Talite Liava'a is a former international representative rugby league

Rugby league

Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...

 footballer. His position of preference was at prop forward.

Representative career

Liava'a is one of a handful of players to have played in two World Cups

Rugby League World Cup

The Rugby League World Cup is an international rugby league competition contested by members of the Rugby League International Federation . It has been held nearly once every 4 years on average since its inaugural tournament in France in 1954...

, representing Tonga

Tonga national rugby league team

The Tonga national rugby league team is a national sporting side, representing Tonga in rugby league football. Rugby league is a popular sport in Tonga, and the national team has become one of the best performed nations in the world...

 in 1995

1995 Rugby League World Cup

The 1995 Rugby League World Cup was held during October in the United Kingdom. It was the eleventh staging of the Rugby League World Cup and was marketed as the Halifax Centenary World Cup, reflecting the tournament's sponsorship and the fact that 1995 marked the 100th birthday of the sport...

 and 2000

2000 Rugby League World Cup

The 2000 Rugby League World Cup was the twelfth staging of the Rugby League World Cup and was held during October and November of that year in Great Britain, Ireland and France...

. At the 1995 World Cup he was twenty four and playing for the Litchfield Bears

Litchfield Bears

- Frank Johnson Medal recipients :* 1988 - John Alder * 1992 - Anthony Matua* 1996 - John Alder* 1998 - Lance Bradley* 2002 - Liam McEnereny* 2008 - Aaron Barnes...

 when picked by coach Mike McClennan

Mike McClennan

Michael James "Mike" McClennan is a New Zealand former rugby league footballer and coach who represented his country. He is the father of Brian McClennan.-Playing career:...

.

Playing career

After his exposure in England at the 1995 Rugby League World Cup Liava'a signed with the Swinton Lions

Swinton Lions

Swinton Lions is an English professional rugby league club from Swinton, Greater Manchester. The club has won the Championship six times and three Challenge Cups. They currently play in the Championship.-Early years:...

, playing in the lower divisions of English Rugby League

Rugby League National Leagues

The Championship, known as Co-operative Championship due to sponsorship by The Co-operative Group, is a professional rugby league competition based in the United Kingdom. It is currently contested by ten teams from England. It acts as Europe's second-tier competition below the Super League, and has...

. He returned to Australia, playing for the Balmain Tigers

Balmain Tigers

The Balmain Tigers are a rugby league football club based in the inner-western Sydney suburb of Balmain. They were a founding member of the New South Wales Rugby League and one of the most successful in the history of the premiership, with eleven titles...

 in the National Rugby League

National Rugby League

The National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...

 in 1998. He was not resigned for the 1999 season and moved to Mackay

Mackay, Queensland

Mackay is a city on the eastern coast of Queensland, Australia, about north of Brisbane, on the Pioneer River. Mackay is nicknamed the sugar capital of Australia because its region produces more than a third of Australia's cane sugar....

. He joined the Auckland Warriors mid-way through the season and stayed for the 2000 season. At the end of the year he was one of many players not re-signed by the new owners.

He later played for Perpignan

Catalans Dragons

The Catalans Dragons are a French professional rugby league club based in Perpignan, Pyrénées-Orientales. They currently play in the Super League, and are the only team in the competition from outside of the United Kingdom...

 in France

French rugby league championship

The French rugby league championship has been the major rugby league tournament for semi-professional and professional clubs in France and Monaco since the sport was introduced to the country in the thirties....

.