Lepani Nabuliwaqa (born 4 June 1980, in

Suva Suva () is the capital and largest city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rewa Province, Central Divi ...

), nicknamed Leps, 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 ...

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

wing A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expres ...

Career

Nabuliwaqa was an influential member of the Red Rock sevens team which participated in Fiji domestic sevens competition in 2003-04 season. He made his debut for the Fiji sevens team when he replaced Vima Tuidraki at the 2006

USA Sevens The USA Sevens is a rugby sevens tournament held annually during March in the United States. The USA Sevens is the largest annual rugby competition in North America, drawing over 60,000 fans, and is broadcast live in the United States by ESPN. ...

. He copped a six-week ban for a dangerous tackle but still he made the 12-man squad for the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

. He took over as the playmaker in the 2005/06

IRB Sevens World Series The World Rugby Men's Sevens Series is an annual series of international rugby sevens tournaments run by World Rugby featuring national sevens teams. Organised for the first time in the 1999–2000 season as the IRB World Sevens Series, the com ...

and became one of Fiji's star performers. He was later given the Digicel Fiji sevens best player award ahead of

Sireli Naqelevuki Sireli Masibalavu Naqelevuki (born 30 September 1980, in Suva, Fiji) plays as a Prop (rugby union), prop in rugby sevens but in traditional 15s he is a Rugby union/wing, wing or Rugby union/centre, centre. He made his rugby sevens debut in 2002 ...

and Dale Tonawai at the

Fiji Rugby Union Fiji Rugby Union (FRU) is the governing body for the sport of rugby union in Fiji. It is divided into over 30 provincial unions. The Fiji Rugby Union is a member of the Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance (PIRA), along with Samoa and Tonga. There are a ...

annual awards. Nabuliwaqa played 15s and 7s for Nakasi, and was recruited by Lote Rasiga into the Red Rock team at the Nataleira 7s tournament joining the likes of

Sireli Bobo Isireli Bobo (born 28 January 1976), is a Fijian rugby union footballer. Early career Early in his career, he played for Grupo Dramático e Sportivo Cascais, a Portuguese team. He was in the Nawaqavesi 7s and was subsequently picked to play at ...

, Manasa Bola, Neumi Cakacaka and Aporosa Dauvucu. For the 2012 and 2013 season played 15s fo
The South Darwin Rabbitohs
and made Sevens appearances for th
Country King Browns
Sourc
King Browns Facebook
/ref> Leps has been named in the Squad for the King Browns in the 2014 Hottest Sevens In Darwin, Australia.

References

External links

* 1980 births Living people Fijian rugby union players Rugby union wings Rugby union centres Male rugby sevens players Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for Fiji Rugby sevens players at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Fiji international rugby sevens players Sportspeople from Suva I-Taukei Fijian people Commonwealth Games medallists in rugby sevens Commonwealth Games rugby sevens players of Fiji Medallists at the 2006 Commonwealth Games {{Fiji-rugbyunion-bio-stub