Friends and family integral to Greg Lealofi in reaching 200-game milestone

Above: Greg Lealofi heads to the tryline last weekend for Wainuiomata against Pōneke. By Andy McArthur.

• By Steven White

Wainuiomata captain and openside flanker Greg Lealofi says it’s the many lifelong friends he’s made off the field that has helped fuel his rugby career at Wainuiomata over more than 15 years of dedicated and loyal service to the green and black jersey.

It hasn’t already been plain sailing for Lealofi and Wainuiomata, with many up and down results for the club over this time but through them all he has been a key cog in the club that only became a regular Premier one in 2007 but is now part of the fabric of Wellington club rugby and its competitions.

Through it all has been the camaraderie and community spirit that has always shone through strongly at Wainuiomata.

“I think if you ask me what my career highlight is from my career, it is the friends I have made along the way. Getting to play with some of my best mates and also connect with them after games and away from rugby,” said Lealofi.

“Also, getting to play with my younger brother Dion and experience everything with him has been a major highlight.”

“Results ebb and flow, but these things are special.”

++++++

This article is in association with Time Insurance Content continues below.

+++++

Hooker Dion himself has played more than 150 Premier games for the team and has been at the club since leaving school two years after Greg.

It is a family playing affair. Lealofi’s wife Althea Lealofi remains a current player of the Wainuiomata Women’s team.

Greg and Dion are the youngest of four siblings, and Dion and their parents live in Wainuiomata, while Greg and Althea live further up the Hutt in Stokes Valley.

“The parents are always helping us minding the kids, so that makes it pretty handy that I have a good village around me to look after my little ones while I go and train and we play on the weekends!”

Saturdays are busy. “Our Saturdays are a bit hectic, we take our kids to rugby in the morning, then Althea goes to her rugby and then I go to mine.”

The Wainuiomata men’s side is going through a bit of a rollercoaster at the moment, losing their Hakaraia Trophy fixture at home on Old Timers’ Day this past Saturday to Pōneke 28-38.

This was their third straight defeat following a pair of promising wins over Johnsonville (31-24) and Norths (67-22)  in rounds four and five.

Lealofi missed the first two of those three losses. “I did my ribs on the Tuesday before the Petone game. I was hoping I would be able to come right by Saturday but when it came to Saturday I tried to strap it up, but it was way too sore.”

Lealofi watched on as Petone humbled Wainuiomata 76-10 and was then waterboy when they were pipped 20-22 by Marist St Pat’s in their Rona-Morrissey Cup match.

“The competition is really close at the moment – any team can beat any other on a given day. It is exciting though – you can expect a tough game not knowing who is going to win.”

“It is just execution for us at the moment.  Against MSP we almost scored a try in the corner that would have been the winner, but they came back and instead scored and won. It is something that we are working on as a team, especially in crunch moments.”

Next up is Old Boys University this Saturday at Ian Galloway Park for the Peter Dunford Trophy. “For us and for OBU every game now is like a knockout game, it is do or die, so it should be another close match.”

Lealofi is one of several players in the Wainuiomata squad not lacking experience. Teammate Teru Time played his 200^th match while others like brother Dion Lealofi, Matt Jacobs, Tyler Tane and Andrew Wells aren’t far behind.

Lealofi also played with all three of the current coaches, Mike Lealava’a, Attila Va’a and Daniel Olive – all three with deep connections to Wainuiomata.

“We have a group of four or five guys who have been around for a few years and are now starting to find their feet in Premier rugby, so these players are the immediate future.”

“It has been awesome seeing the journey these players have been on, looking back to when they first started playing to where they are now.”

Players like Keanu and Renata Kotuhi, Mikade Fono Kitiona Leitufia are in this group.

Another to watch and perhaps take the torch for Wainuiomata in years to come is Brayden Soi, another loose forward out of St Pat’s Silverstream and in just his second year.

But like most clubs and the game in the general at the moment, depth is an issue. With no Colts side this year, Wainuiomata appear to have a general dearth of the next generation of these players starting at the club.

Greg Lealofi joined Wainuiomata straight out of school in 2009, after captaining the St. Pat’s Silverstream First XV in 2008.

He made his premier debut against current competition leaders Oriental Rongotai in 2009. Wainuiomata was beaten 26-8 and was later regulated to the Hardham Cup. In 2010 Wainuiomata dropped down again but at least won the consolation prize beating Avalon 31-10 in the final.

“In my first year we had seven or eight Wellington Colts. It was also a very family orientated club and when times are tough you want to be around your family. I knew we could turn the corner if we stayed together,” Lealofi previously told Club Rugby when we did a story with him after reaching 100 caps in 2016.

Wainuiomata later made the Jubilee Cup semi-finals in 2012, losing to Ories at the Polo Ground in a blockbuster that featured several leading players. Lealofi opposed Ardie Savea who scored two tries that day:

As well as the big-name players in that 2012 semi-final like Piri Weepu on his team, two others that had influences on Lealofi’s early career were Genesis Mamea and Shahn Eru. “I keep in contact with both of them, they are in France doing their thing. Genesis has been a good friend of mine and Shahn has been a close mate as well.”

The following season Lealofi made the first of two season-long moves away to play elsewhere.

“I had one season in 2013 where I went up and played for Ardmore Marist in the Counties-Manukau competition.

“In 2017 I went over to Australia and played in the Shute Shield for Northern Suburbs. My friend and former No. 8 Sape Misa [see 2012 semi-final scorecard above] was the forwards coach and he asked me to come along, and I did a year over there with my wife after getting married in 2016.”

“We had a baby, and we thought we would come back home and raise the little one and be close to family.”

Returning from his first stint playing elsewhere he was part of Wainuiomata’s most successful season to date.

This was 2014, which saw Wainuiomata host their first Jubilee Cup semi-final on William Jones Park and beat MSP 26-13. The following week they played near-neighbours Hutt Old Boys Marist in a memorable final at the Hutt Rec, losing 14-11.

In the 2014 Premier squad of 28 players 20 were a brother, cousin or uncle of each other.

He played his 100^th Premier game in 2016  later played his 150^th match in September of the 2020 Covid season. This was against Old Boys University, whom Wainuiomata are playing this week.

Sevens rugby has also been a big part of Lealofi’s career. In 2015 Wainuuomata won the National Club Sevens title in Tauranga.

The team had a re-union on Old Timers’ Day last Saturday.

“A lot of guys couldn’t make it, they were either overseas or had other commitments, but for those there it was awesome to reconnect with some of the boys.”

Winning it meant they got to host the tournament in early 2016 at William Jones Park.

“I played in that, we didn’t do too well, but just to bring it to Wainuiomata was a great achievement.”

Waikato team Melville, featuring Sevu Reece, were winners at William Jones Park that weekend.

It is not just rugby and family keeping Lealofi busy, it is also his job. By day he installs fire alarms, and when we spoke to him for this story on Tuesday night he was driving home from doing work after doing overtime and missing training.

He admitted that this season could be his last.

“I am thinking this season could be it. I am thinking about finishing up and spending more time with my wife and family,” he suggested.

“It is never say never though – you have seen guys like Justin Va’a and Uale Mai come out of retirement about four or five times!”

That is jumping ahead anyway – surpassing 200 games for one club in Wellington as well as playing two full seasons elsewhere in New Zealand and Australia – makes Greg Lealofi one of the modern-day legends of the Swindale Shield and Jubilee and Hardham Cup competitions.

Wainuiomata v Old Boys University, Ian Galloway Park, Saturday 2.45pm.

200 Games for Wainuiomata

• Allan Parker – 220
• Teru Time – 212
• Gavin Halkett – 210
• Jason Love – 200