Nathan William Jeremy Hughes (born 10 June 1991) is a professional

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 ...

player who is currently playing in the Japan Rugby League One side Ricoh Black Rams having left Bristol Bears in 2022. Born in Fiji he qualified to play for

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

on residency and won 22 caps between 2016 and 2019, however due to the amendment in international selection by the WRU, Hughes hopes to participate in the France 2023 RWC for his home nation. He plays as a flanker, a number 8 or at

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 ...

Career

In 2009, Hughes was scouted by Athens Henare, the head of the PE department at

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 ...

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 ...

, during Kelston's tour of Fiji and went to the school on a partial scholarship. In his first year, Hughes scooped the Team Player of the Year Award. He also made the

Auckland rugby union team Auckland are a New Zealand professional rugby union team based in Auckland, New Zealand. The union was originally established in 1883, with the National Provincial Championship established in 1976. They now play in the reformed National Provinc ...

Under-18s team and followed this up by making the Auckland Under-20s team while still playing for Kelston Boys' High School 1st XV. This resulted in him joining the Auckland High Performance Academy. In January 2012, he returned to Fiji to take part in the invitational Uprising 7s, missing the New Zealand 7s team trials for the chance to represent Fiji. He played for the Auckland Invitational side coached by former Fiji 15s coach,

Wayne Pivac Wayne Pivac (born 1962) is a New Zealand rugby union coach. In November 2019 he replaced Warren Gatland as the Wales national team coach. A former sworn officer in the New Zealand Police, he was a constable at the Takapuna police station on A ...

. He also helped his Auckland side win the NZ 7s Championships in 2012. Nathan made his debut off the bench for Auckland against

Otago Otago (, ; mi, Ōtākou ) is a region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local government reg ...

in the

2011 ITM Cup The 2011 ITM Cup season was the sixth season of New Zealand's provincial rugby union competition since it turned professional in 2006. The regular season began on July 14, when Otago hosted North Harbour. It involved the top fourteen rugby uni ...

. In February 2013, he was selected by the then Fiji 15s coach,

Inoke Male Inoke Male (born 3 June 1963, in Nausori, Fiji), is a Fijian former rugby union footballer and former head coach of the Fijian national side. He played in the position of Number eight, but could also play Flanker during his playing career. Fi ...

to join the

Fiji Warriors The Fiji Warriors, also referred to as Fiji A, is a national representative rugby team of rugby union in Fiji. It is the second-tier side to the Fiji national team. The Warriors team is selected from players in the Fijian domestic competi ...

team for the 2013

Pacific Rugby Cup The World Rugby Pacific Challenge, formerly the IRB Pacific Rugby Cup, is an annual rugby union football tournament held in Oceania since 2006. It is contested by national 'A' teams (formed from the best locally based players, with most not alre ...

. He was named the Vice-captain of the Warriors' team which was skippered by winger

Nemani Nadolo Nemani Nadolo (formerly Ratu Nasiganiyavi; born 31 January 1988) is a Fijian-Australian rugby union player. He currently plays for New South Wales Waratahs in Super Rugby, usually as a wing or centre, and the Fiji national team. Nadolo was t ...

who went on to sign for

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 ...

. In March 2013, Hughes signed for English Premiership side,

Wasps A wasp is any insect of the narrow-waisted suborder Apocrita of the order Hymenoptera which is neither a bee nor an ant; this excludes the broad-waisted sawflies (Symphyta), which look somewhat like wasps, but are in a separate suborder. T ...

. Hughes had strong performances in the 2013–14 Premiership season and considered his international allegiance as he was eligible for Fiji, Samoa and also England in 2016. In March 2015, during the 2014–15 season, he was red carded (a career first) in the game against

Northampton Saints Northampton Saints (officially Northampton Rugby Football Club) is a professional rugby union club from Northampton, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. They were formed in 1880 as "Northampton St. James", ...

after his shin collided with

George North George Philip North (born 13 April 1992) is a Welsh professional rugby union player who plays for the Ospreys in the United Rugby Championship and the Wales national team. He has also represented the British & Irish Lions and currently has th ...

's head after he had scored a try, knocking him unconscious. He was handed a 3-week suspension but an appeal was lodged and he was cleared. His red card and three-week ban were judged to have been predicated more on the injury to North than the intent of the challenge. In January 2019, it was announced that Hughes had signed a three-year contract with

Bristol Bears 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 ...

beginning from the start of the 2019–20 season. In January 2022, having played some games for

Hartpury University R.F.C. Hartpury University RFC is an English rugby union club. The men's first team play in the second tier of the English rugby union league system, the RFU Championship, having won promotion from National League 1 at the end of the 2016–17 seaso ...

, he joined

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

on a short-term loan, winning the Player of the Match award in his first game in which Bath defeated Premiership champions Harlequins.

International career

In August 2016, Hughes was named in the provisional 45-man elite player squad (EPS) England squad for their pre-season training camp. On 30 September 2016 he was named in the training squad for the Autumn Internationals. In November 2016, he made his debut for England, coming off the bench against

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

to replace Tom Wood in the 53rd minute. He won twenty-two caps between 2016 and 2019 with his last coming against Scotland at Twickenham on 16 March 2019.

International tries

Personal life

Hughes was born and raised in

Lautoka Lautoka () is the second largest Local government in Fiji, city in Fiji. It is on the west coast of the island of Viti Levu, in the Ba Province of the Western Division, Fiji, Western Division. Lying in the heart of Fiji's sugar cane-growing r ...

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 ...

. He attended St Thomas High School in Lautoka and represented the school in

hockey Hockey is a term used to denote a family of various types of both summer and winter team sports which originated on either an outdoor field, sheet of ice, or dry floor such as in a gymnasium. While these sports vary in specific rules, numbers o ...

, which he played throughout most of his childhood. Hughes' father William Hughes represented Fiji at hockey. His uncle, Asaeli Hughes, is a dual international having represented Fiji at both 15s rugby and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

External links

*
Auckland Rugby

Wasps profile

NZ Yahoo profile

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hughes, Nathan 1991 births Wasps RFC players Bristol Bears players Hartpury University R.F.C. players Bath Rugby players Fijian rugby union players Living people Sportspeople from Lautoka Rugby union players from Ba Province Auckland rugby union players Fijian people of British descent Fijian people of I-Taukei Fijian descent England international rugby union players Rugby union flankers Rugby union number eights Rugby union locks Black Rams Tokyo players Expatriate rugby union players in Japan Fijian expatriate rugby union players