What It's Like To…Swap Spanish Club Rugby For RWC 2019

Spain provided a crucial stepping stone to Tonga honours for James Faiva

- Sarah Mockford

EIGHT YEARS ago, James Faiva was in the stands at Eden Park as the 2011 World Cup kicked off with New Zealand v Tonga. Sitting amongst the crowd to watch the All Blacks run in six tries to the islanders’ one as they started their campaign with a 41-10 victory, he set himself a target.

“I thought to myself, ‘This is it. One day I want to play against the All Blacks and play in a World Cup,’” recalls Faiva. “It’s been a long journey but to achieve both those dreams is unreal.”

That journey took in Tonga, New Zealand, Ireland, Australia and Spain. Rewind to the beginning, though, and it’s somewhat surprising that Faiva pursued an oval-ball career rather than a round-ball one. “I come from a soccer background,” explains the 25-year-old. “My family – my dad, my uncles, my granddad – all played soccer and represented Tonga in soccer. I’m the only one in my family to represent the Tonga national team in rugby.”

Faiva was born in New Zealand but returned to his parents’ native Tonga with his two brothers to go to primary school so they could learn the language. The time spent in Tonga had a profound impact on him when he returned to New Zealand for high school.

“Growing up on the island, where there are no jobs and you farm for food, you learn to enjoy life more and appreciate what you have,” he says. “So when I went back to New Zealand, other kids might have been going out with friends but I wanted to help my parents at home, especially looking after my siblings as I’m the oldest. I’d seen how hard my cousins worked to look after my aunty; I wanted to do the same thing for my family.”