnings Warehouse or Bunnings, is an Australian household hardware chain. The chain has been owned by Wesfarmers since 1994, and has stores in Australia and New Zealand. Bunnings was founded in Perth, Wester ...

. He has represented the New Zealand national rugby union team the

All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987 ...

. Starting his career as a Tighthead Prop, Moli converted to Loosehead Prop during his professional career. Moli made his debut for New Zealand in 2017, earning a recall in 2019 after a spell of injury and made their team for the

2019 Rugby World Cup The 2019 Rugby World Cup was the ninth edition of the Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's rugby union teams. It was hosted in Japan from 20 September to 2 November in 12 venues all across the country. The opening match ...

Early career

Moli was born in the

North Island The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-largest ...

town of Gisborne, but attended

Marlborough Boys' College Marlborough Boys' College is a state single-sex secondary school in Blenheim, New Zealand. The school was established as Marlborough High School in 1899 (renamed Marlborough College in 1919). The school its current form in was established in 1963 ...

in the

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

town of Blenheim. He is of Tongan descent. While attending college, he represented

Marlborough Marlborough may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Marlborough, Wiltshire, England ** Marlborough College, public school * Marlborough School, Woodstock in Oxfordshire, England * The Marlborough Science Academy in Hertfordshire, England Austral ...

at under 16 and at under 18 level before moving to

Waikato Waikato () is a Regions of New Zealand, local government region of the upper North Island of New Zealand. It covers the Waikato District, Waipa District, Matamata-Piako District, South Waikato District and Hamilton, New Zealand, Hamilton City ...

after graduation and representing them at under 19 level.

Senior career

Moli debuted for Waikato during the

2015 ITM Cup Fifteen or 15 may refer to: *15 (number), the natural number following 14 and preceding 16 *one of the years 15 BC, AD 15, 1915, 2015 Music *Fifteen (band), a punk rock band Albums * ''15'' (Buckcherry album), 2005 * ''15'' (Ani Lorak album ...

in a match against on 14 August after starring as a school boy. Hindered by a foot injury, he only played 6 games during his first season of provincial level rugby, 2 of which were from the start.

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

again saw him make 6 appearances, this time however, they were all from the start as he began to make the number 1 jersey his own. In

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

Moli made his debut for against at

Lansdowne Park Lansdowne Park is a urban park, historic sports, exhibition and entertainment facility in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, owned by the City of Ottawa. It is located on Bank Street adjacent to the Rideau Canal in The Glebe neighbourhood of central Otta ...

in Blenheim. Moli missed the

2020 Mitre 10 Cup The 2020 Mitre 10 Cup season was the fifteenth season of New Zealand's provincial rugby union competition since it turned professional in 2006. The regular season began on September 11, when North Harbour hosted Canterbury. It involved the top ...

with injury as the Mako went on to win their second premiership title in a row. He played for the Mako during the

2021 Bunnings NPC The 2021 Bunnings NPC season was the sixteenth season of New Zealand's provincial rugby union competition since it turned professional in 2006. The regular season began on August 6, when Manawatu hosted Counties Manukau. It involved the top f ...

but again suffered an injury before the end of the season.

Super Rugby

After just 6 games at provincial level, Moli made the Chiefs Super Rugby squad for the

2016 Super Rugby season The 2016 Super Rugby season was the 21st season of Super Rugby and the first season featuring an expanded 18-team format. It was also the first season that teams outside Australia, New Zealand and South Africa featured, with the Jaguares from Ar ...

, debuting in a match against the in

Port Elizabeth Gqeberha (), formerly Port Elizabeth and colloquially often referred to as P.E., is a major seaport and the most populous city in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is the seat of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality, Sou ...

. A season ending injury to

Nepo Laulala Nepo Eti Laulala (born 6 November 1991) is a New Zealand rugby union footballer who plays as a Tighthead Prop for Counties Manukau Steelers in the Mitre 10 Cup, the Blues in Super Rugby and for the national All Blacks, having made his interna ...

meant that he received more game time during his debut season than he might have otherwise expected, playing 10 times and scoring 1 try. He was retained by the side for the

2017 Super Rugby season The 2017 Super Rugby season was the 22nd season of Super Rugby, an annual rugby union competition organised by SANZAAR between teams from Argentina, Australia, Japan, New Zealand and South Africa. It was the second season featuring an expand ...

. Moli missed the whole

2018 Super Rugby season The 2018 Super Rugby season was the 23rd season of Super Rugby, an annual rugby union competition organised by SANZAAR between teams from Argentina, Australia, Japan, New Zealand and South Africa. After two seasons in which 18 teams participate ...

due to a leg injury. He forced his way back into the first choice team during the

2019 Super Rugby season The 2019 Super Rugby season was the 24th season of Super Rugby, an annual rugby union competition organised by SANZAAR between teams from Argentina, Australia, Japan, New Zealand and South Africa. The 2019 season was the second season using the ...

, establishing himself as one of the Chiefs best performers during the season. After over a year injured Moli returned to the Chiefs side in Round 2 of the

Super Rugby Trans-Tasman Super Rugby Trans-Tasman (known as Harvey Norman Super Rugby Trans-Tasman in Australia and Sky Super Rugby Trans-Tasman in New Zealand) was a professional men's rugby union club competition in Australia and New Zealand. It featured the five Sup ...

competition, coming off the bench in a 40-19 win for the side - however that was the only match he played during the

2021 Super Rugby season The 2021 Super Rugby season was the 26th season of Super Rugby, an annual men's international rugby union tournament organised by SANZAAR, involving teams from Australia and New Zealand. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic the tournament was wholly reg ...

International

Moli represented New Zealand Schools in 2013 and was a member of the New Zealand Under 20 teams which competed in the

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

and

2015 World Rugby Under 20 Championship The 2015 World Rugby Under 20 Championship was the eighth annual international rugby union competition for Under 20 national teams. The event was organised for the second time in Italy by rugby's governing body, World Rugby. Twelve nations played i ...

s. He appeared 5 times as New Zealand finished third in 2014 and made another 5 appearances, this time as captain as the Kiwis lifted the title in 2015 with a 21-16 victory over England in the final. Moli was selected as a non playing "Apprentice" in the All Blacks squad for the

2017 Rugby Championship The 2017 Rugby Championship was the sixth edition of the expanded annual southern hemisphere Rugby Championship, featuring Argentina, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand. The competition is operated by SANZAAR, a joint venture of the four c ...

. Moli was only the third New Zealander to be selected for the All Blacks as an apprentice, following

Ardie Savea Ardie Suemalo Savea (born 14 October 1993) is a rugby union player who plays as a flanker or number 8 for in the ITM Cup, the Hurricanes in Super Rugby and international rugby for the New Zealand All Blacks. Savea was a member of New Zealan ...

who was an apprentice in 2013 and

Jordie Barrett Jordan Matthew Barrett (born 17 February 1997) is a New Zealand rugby union player who currently plays as a Centre (rugby union), utility back internationally for New Zealand's All Blacks, and for the Wellington Hurricanes, Hurricanes in the Sup ...

who held the title in 2016. After injuries to Joe Moody and

Owen Franks Owen Thomas Franks (born 23 December 1987) is a New Zealand rugby player who currently plays for Hurricanes (rugby union), Hurricanes in the Super Rugby competition. His usual position is tighthead prop. Franks has previously represented the C ...

, the All Blacks coaches had to seek more depth for the end of year tour. This meant that after starting in a 31-22 loss against the All Blacks for the Barbarians coached by

Robbie Deans Robert Maxwell Deans (born 4 September 1959) is a New Zealand rugby union coach and former player, currently the head coach of Japanese club Panasonic Wild Knights. He was head coach of the Australian national team between 2008 and 2013. Deans had ...

on 4 November, Moli joined the All Blacks squad again, making his debut for New Zealand against a French side 10 days later, replacing

Tim Perry Timothy D. Perry (born June 4, 1965) is an American former basketball player. Following his college career with Temple he played professionally for 13 seasons in the National Basketball Association and Liga ACB. Playing career Perry played colle ...

with 23 minutes left. Moli was one of six players to make their All Blacks debut in the 28-23 win. In 2019, Moli was recalled into the All Blacks squad, named to play Argentina at Jose Amalfitani Stadium (Estadio Velez Sarsfield) in Buenos Aires on Saturday 20 July as part of

The Rugby Championship The Rugby Championship is an international rugby union competition contested annually by Argentina, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. These are the four highest ranked national teams in the Southern Hemisphere; the Six Nations is a s ...

. He made his test debut in the 60th minute of the game, replacing Ofa Tu'ungafasi. With experienced props,

Karl Tu'inukuafe George Zvi Karl Tu'inukuafe (born 21 February 1993) is a New Zealand rugby union player who currently plays for the in Super Rugby, and for North Harbour in the Mitre 10 Cup. His position of choice is loosehead prop. He has previously repres ...

and

, axed from the team, Moli also earned an appearance off the bench against Australia during a 26-47 loss. In August 2019, Moli was named in the All Blacks squad for the

. Moli earned his first start for the All Blacks in the sides 63-0 win over Canada, lasting the whole 80 minutes of the test. Moli played one more test during the competition, coming off the bench against Wales in the Bronze Final, with New Zealand winning 40-17 to claim third place.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Moli, Atunaisa 1995 births Living people Barbarian F.C. players Chiefs (rugby union) players New Zealand international rugby union players New Zealand people of Tongan descent New Zealand rugby union players People educated at Marlborough Boys' College Rugby union players from Gisborne, New Zealand Rugby union props Tasman rugby union players University of Waikato alumni Waikato rugby union players