George Moala (born 5 November 1990) is a professional

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

player who plays as a

centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...

for

Top 14 The Top 14 () is a professional rugby union club competition that is played in France. Created in 1892, the Top 14 is at the top of the national league system operated by the National Rugby League (France), France National Rugby League, also ...

club Clermont. Born in New Zealand, he represents

Tonga Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...

at international level after qualifying on ancestry grounds.

Early life

Moala attended Tamaki College where he was prominent in 2008 inter-collegiate rugby season, including scoring a stunning try against New Zealand rugby powerhouse school

Auckland Grammar School Auckland Grammar School (often simplified to Auckland Grammar, or Grammar), established in 1869, is a State school, state, Day school, day and Boarding school, boarding secondary school for Single-sex education, boys in Auckland, New Zealand. ...

. In 2010, Moala was selected in the

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

Under 20 squad.

Club career

In 2011, Moala was selected for , in which he played 10 games. In November 2011, Moala was selected in the squad for the

2012 Super Rugby season The 2012 Super Rugby season was the second season of the Super Rugby Super Rugby is a men's professional rugby union club competition involving teams from Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. It has previously included tea ...

. He was a standout player for the Blues in 2013, covering left wing for most of the season. In Moala's third season with the franchise he started the year by scoring tries in games against the and the . However, due to

Francis Saili Francis Saili (born 16 February 1991) is a New Zealand rugby union player, currently playing for French club Racing 92. He plays primarily as a centre, though he can also play wing. He is the younger brother of Blues loose forward Peter Saili. ...

's recovery from an injury and

Ma'a Nonu Ma'a Allan Nonu (; born 21 May 1982) is a professional rugby union player from New Zealand who currently plays for Toulon in the Top 14. He plays as an inside centre, but can also cover outside centre and wing. He was a key member of the All ...

making it back into the squad, he regained his preferred position at left wing. Having made countless appearances for the Blues in 2015, he established himself at inside centre. His aggressive playing style, attacking flair and supreme upper-body strength give him the potential to become one of the Blues' most consistent player in years to come. Moala was the stand-out player in the Super Rugby 2015 season, notching up approximately 60 tackle busts, covering 900m with ball in hand and continuously being a threat to the opposition. In the final match of the 2015 season against the Highlanders, former All-Black Jeff Wilson compared Moala to

, due to similarities in physic and playing style but also the fact that Moala, like Nonu, originated playing on the wing and then transitioned into centre. On 22 December 2017, Moala left New Zealand to sign for top French side

Clermont Auvergne Association Sportive Montferrandaise Clermont Auvergne () is a French professional rugby union club from Clermont-Ferrand in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes that currently competes in Top 14, the top level of the French league system. Clermont are two t ...

in the

competition on a three-year deal from the 2018–19 season.

International career

In 2010, Moala represented

in the

IRB Junior World Championship The World Rugby Under 20 Championship (known as the IRB Junior World Championship until 2014) is an annual international rugby union competition. The event is organised by the sport's governing body, World Rugby, and is contested by 12 men's juni ...

. By July 2015, Moala impressed All Blacks selectors' with an impressive Super Rugby campaign and debuted for

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

as wing, in a historic one-off test match in

Apia, Samoa Apia () is the capital and largest city of Samoa. It is located on the central north coast of Upolu, Samoa's second-largest island. Apia falls within the political district (''itūmālō'') of Tuamasaga. The Apia Urban Area (generally kno ...

. He scored New Zealand's only try in the match that ended 25–16. Despite a strong

All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks, is the representative men's national team in the sport of rugby union for the nation of New Zealand, which is considered the country's national sport. Famed for th ...

debut and consistent performance's in the

ITM Cup ITM may stand for: Education * ITM Law School, one of the professional graduate schools of ITM University * ITM-IFM, Mumbai, India * Institut Teknologi Mara, a public university in Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia * Institute for Information, Tel ...

, Moala was not included in the 31-man squad for

Rugby World Cup 2015 The IRB 2015 Rugby World Cup was the eighth Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial rugby union world championship. The tournament was hosted by England from 18 September to 31 October. Of the 20 countries competing in the World Cup in 2011, there was ...

. Moala made his All Blacks debut on the wing against Samoa on 8 July 2015, scoring his maiden try. Moala, who wasn't even part of the initial squad to face Wales, started at centre in the 3rd test against Wales in Dunedin on 25 June 2016. He starred in the midfield during the 46–6 victory, making several line breaks and scoring a try in the 34th minute diving over from close range after a wheeled scrum. He subsequently suffered an elbow injury during the game, ruling him out for the Auckland Blues for up to four weeks.

Personal life

Assault

Moala was found guilty of injuring with intent after a bar fight in 2012. Prosecutor Josh Shaw said at the trial of Moala and his brother Siua for assault at a Karangahape Road, Auckland nightclub in December 2012, that Moala's victim was described as being "on the ground with blood pouring away as blows continued to come." George Moala had continued to attack Mr Matoka even after bar security tried to lead the victim to safety. He was discharged without conviction and ordered to pay $2500 reparation to the victim.

References

External links

Blues Profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Moala, George 1990 births New Zealand rugby union players New Zealand sportspeople of Tongan descent Tonga international rugby union players Auckland rugby union players Blues (Super Rugby) players Rugby union wings Rugby union centres Rugby union players from Auckland Living people People educated at Tamaki College New Zealand international rugby union players 2023 Rugby World Cup players ASM Clermont Auvergne players New Zealand expatriate rugby union players in France