Brad Hepi (born February 11, 1972) is a New Zealand

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

player who played professionally in both England and Australia.

Early years

Hepi attended

Kelston Boys' High School Kelston Boys' High School ("KBHS") (Te kura tuarua o nga tamatane o kerehana) is an all-boys state secondary school in Kelston, a suburb in the Waitakere region of Auckland, New Zealand. It was created in 1963 when the roll of Kelston High Scho ...

and captained their first XV

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 ...

team.

Playing career

Hepi played in the

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...

and

1988 Pacific Cup The 1988 Pacific Cup was the fourth edition of the Pacific Cup, a rugby league tournament held between Pacific teams. The tournament was hosted by Western Samoa and eventually won by the New Zealand Māori side, who defeated Western Samoa 26-16 i ...

s for the New Zealand Māori. In 1989 he moved to England, joining

Carlisle RLFC Carlisle RLFC were a rugby league team based in Carlisle, Cumbria. The club was called Carlisle Border Raiders for the 1997 season, after which it merged with Barrow Braves. History Early rugby league in Carlisle ''Carlisle City'', based at ...

. He then had a very successful spell with

Workington Town Workington Town R.L.F.C. is a semi-professional rugby league club playing in Workington in west Cumbria. Their stadium is Derwent Park, which they share with Workington Comets, a speedway team. They became Rugby League Champions in 1951 and ...

which saw the club promoted from the third division to the first in two seasons, winning the Divisional Premiership against London Broncos along the way. Town initially struggled in the top flight and found themselves at the bottom of the league at Christmas 1994. But an early-January 36-10 win over Halifax, with Hepi man of the match, was the turning point. From there, they rose from 16th to 9th – a position which saw them qualify for the first Super League season in 1996. At the end of the 1994-95 campaign, Hepi moved to Australia, signing with the

Illawarra Steelers The Illawarra Steelers are an Australian rugby league football club based in the city of Wollongong, New South Wales. The club competed in Australia's top-level rugby league competition from 1982 until 1998. On the 13th of December 1980, the ...

for their 1996 season. He returned to Derwent Park in 1997, but couldn't prevent Town's relegation to the professional game's bottom tier. Nevertheless, for what he did in his first spell at the club, Hepi is fondly remembered in Workington. In 1998 he played for

Hull F.C. Hull Football Club, commonly referred to as Hull or Hull F.C., is a professional rugby league football club established in 1865 and based in West Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The club plays in the Super League competition and were ...

Super League III JJB Sports Super League III was the official name for the year 1998's Super League championship season, the 104th season of top-level professional rugby league football in Britain, and the third season played in summer. The League format changed i ...

. Hepi then had spells with the

Castleford Tigers The Castleford Tigers are a professional rugby league club in Castleford, West Yorkshire, England, that compete in the Super League, the top-level professional rugby league club competition in the Northern Hemisphere. The club have competed i ...

( Heritage № 762) (1999 and 2001),

Featherstone Rovers Featherstone Rovers are a professional rugby league club in Featherstone, West Yorkshire, England, who play in the Championship (rugby league), Championship. Featherstone is a former coal mining town with a population of around 16,000 and Rover ...

(2000),

Salford City Reds The Salford Red Devils are a professional rugby league club in Salford, Greater Manchester, England, who play in the Super League. Formed in 1873, they have won six Championships and one Challenge Cup. Their home ground since 2012 has been t ...

(2000) and

Doncaster Doncaster (, ) is a city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, it is the administrative centre of the larger City of Doncaster. It is the second largest settlement in South Yorkshire after Sheffield. Doncaster is situated in ...

(2001) before retiring.Brad Hepi
''rugbyleagueproject.org'' Although retired a few years Hepi has made a few cameo appearances for the

Gloucestershire All Golds Gloucestershire All Golds is a rugby league team based at the University of Gloucestershire, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. University of Gloucestershire All Golds consists of six different teams, with the first team entering Kingstone Press ...

in the 2013 season.Brad Hepi coaching Gloucestershire All Golds
''rlcm.com.au'', 30 November 2012

Later years

Hepi was appointed coach of the Gloucestershire All-Golds for the 2013 season. He coached the side in their first season of the Kingstone Press Championship 1 league where they reached bottom place. In the 2014 kingstonpress championship one season he saw the side into the first seven-game before stepping down from the position, stating he had taken the side as far as he could. His son, Tyla Hepi, has played in the

Auckland Rugby League The Auckland Rugby League (ARL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in the Auckland Region of New Zealand. It is responsible for rugby league in the region, including both club and school rugby league. It began in 1910 when the fi ...

competition for the

Point Chevalier Pirates The Point Chevalier Pirates are an Auckland rugby league club based in Point Chevalier. The Pirates currently compete in the Fox Memorial (First Division) competition run by the Auckland Rugby League. History The club was founded in 1919."Yo ...

.Into his league
''theaucklander.co.nz'', 11 August 2011 He also played under his father at the Gloucestershire All-Golds whilst on loan from Hull Kingston Rovers.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hepi, Brad 1968 births Living people Carlisle RLFC players Castleford Tigers players Doncaster R.L.F.C. players Featherstone Rovers players Glenora Bears players Gloucestershire All Golds coaches Gloucestershire All Golds players Hull F.C. players Illawarra Steelers players New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in England New Zealand Māori rugby league players New Zealand Māori rugby league team players New Zealand rugby league coaches New Zealand rugby league players People educated at Kelston Boys' High School Place of birth missing (living people) Rugby league hookers Salford Red Devils players Workington Town players Rugby articles needing expert attention