Papali'itele Peter Momoe Fatialofa ( Samoan: ''Pita Fatialofa'') (26 April 1959 – 6 November 2013) was a Samoan

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby league: 13 players per side *** Masters Rugby League *** Mod league *** Rugby league nines *** Rugby league sevens *** Touch (sport) *** Wheelchair rugby league ** Rugby union: 1 ...

player who captained Samoa in their first Rugby World Cup appearance in 1991. He was among the first of the New Zealand-based players to represent Samoa. He was nicknamed ''Fats''.

Early life

Fatialofa's father is from Lepa Aleipata, Samoa and his mother from Samoa too, but all his life was raised from his mother's side. Fatialofa was born in Auckland, but returned to Samoa when he was still at primary school.

Career

Fatialofa began his senior rugby career in Auckland playing for the Grafton Club as a 19-year-old in the Auckland Senior B competition. He transferred to the Ponsonby club in 1981, winning the Gallaher Shield eight times with that team between 1981 and 1995. He played 72 representative games for Auckland and was part of their

Ranfurly Shield The Ranfurly Shield, colloquially known as the Log o' Wood, is a trophy in New Zealand's domestic rugby union competition. First played for in 1904, the Shield is based on a challenge system. The holding union must defend the shield in challeng ...

reign from 1985 to 1993. In the late 80s and in the early 90s, he also played for

L'Aquila Rugby L'Aquila Rugby 1936 was an Italian rugby union club based in L'Aquila, the capital of Abruzzo. The official colours of the club were black and green, the colours of the city of L'Aquila. The club went into liquidation and disbanded in 2018. Hi ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. Fatialofa debuted for Samoa against Ireland in a test match on 29 October in their 1988 tour of Wales and Ireland. He first captained Samoa in 1989 and led them at the

1991 Rugby World Cup The 1991 Rugby World Cup was the second edition of the Rugby World Cup, and was jointly hosted by England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland and France: at the time, the five European countries who participated in the Five Nations Championship. This was ...

. They lost to Scotland in the quarter-finals 28–6. Fatialofa last played for Samoa against Fiji in Suva on 20 July 1996. ''Fats: Peter Fatialofa and the Manu Samoa Story'' an autobiography was published and released the same year. He subsequently worked as a director for his family-owned piano and furniture moving business. Fatialofa died of a heart attack in

Apia Apia () is the capital and largest city of Samoa, as well as the nation's only city. It is located on the central north coast of Upolu, Samoa's second-largest island. Apia falls within the political district (''itūmālō'') of Tuamasaga. ...

on 6 November 2013.Samoan rugby great Peter Fatialofa dies
''3 News NZ''. 6 November 2013.

Honours

In the 1996 Queen's Birthday Honours, Fatialofa was appointed a

Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have ren ...

, for services to rugby. In 2019, Fatialofa was inducted into the

World Rugby Hall of Fame The World Rugby Hall of Fame (formerly the IRB Hall of Fame) recognises special achievement and contribution to the sport of rugby union. The World Rugby Hall of Fame covers players, coaches, administrators, match officials, institutions and other ...

, alongside

Richie McCaw Richard Hugh McCaw (born 31 December 1980) is a retired New Zealand professional rugby union player. He captained the national team, the All Blacks, in 110 out of his 148 test matches, and won two Rugby World Cups. He has won the World Rugb ...

, Shiggy Konno, Os du Randt, Sir Graham Henry, and

Diego Ormaechea Diego Ormaechea (born 19 July 1959) is a former Uruguayan rugby union player and a current coach. He played as a number eight. Ormaechea is considered the greatest Uruguayan rugby player of all time. His contribution to rugby has been significan ...

.New rugbiers in the Hall of Fame
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fatialofa, Peter 1959 births 2013 deaths Rugby union players from Auckland New Zealand sportspeople of Samoan descent New Zealand rugby union players Samoan expatriate sportspeople in Italy Samoa international rugby union players Auckland rugby union players Rugby union props Members of the New Zealand Order of Merit