Olsen Orekewa Filipaina (23 April 1957 – 10 February 2022) was a professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby 13/XIII in non-Anglophone Europe, is a contact sport, full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular Rugby league playin ...

footballer who represented both

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 ...

and

Western Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa and known until 1997 as Western Samoa, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania, in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main islands ( Savai'i and Upolu), two smaller, inhabit ...

. He played for the

Balmain Tigers The Balmain Tigers (also known as the Sydney Tigers from 1995 to 1996) are a rugby league club based in the inner-western Sydney suburb of Balmain, New South Wales, Balmain. They were a founding member of the New South Wales Rugby League and on ...

, Eastern Suburbs, and

North Sydney Bears The North Sydney Bears are an Australian rugby league football club based in Cammeray on Sydney's North Shore (Sydney), North Shore. The club currently competes in the NSW Cup, having exited the National Rugby League following the 1999 NRL s ...

during his New South Wales Rugby League (NSWRL) premiership career from 1980 to 1987.

Early life

Filipaina was born in

Kaikohe Kaikohe is the seat of the Far North District of New Zealand, situated on State Highway 12 about from Auckland, and about from Whangārei. It is the largest inland town and highest community above sea level in the Northland Region. With a pop ...

, New Zealand, on 23 April 1957. His mother was

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

and his father was from

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa and known until 1997 as Western Samoa, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania, in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu), two smaller, inhabited ...

. He was raised in

Māngere Māngere () is a major suburb in South Auckland, New Zealand, located on mainly flat land on the northeastern shore of the Manukau Harbour, to the northwest of Manukau, Manukau City Centre and south of the Auckland CBD, Auckland city centre. ...

, and started his career with the

Mangere East Hawks The Mangere East Hawks are a rugby league club based in Māngere, New Zealand. The Hawks compete in Auckland Rugby League's Fox Memorial competition. History The club was formed in 1963, the first fourteen junior teams took the field in 1964. ...

in the

Auckland Rugby League The Auckland Rugby League (ARL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in the Auckland Region of New Zealand. Founded in 1909, the ARL has played a pivotal role in the development and promotion of rugby league in Auckland and beyond. ...

competition.

Playing career

While playing for the Hawks, Filipaina was named the best back in the competition in 1977, before winning the Rothville Trophy as player of the year the following season. Filipaina moved to Sydney in 1980, joining the

. He spent five seasons at the club, playing in 82 games and amassing 225 points. After a one-year spell at the

Eastern Suburbs Roosters Eastern Suburbs District Rugby League Football Club, known as the Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs (Sydney), Eastern Suburbs. The club competes in the National Rugby Lea ...

in 1985, he played for two years with the

. During his time in the

NSWRL Premiership The New South Wales Rugby League premiership was the first rugby league football club competition established in Australia and contributor to today's National Rugby League. Run by the New South Wales Rugby League (initially named the New Sout ...

, Filipaina claimed he suffered from racial abuse and sledging.Racism ruined career: NZ league great
''9 News'', 3 May 2006 He later captained Ryde-Eastwood to victory in the inaugural Metropolitan Cup final in 1990.

Representative career

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 ...

representative, Filipaina was part of the Auckland side that defeated

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

within the span of 20 days in 1977. Filipaina was first picked for the

New Zealand national rugby league team The New Zealand national rugby league team () has represented New Zealand in rugby league since 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the Kiwi (bird), native bird of that name. The team' ...

in 1977, becoming the first junior player from the Hawks to be selected. In 1983 and again in 1985, he was picked for the Kiwis despite playing in the Sydney reserve grade competition. On both occasions, he played a pivotal role in the Kiwis defeating Australia. He was named the man of the series in 1985. He also made six appearances at the

1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...

and 1985–1986 editions of the

Rugby League World Cup The Rugby League World Cup is an international rugby league competition contested by senior men's national teams who each represent member nations of the International Rugby League who run and administer the tournament. The tournament has be ...

. He eventually retired from the Kiwis in 1987. In total, Filipaina played in 50 matches for New Zealand, including 28 tests where he scored 108 points. As of 2010, his 108 points places him sixth on the point scoring list. Filipaina subsequently changed his national representation to

, his father's country of origin. He captained the team in the

1988 Pacific Cup The 1988 Pacific Cup was the fourth edition of the Pacific Cup, a rugby league tournament held between Pacific teams. The tournament was hosted by Western Samoa and eventually won by the New Zealand Māori side, who defeated Western Samoa 26-16 i ...

, as well as its inaugural test match that same year.

Later years

Filipaina remained in Sydney after his retirement, living in

Ryde Ryde is an English seaside town and civil parish on the north-east coast of the Isle of Wight. The built-up area had a population of 24,096 according to the 2021 Census. Its growth as a seaside resort came after the villages of Upper Ryde and ...

. He worked the same garbage run the

helped him get when he first moved to Australia.Olsen the premier inspiration for picking Talau
''Sydney Morning Herald'', 22 July 2003 From this job he received the nickname “The Galloping Garbo” during his playing days. Filipaina was named one of

New Zealand Rugby League The New Zealand Rugby League (NZRL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league, rugby league football in New Zealand.#SPARC-2009, SPARC, 2009: 13 The NZRL was founded on 25 April 1910 in preparation for a 1910 Great Britain Lions tour o ...

's "Legends of League" in 2007. His biography, ''The Big O: The Life and Times of Olsen Filipaina'', was published in April 2020 and recounted the racial abuse he endured throughout his career.

Personal life

Filipaina was the son of a Samoan boxer and a Maori mother. He was born in

, New Zealand. He has five children: Louise, John, Alysha, Quin and Jazmine, and five grandchildren: Tamati, Matahi, Ignatius, Kaimana and Octavia. Two of his brothers,

Jerry Jerry may refer to: Animals * Jerry (Grand National winner), racehorse, winner of the 1840 Grand National * Jerry (St Leger winner), racehorse, winner of 1824 St Leger Stakes Arts, entertainment, and media * Jerry (play), a 1914 American play ...

and Alf, are involved in politics in Auckland. Filipaina's son, Quin, played in the

Harold Matthews Cup The NSWRL Harold Matthews Cup is a junior rugby league competition played in New South Wales between teams made up of players aged under 17. The competition is administered by the New South Wales Rugby League (NSWRL). The competition is made up ...

side for the Tigers. Another son, John, was arrested in 2006 and charged with robbery. In mid-January 2022, Filipaina was admitted to

Westmead Hospital Westmead Hospital is a major teaching hospital in Sydney, Australia. Opened on 10 November 1978, the 975-bed hospital forms part of the Western Sydney Local Health District, and is a teaching hospital of Sydney Medical School at the University of ...

with a stomach infection. His condition slowly deteriorated and he died of kidney failure on 10 February 2022, 72 days short of his 65th birthday.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Filipaina, Olsen 1957 births 2022 deaths New Zealand rugby league players New Zealand national rugby league team players Auckland rugby league team players Mangere East Hawks players North Sydney Bears players Sydney Roosters players Balmain Tigers players Samoan rugby league players New Zealand Māori rugby league players New Zealand sportspeople of Samoan descent Samoa national rugby league team players New Zealand national rugby league team captains People educated at Otahuhu College Rugby league five-eighths Rugby league centres Rugby league players from Northland Region Deaths from kidney failure New Zealand expatriate rugby league players in Australia Samoan expatriate rugby league players People from Kaikohe