Orene Ai'i (born 23 September 1979) is a Samoan-born, New Zealand rugby union player who played as a first five-eighth and fullback for the Blues in Super Rugby and Northland in the ITM Cup. He is currently a player and assistant backs coach for the

LA Giltinis The LA Giltinis are a former Major League Rugby team based in Los Angeles, California, United States. The team was announced in 2020 and entered the league in the 2021 season as an expansion franchise. The Giltinis, named for a yet-to-be-released ...

in Major League Rugby (MLR).

Professional career

Ai'i made his professional rugby debut in 2000 against the

ACT Brumbies The ACT Brumbies (known from 2005–2022 as simply the Brumbies) is an Australian professional rugby union team based in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory (ACT), The team competes in Super Rugby and named for the feral horses which inh ...

. He previously played for

Toyota Verblitz Toyota Verblitz is a Japanese rugby union team in the Japan Rugby League One. Verblitz is a portmanteau of ''verde'' (Spanish and Portuguese for 'green') and ''blitz'' (German for 'lightning'). The team is owned by Toyota Motor Corporation and is ...

in Japan and

Toulon Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

. Starting in August 2016, he played fly-half/fullback for the San Francisco Rush in

PRO Rugby Pro is an abbreviation meaning "professional". Pro, PRO or variants thereof may also refer to: People * Miguel Pro (1891–1927), Mexican priest * Pro Hart (1928–2006), Australian painter * Mlungisi Mdluli (born 1980), South African retire ...

, America's first professional rugby league. Ai'i re-joined the Blues as an injury cover after his contract with

was completed.

Honours

* 2003 Super Rugby champion – Blues * IRB Sevens World Series player of the year – 2004-05 season

References

External links

*
The Blues: Orene Ai'i
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ai'i, Orene New Zealand rugby union players Samoan rugby union players 1979 births Living people Blues (Super Rugby) players Auckland rugby union players Northland rugby union players Hurricanes (rugby union) players RC Toulon players Toyota Verblitz players Rugby union fullbacks Rugby union fly-halves Samoa international rugby sevens players People educated at Otahuhu College Expatriate rugby union players in Japan Expatriate rugby union players in France Rugby union players from Apia San Francisco Rush players New Zealand international rugby sevens players LA Giltinis players Samoan emigrants to New Zealand