Tu'iono Siosiua "Josh" Liava'a (10 May 1948 – 13 July 2014) was a

Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...

n-born

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 represented

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 ...

in the 1975 World Cup.

Playing career

Northcote Tigers The Northcote Tigers are a rugby league club based in Northcote, Auckland, Northcote, New Zealand. The club was founded in 1910 as the Northcote Warriors though they became known as the Northcote Ramblers shortly afterwards.John Haynes ''From A ...

player 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, Liava'a played for

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

and in 1975 was picked in the

New Zealand national rugby league team The New Zealand national rugby league team (Māori: Tīma rīki motu Aotearoa) has represented New Zealand in rugby league since 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the native bird of ...

for the 1975 World Cup. In 1977 Liava'a played for New Zealand Māori in the

Pacific Cup The Pacific Cup was a rugby league football competition for national teams from the Pacific region. History The Pacific Cup was started in 1975 by Keith Gittoes of the New South Wales Rugby League.New Zealand Police The New Zealand Police ( mi, Ngā Pirihimana o Aotearoa) is the national police service and principal law enforcement agency of New Zealand, responsible for preventing crime, enhancing public safety, bringing offenders to justice, and maintai ...

. He was a detective and later a uniform branch sergeant. He completed a Diploma of Criminology at Auckland University. During the early 1980's, he and fellow police officer; inspector Ross Meurant, established a private security company which they registered in the names of their wives, to avoid being "Court Martialed" for conflicts of interests. Maiden Security operated for 5 years until Meurant entered parliament as an MP in 1987. After leaving the police, Liava'a ran a nightclub in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

. Liava'a was married several times, including to: *Princess Siuilikutapu of Tonga, a niece of Tongan monarch

Tāufaʻāhau Tupou IV Tāufaʻāhau Tupou IV (born Siaosi Tāufaʻāhau Tupoulahi; 4 July 1918 – 10 September 2006) was the King of Tonga, from the death of his mother, Queen Sālote Tupou III, in 1965 until his own death in 2006. Immediately prior to his death, ...

; they married in November 1969. The king was reportedly furious and lured the princess back to Tonga, where she was kept under palace arrest. The marriage was annulled by royal decree. *Levaai Nancy Wolfgramm, a cousin of the Olympic silver medallist boxer

Paea Wolfgramm Paea Wolfgramm (born December 1, 1969) is a Tongan retired boxer. Nicknamed "The Tongan Warrior", Wolfgramm won the Super Heavyweight silver medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics, making him the first athlete from Tonga to win an Olympic medal. P ...

. The couple married in 1971. In the 1980s Liava'a reportedly had an affair with Tāufaʻāhau Tupou IV's only daughter, Princess Pilolevu Tuita. He died from a gunshot in Hawaii on 13 July 2014."Joshua Tu’iono Liava’a dies following shooting incident"
, 15/07/2014, Kaniva Pacific

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Liavaa, Josh 1948 births 2014 deaths Tongan rugby league players New Zealand Māori rugby league team players New Zealand national rugby league team players Tongan emigrants to New Zealand Northcote Tigers players Auckland rugby league team players New Zealand police officers Rugby league second-rows