Niue national rugby union team

Niue

Nickname	To'a Niue XV
Union	Niue Rugby Football Union
Head coach	Metric Ikitoelagi
Captain	Luke Gibb
First colours
World Rugby ranking
Current	101 (as of 29 January 2024)
Highest	94 (23 November 2020)
First international
Fiji 124–4 Niue   (Apia, Samoa; 10 September 1983)
Biggest win
Niue 87–0 Nauru   (Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea; 31 August 2019)
Biggest defeat
Fiji 124–4 Niue   (Apia, Samoa; 10 September 1983)

The Niue Island national rugby union team is the national team of the third tier rugby union playing nation of Niue Island. The team first started playing in 1983 in mainly competes in the Oceania Cup, which it won in 2008. ^[1] Rugby union in Niue Island is administered by the Niue Rugby Football Union.

Results

Niue's first international match was at the 1983 South Pacific Games in Suva against hosts Fiji. The Niueans managed to score a try against the eventual tournament winners but were defeated by 124–4. ^[2] The team found success in the 2008 Oceania Cup, defeating New Caledonia by 27–5 in the final on 1 September 2008. ^[1]

As of 29 May 2013, Niue was ranked 71st in the IRB world rankings. The team had played 10 international matches by that time, four against the Cook Islands and three against Tahiti. Other matches have been against Fiji, New Caledonia and Vanuatu. ^[2]

Players

Some of Niue's best players are professionals in New Zealand. Former Niue captain Matt Faleuka played for Northland before moving to Italian club Overmach Rugby Parma in 2007.

While the Niue and the Cook Islands teams did not compete in the Pacific Tri-Nations competition, they did supply players to the squad for the Pacific Islanders' tour in 2004 (but not in 2006).

The Niue sevens team have been active in the IRB World Sevens and the Commonwealth Games.

Record

World Cup

World Cup record
Year	Qualification status
1987	Not invited
1991	did not enter
1995	did not enter
1999	did not enter
2003	did not qualify
2007	did not qualify
2011	did not qualify
2015	did not qualify
2019	did not qualify

Overall

Against	Played	Won	Lost	Drawn	% Won
Cook Islands	7	2	5	0	28.57%
Fiji	1	0	1	0	0%
Nauru	1	1	0	0	100%
New Caledonia	2	2	0	0	100%
Papua New Guinea	3	0	3	0	0%
Solomon Islands	3	1	2	0	33.33%
Tahiti	4	3	1	0	75%
Vanuatu	2	2	0	0	100%
Total	23	11	12	0	47.83%

Current squad

The squad was selected for the 2019 Oceania Rugby Cup.

Player	Position	Club
Luke Gibb (c)	Hooker	Paremata-Plimmerton RFC
Matthew Jackson	Hooker	Krueger Crocs
Samuel Ikihega	Prop	Moorabbin Rams
Stephen Tapuosi	Prop	Chicago Lions
Morre Tukuniu	Prop	Southern Marlins
Maloney Taleni	Prop	Otahuhu RFC
Pierce Makaola	Lock	Northern Panthers
George Pamatatau	Lock	North Brisbane Rugby Club
Auston Puhotau	Lock	North Brisbane Rugby Club
Sagele Harrison	Lock	Coomera Crushers
Quinton Strickland	Flanker	Footscray R.U.F.C.
Togatule Kose	Flanker	Mareeba Gladiators
Nick Laufoli	Flanker	Kava Club
Randy Liuvaie	Number 8	Freyberg Old Boys RFC
Khalum Halo	Scrum-half	Manukau Rovers RFC
Gavin Patuki	Scrum-half	Southern Cross
Shaun-Adam Atamu	Fly-half	Bombay R.F.C.
David Pamatatau	Fly-half	Coomera Crushers
Anthony Liuvaie	Centre	Old Boys University RFC
Lepau Feau-Fuhiniu	Centre	Old Boys University RFC
Dawson Mele	Centre	Southern Cross
Cyruss Payne	Wing	Marist Saints
Tui Leatigaga	Wing	Camden Rugby
Dee Saele Nanai	Wing	Manukau Rovers
Tonga Tongotongo	Wing	Manukau Rovers
Kegan Tuhega	Fullback	Pine Rivers Bears Junior League Club
Logan Norman	Fullback	Bangor RFC

See also

• Rugby union in Niue

References

1. "Niue take Oceania Cup rugby union final" Archived 16 September 2008 at the Wayback Machine , ABC Radio Australia, 1 September 2008
2. "Niue test rugby scores". Rugby International. 21 July 2009. Archived from the original on 2 February 2015.

External links

• Report of the FORU Oceania Cup Final