Oloseti Fifita played for the USA for only four years, but it wasn't really his fault that he wasn't capped until he was 31.

Fifita had a long list of excellent loose forwards to break past to make the USA team and show the world what was common knowledge through the Bay Area in the late 1990s—you tackled Olo at your peril. He had to content himself with winning rugby games in the toughest league in the country, and knocking players on the backs every week.

A solid block of granite playing mostly blindside flank or No. 8, Fifta was as imposing a carrier of the ball as there was in the game. He had speed to go with the power and more than a few backs simply said "after you" and got out of his way. Fifita led the Hayward Griffins to a national DII title in 1997, and a championship in the original Major League Rugby amateur competition in 1999. 

He was one of the most feared players on the West Coast, or the entire country for that matter, and once he broke into the USA team he emerged as a special weapon for the Eagles. He was capped 17 times, but with a little luck it might have been so much more.

Fifita continued to play after his last Eagles game in 2003 (when he was 34) and, as has happened with so many of our all-time greats, moved into coaching. He proved a knowledgeable and inspiring coach, proof of something his teammates always knew—that he understood the finer points of the game and could unlock the door with a lock picking set just as easily as with a sledgehammer.

The sledgehammer was just so much more fun to watch.

Support Goff Rugby Report by becoming a Patreon Patron—Help us keep our content going and not behind a paywall>>

Support Goff Rugby Report by donating anonymously>>

Support Goff Rugby Report by shopping at World Rugby Shop>>

See more about our All-Time Americans Here and Make Suggestions>>