 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Epalahame Vealoloko Lauaki [1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 27 January 1984 Ha'apai, Tonga | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 184 cm (6 ft 0 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 109 kg (17 st 2 lb) [2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Second-row, Lock, Prop | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Epalahame "Hame" Lauaki (born 27 January 1984) is a Tongan former professional rugby league footballer who last played for the Bradford Bulls in the Championship. [3]
Lauaki was born in Ha'apai, Tonga.
He is the brother of former All Black Sione Lauaki. [5] He is the cousin of rugby league and union star Tevita Vaikona. [6]
Lauaki was educated at Waitakere College and then at Kelston Boys High School and played for the Waitemata Seagulls [7] and Glenora Bears [5] in the Auckland Rugby League competition.
He was signed by the New Zealand Warriors and made his first grade début on 14 March 2004 against Brisbane Broncos at Suncorp Stadium. During his Warriors career he was used mainly as an interchange player, starting only ten games in sixty nine appearances. When not selected for the first grade side, Lauaki played for the Waitakere Rangers in the Bartercard Cup and the Auckland Lions and Auckland Vulcans in the NSW Cup.
In 2007 he signed a three-year extension with the Warriors, making him a Warrior until the end of the 2010 season. [8]
On 23 February 2009 it was announced that Lauaki had been released by the Warriors so he could sign a 3-year deal to play for Hull F.C. in the Super League.
He made his Super League début for Hull against Harlequins RL on 21 August 2009 and has since made himself a crowd favourite at the KC Stadium. [9]
After finally arriving at the KC Stadium late in 2009, Lauaki made his intentions clear with a number of brutally committed displays. The hard-working, powerful second-rower or prop forward will provide some serious physicality, along with good feet and a great offload and many teams will fear him this season. Those attributes were epitomised in 2010, with a stunning hand off on Leon Pryce to score against St. Helens on the opening day of the season, before a similar try against Salford later that year as he held off four men to touch down.
Lauaki joined Wigan in 2012. He made 35 appearances for the club, scoring two tries, before being released in January 2014. [10] He signed with the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles, but did not play a game and was released at the end of 2014.
2015 - 2015 Season
Lauaki signed for Bradford on a 2 Year Deal. He did not feature in any of the pre-season friendlies.
He featured in Round 3 (Featherstone Rovers) then in Round 5 (Batley Bulldogs) to Round 7 (Halifax). He played in Round 9 (London Broncos) then in Round 11 (Sheffield Eagles) to Round 18 (Workington Town). He played in Round 21 (Sheffield Eagles) to Round 23 (Halifax). Lauaki played in Qualifier 1 (Sheffield Eagles) to Qualifier 7 (Halifax). Epalahame played in the £1 Million Game against Wakefield Trinity Wildcats. He also featured in the Challenge Cup in Round 4 (Workington Town). He scored against Workington Town (1 try).
2016 - 2016 Season
Lauaki featured in the pre-season friendlies against Leeds Rhinos and Castleford Tigers.
He featured in Round 1 (Featherstone Rovers) then in Round 16 (Dewsbury Rams) to Round 18 (Batley Bulldogs). He played in Round 20 (Leigh Centurions) and then in Round 22 (Oldham R.L.F.C.). Lauaki played in the Championship Shield Game 1 (Whitehaven) then in Game 3 (Oldham R.L.F.C.) to Game 4 (Dewsbury Rams). He scored against Oldham R.L.F.C. (1 try).
Statistics do not include pre-season friendlies.
| Season | Appearance | Tries | Goals | F/G | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 Bradford Bulls | 24 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 2016 Bradford Bulls | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Total | 33 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
In 2006 Lauaki was named in the New Zealand 'A' team that played against an Australian Invitational side. [11] In 2007 Lauaki was then named in the New Zealand national rugby league team squad for the tour of Great Britain. He played in two tests for the Kiwis and also played in the All Golds match.
Lauaki then decided to switch his international allegiance to the nation of his birth, Tonga. In August 2008, Lauaki was named in the Tongan training squad for the 2008 Rugby League World Cup, [12] and in October 2008 he was named in the final 24-man Tonga squad. [13] He played in three games at the tournament as well as a warm up game against the New Zealand national rugby league team.
Lauaki is the third eldest from a total of nine siblings. His parents Kepu and Mele Fale Lauaki both come from Tonga. His immediate family reside in Auckland, New Zealand.
Lauaki married Renee (née Halapua) from Hihifo, Tonga, whom he met in Auckland, New Zealand. They have two boys together, the eldest, Kepu Lauaki Jr, who is named after his father, and his second son, Mana'ia Lauaki who was born in 2011. [14] Lauaki and his family resided in England until returning to New Zealand after Sione's passing in 2017.
Lauaki is good friends with fellow Hull F.C. and Tonga team mates Willie Manu and Sam Moa. The trio are commonly known by the Hull fans as 'The Tongan Mafia'.
In 2023, Lauaki participated in season 3 of Match Fit, where former rugby players return to play against the Australian counterparts. He joined in the first season that featured former rugby league stars. [15] By the halfway point of the program, he revealed that he still struggles with Sione Lauaki's death in 2017 due to heart and kidney problems. [14]
Sione Faumuina is a New Zealand former professional rugby league footballer who last played for the Redcliffe Dolphins in the Queensland Cup. He previously played for the Canberra Raiders, North Queensland Cowboys and New Zealand Warriors in the NRL and for the Castleford Tigers and Hull F.C. in the Super League Faumuina represented the New Zealand national team on two occasions between 2003 and 2004 and his position of choice was second-row although he also played as a centre, five-eighth or lock.
Troy Vandem Flavell is a former New Zealand rugby union player. Flavell won 22 caps for New Zealand, and mainly played lock. He is known for his power in the scrum. He attended Massey High School alongside Ron Cribb and both played for Massey Rugby Club.
Kelston Boys' High School ("KBHS") 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 School became too large for the site on the corner of Archibald and Gt North Rds. The boys moved to a new site further down Archibald Road, leaving the original site to be the home of Kelston Girls High School.
Iafeta Iakopo "Feka" Paleaaesina is a New Zealand former rugby league footballer. He played as a prop for the New Zealand Warriors in the NRL, and for the Wigan Warriors, Salford City Reds and Hull F.C. in the Super League.
The Waitakere Rangers were a team in the now defunct Bartercard Cup Rugby league competition in New Zealand. They represented five clubs based in Waitakere City including the Glenora Bears who previously represented the City in the Bartercard Cup. The other four clubs were the Waitemata Seagulls, Te Atatu Roosters, New Lynn Stags and Bay Roskill Vikings. They were based at the Trusts Stadium although on occasion they played their matches at the grounds of their feeder clubs.
Sione Tuitupu Lauaki was a Tongan-born New Zealand rugby union footballer who played for Bayonne. He previously played for the New Zealand national team, the All Blacks. His brother, Epalahame Lauaki, is a 2nd row rugby league footballer previously playing for Auckland Warriors in the NRL competition. He died on 12 February 2017.
Misi Taulapapa is a Samoa international rugby league footballer who plays as a centre or winger for Doncaster RLFC in the RFL Championship.
Samuela "Sam" Moa is a former professional rugby league footballer who played as a prop, most recently for the FC Lézignan XIII in the French Elite One Championship. He is both Tonga and New Zealand international.
Frank Watene is a former professional rugby league footballer who played as a prop or second-row forward in the 1990s, 2000s and 2010s. He played at representative level for Tonga, New Zealand Junior Kiwis (1996), New Zealand Māori, and at club level for Counties Manukau Heroes, Auckland Warriors, Wakefield Trinity Wildcats, Hull Kingston Rovers, Castleford Tigers, Dewsbury Rams and Halifax at club level.
Ukuma Ta'ai is a Tongan professional rugby league footballer who plays as a second-row, loose forward or prop for the York Knights in the Betfred Championship and Tonga at international level.
The New Zealand Warriors 2008 season was the New Zealand Warriors 14th first-grade season. The club competed in Australasia's National Rugby League. The coach of the team was Ivan Cleary while Steve Price was the club's captain.
Sione Na'a Pangai Tovo is a former Tonga international rugby league footballer who plays as a prop for the Mascot Juniors RLFC in the A Grade South Sydney Juniors Rugby League. He previously played for the Thirlmere Roosters in the Grade 6 competition, Auburn Warriors in the Bundaberg Red Cup and the Newcastle Knights in the NRL.
Pakisonasi Afu is a professional rugby footballer who has represented Tonga in rugby league and Tonga A in rugby union. He is contracted to Austin Elite Rugby to play Major League Rugby in the United States. Afu previously played rugby league in the NSW Cup for New Zealand Warriors and Wyong Roos as a prop. His usual position in rugby union is centre.
Glen Fisiiahi is a rugby league and rugby union footballer of Tongan and Niue descent. He previously played rugby league professionally for the New Zealand Warriors in the National Rugby League where he played as a fullback and wing and has represented the Tonga international rugby league team.
Konileti "Konrad" Hurrell is a Tongan professional rugby league footballer who plays as a centre for St Helens in the Super League and Tonga at international level.
Sosaia Feki, anglicised Josiah Feki, also known by the nickname of "The PM" is a Tonga international rugby league footballer who plays on the wing for Western Suburbs Red Devils in the Illawarra Rugby League.
Manu Maʻu is a rugby league footballer who plays as a second-row forward for the Catalans Dragons in the Betfred Super League. He has played for both Tonga and New Zealand at international level.
Tuimoala Lolohea is a professional rugby league footballer who plays as a stand-off or fullback for the Huddersfield Giants in the Betfred Super League. He has played for both New Zealand and Tonga at international level.
Albert Vete is a Tonga international rugby league footballer who plays as a prop forward for the Castleford Tigers in the Super League.
Mafoa'aeata "Ata" Hingano is a Tonga international rugby league footballer who plays as a scrum-half, stand-off or hooker for the York Knights in the Betfred Championship.
