| Date of birth | (1975-02-08)8 February 1975 (age 50) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Place of birth | Auckland, New Zealand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 125 kg (19 st 10 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Kelston Boys' High School | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Notable relative(s) | David Tua (distant cousin) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Trevor Leota (born 8 February 1975) is a New Zealand-born formerrugby union player forSamoa. He currently coaches at the Footscray Bulldogs in Melbourne, Australia.[1] Leota was born inAuckland, New Zealand, and won 30 caps forSamoa.
He is ahooker and has been widely recognised as one of the hardest tacklers in the game.[2][3][4] He made his debut forWestern Samoa in 1995 during a tour of the UK. He caughtNigel Melville's eye and was signed byWasps in 1997, where he quickly became something of a cult figure for his uncompromising approach on the field, his colourful hair styles and his friendly nature off the pitch. Whilst at Wasps he helped them win theAnglo-Welsh Cup in 1999 and 2000; scoring a try in the latter final.[5][6] For two weeks prior to the 2004Heineken Cup final,Wasps strength and conditioning coach Paul Stridgeon moved into Leota's house to prevent him from indulging his passion for buckets ofKFC.[7][8][9] He helped Wasps win a hat-trick of Premiership titles in 2003, 2004 and 2005, playing in all three finals (2005 as a replacement).[10][11][12]
He is a second cousin ofVa'aiga Tuigamala and a former member of the same New Zealand schoolboys side asJonah Lomu andChristian Cullen.
He is a distant cousin of heavyweight boxerDavid Tua. He played for the Cheetahs. He has previously played for Auckland and Te Atatū. He previously played forStade Montois in the FrenchTop 14. He was a member of Samoa's1999 World Cup squad and played for theBarbarians in May 2001. He was also one of the onlyrugby union players allowed to playrugby league over the 2004 summer season in order to keep his weight down. He played forWest London Sharks in theRugby League Conference.[13]
In 2010 he joined Welsh rugby league clubBridgend Blue Bulls in theRugby League Conference Welsh Premier.
On 28 August 2010 he played in a friendly match for Nuneaton Rugby Club against Blackheath, playing prop.
Leota, who played league as a teenager, has been guesting for the Sharks for the last month with permission from the Wasps director of rugby Warren Gatland.