Koli Sewabu (born 15 January 1975 in
Nausori
Nausori () is a town in Fiji. It had a population of 57,866 at the 2017 census. This makes it the fourth most populous municipality in the country. Situated 19 kilometers outside of Suva, it forms one pole of the burgeoning Suva-Nausori corrido ...
) is a
Fiji
Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...
an
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 ...
footballer. He plays as a
Flanker or a
No. 8.
Career
Sewabu started in his early playing days of secondary school rugby at first-five, wing and fullback. He later switched to flanker/No. 8 when he left school, a move welcomed by his former mentor Buck Shelford due to his tackling ferocity and clinical play. He played for Rewa Colts, Tailevu Development XV, Malolo in the Fiji B Division Comp before he pursued a Diploma in Tourism Studies in Auckland, NZ in 1997. In between his visits to Fiji, he played for
Naitasiri
:see also Naitasiri District
Naitasiri is one of the 14 provinces of Fiji and one of eight located on Viti Levu, Fiji's largest island.
Geography and infrastructure
Naitasiri covers an area of , and occupies the area mostly to the north of Suva, ...
in the
Digicel Cup. In 1998, he was selected into the Fiji team tour of UK under coach Brad Johnsstone where he played matches for the Fiji team against European clubs like
Leeds Tykes
Leeds Tykes (formerly Leeds RUFC, Leeds Carnegie and Yorkshire Carnegie) is an English rugby union club in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, playing in the National League 1.
The club was founded as Headingley FC, but renamed in 1991 when it j ...
and
Leicester Tigers
Leicester Tigers (officially Leicester Football Club) are a professional rugby union club based in Leicester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby.
The club was founded in 1880 and since 1892 plays its hom ...
. He earned his first cap in May 1999 against
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
in the
Epson Cup. He made the Fiji team to the
1999 Rugby World Cup. He played in all four of Fiji’s RWC99 games. He set up the match-winning try to
Marika Vunibaka
Marika "Dawainavesi" Vunibaka (born 3 November 1974) is a Fijian former rugby union player. He represented the Fiji national team on numerous occasions, including at the 1999 Rugby World Cup in Wales and the 2003 Rugby World Cup in Australia.
...
against Canada. He played for
North Shore under then coach,
Buck Shelford
Sir Wayne Thomas "Buck" Shelford (born 13 December 1957) is a former New Zealand rugby union footballer and coach who represented and captained New Zealand (the All Blacks) in the late 1980s. He is also credited with revitalising the performance ...
. He attained a business degree while staying at
Massey University
Massey University ( mi, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa) is a university based in Palmerston North, New Zealand, with significant campuses in Albany and Wellington. Massey University has approximately 30,883 students, 13,796 of whom are extramural or ...
. He left for France in 2000 and joined French
Top 14
The Top 14 () is a professional rugby union club competition that is played in France. Created in 1892, the Top 14 is at the top of the national league system operated by the French National Rugby League, also known by its French initialism o ...
side,
Bordeaux Bègles. He even played at centre for the club. He was also part of the
2003 Fiji rugby union tours.
He signed or European giants,
Gloucester
Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...
in 2001. In 2003, he joined Japanese side,
Yamaha Jubilo
Shizuoka Blue Revs (formerly the Yamaha Júbilo) are a rugby union team based in Iwata, Shizuoka, Japan. The team came second behind Toshiba Brave Lupus in the second season of Japanese rugby's Top League (2004–05). They were coached by former ...
. He returned to NZ and joined
NPC side,
Manawatu Turbos. He ended his rugby career in
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
. While at Gloucester he was a replacement in the
2002 Zurich Championship Final (the year before winning the play-offs constituted winning the English title) in which Gloucester defeated
Bristol Rugby
Bristol Bears (officially Bristol Rugby Club or Bristol Rugby) are a professional rugby union club based in Bristol, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby.
The club was founded as Bristol Football Club in 18 ...
.
After Retirement
He coached Feilding Rugby Club for 2 seasons and Freyberg Rugby for a season. He assisted Kia Toa RFC after Freyberg and helped them win the Hankins Shield. He pursued his degree at Massey, majoring in Sport and Exercise Science. He also helped coach Manawatu U18s and U20s. He started his sports management and coaching consultancy business called Vunilagi Pasifika Ltd. and has been involved as a technical adviser to a number of teams around the globe. Currently, he assists the Massey University Rugby CLub as a technical advisor. His personal goal is to go back to Fiji and coach the national team at and 2019 Rugby World Cup. He has transitioned well from professional rugby, with investment properties and business initiatives. Sewabu has an interest in using sports, rugby in particular as a tool for socio-economic development, and has been involved in a number of projects and research in the area of financial literacy and socio-economic development.
He graduated with an Executive
Masters in Business Administration
A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...
at
Massey University
Massey University ( mi, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa) is a university based in Palmerston North, New Zealand, with significant campuses in Albany and Wellington. Massey University has approximately 30,883 students, 13,796 of whom are extramural or ...
in 2013 and he is also trying to help Fijian and Pacific rugby players manage their finances.
Fiji team
*27 caps 3 tries
5 points(36 games 5 tries) and a racked up a total of approximately 320 first class games, including test matches, Fiji Provincial championships, European Cup & Shield, Japan Top League and NZ Provincial Championship.
References
External links
*
Official siteFiji Rugby profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sewabu, Koli
1975 births
Living people
People from Nausori
Fijian rugby union players
Rugby union flankers
Rugby union number eights
Fiji international rugby union players
I-Taukei Fijian people
Massey University alumni
Fijian expatriate sportspeople in England
Fijian expatriate sportspeople in Japan
Fijian expatriate sportspeople in France
Fijian expatriate sportspeople in New Zealand
Fijian expatriate rugby union players
CA Bordeaux-Bègles Gironde players
Gloucester Rugby players
Shizuoka Blue Revs players