Michael Fatialofa (born 14 September 1992) 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 it ...

player who currently plays as a

lock Lock(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainment * ''Lock ...

for

Worcester Warriors Worcester Warriors Rugby Football Club is a professional rugby union club, based in Worcester, England, that is currently in administration and which has been suspended and will be relegated from Premiership Rugby, the top division of domestic ...

in the Premiership.

Early career

Born in Auckland, Fatialofa was educated at Mount Albert Grammar School in his hometown where he played first XV rugby for 3 years and helped them to lift the Auckland Schools title in 2010. Rated as one of the top New Zealand lock prospects at the time, it came as something of a surprise when he opted to move to the country's far south to play club rugby with the Blues in Southland after he'd finished high school.

Senior career

He spent the first 4 years of his senior career playing provincial rugby for with whom he racked up 36 appearances. His first season with the Stags saw him play 3 times as they were relegated from the ITM Cup Premiership. The men from

Invercargill Invercargill ( , mi, Waihōpai is the southernmost and westernmost city in New Zealand, and one of the southernmost cities in the world. It is the commercial centre of the Southland region. The city lies in the heart of the wide expanse of t ...

finished 4th on the Championship log for the next three seasons which saw them qualify for the promotion playoffs, however, each time they lost at the semi-final stage to the eventual champions, going down to , and respectively. In

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and

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, he was a key figure in Southland's line up, playing all 22 matches across both seasons. He moved back home to ahead of 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 al ...

with the switch seeing him join one of New Zealand's traditional rugby powerhouses. He played 11 times in his first season with the blue and whites and scored his first ever provincial try to help his new side finish 2nd on the Premiership log and reach the playoff final where they would lose out 25-23 to .

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would not be such a happy year for Auckland as they finished up 5th on the Premiership log, missing out on the playoffs altogether, Fatialofa himself played in 8 of their 10 matches during the season. Four years of toil with Southland and an impressive season with Auckland saw him finally earn a Super Rugby contract with the

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by metr ...

-based ahead of the 2016 Super Rugby season. His first year in New Zealand's capital turned out to be a roaring success as he formed an impressive second row partnership with

Vaea Fifita Vaea Tangitau Lapota Fifita (born 17 June 1992) is a Tongan Rugby Union, rugby union player who currently plays for the Scarlets. Previously he was a Lock (rugby union), lock or Flanker (rugby union), loose forward for the in the international ...

as the 'Canes, beaten finalists in 2015, went one better in 2016 and were crowned Super Rugby champions following a 20-3 victory over South African side, the in the tournament final. Fatialofa played 15 times during his debut Super Rugby campaign. On 28 March 2018, Fatialofa signed for England club

in the Aviva Premiership on a two-year contract from the 2018-19 season. On 4 January 2020 he suffered a serious neck injury in a match against Saracens. He underwent surgery, and left intensive care on 23 January after which he was told to prepare for life in a wheelchair. In fact he was able to walk unaided by 21 March 2020; a recovery his wife described as miraculous: "proof that God is never limited to human wisdom."

International career

He was a New Zealand Schools representative in 2010. On 5 November 2016, he featured for the

Barbarians A barbarian (or savage) is someone who is perceived to be either uncivilized or primitive. The designation is usually applied as a generalization based on a popular stereotype; barbarians can be members of any nation judged by some to be les ...

in their 31-31 draw against at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 2002 to 2003. The stadium ...

. He played the entire 80 minutes in the number 5 jersey in a side containing his Hurricanes team-mates,

Reggie Goodes Norman Reginald Goodes (born 4 April 1991) is a former South African-born rugby union player who played as a prop for in New Zealand's domestic Mitre 10 Cup from 2010 to 2016 and for the in the international Super Rugby competition from 2012 t ...

and Brad Shields.

Career Honours

Hurricanes * Super Rugby -

Super Rugby Statistics

Personal life

Fatialofa is a committed Christian. He is married to Tatiana: he and his wife attend Freedom Church in Worcester.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fatialofa, Michael 1992 births Living people New Zealand rugby union players Rugby union locks Auckland rugby union players Southland rugby union players People educated at Mount Albert Grammar School Rugby union players from Auckland Hurricanes (rugby union) players Barbarian F.C. players