Tana Umaga
Tana Umaga was born in Lower Hutt, Wellington Region, New Zealand on May 27th, 1973 and is the Rugby Player. At the age of 51, Tana Umaga biography, profession, age, height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, measurements, education, career, dating/affair, family, news updates, and networth are available.
At 51 years old, Tana Umaga has this physical status:
Jonathan Ionatana Falefa "Tana" Umaga (tana) Umaga, a New Zealand former rugby union footballer and former captain of the national team, was born 27 May 1973. He has been coaching the Blues in the Super Rugby competition since 2016.
He played for the Hurricanes from 1996 to 2003 and took over the captaincy in 2003. Graham Henry was named as the All Blacks captain in 2004; under his watch, the All Blacks won 19 of their 22 games, including the clean sweep of the British & Irish Lions and the Grand Slam in 2005. Umaga retired from international rugby at the end of 2005 after 74 Test caps (where he scored 36 tries). Umaga started playing four games for the Wellington Lions in 2007, before taking over coach duties at Toulon.
Toulon's first season as a coach in 2008–09, he was a poor performer in the first half of the season and facing a relegation scare, and there was rumors that Philippe Saint-André would replace him. Umaga returned to a playing role for Toulon in the second half of the season, but also announced that he will not continue as head coach beyond that season. He resigned as a player after assisting Toulon in their relegation struggles (and ultimately finished ninth this season), but remained at Toulon as an assistant coach for backs under Saint-André. Following a serious hip injury to Christian Loamanu in March 2010, Umaga returned to the playing ranks in March 2010. Umaga played for the Waikato Chiefs in the 2011 Super Rugby competition, after the 2009-10 French season to become a player-coach with Counties Manukau.
Early life
Umaga was born in Lower Hutt, Wellington, New Zealand. He was born to Samoan immigrant parents and he played rugby for years. Umaga appeared for the Wainuiomata Lions and progressed through the ranks, winning the Wellington U-16 and U-17 sides, and was eventually named in the Junior Kiwi team of 1991. He signed with the Newcastle Knights earlier this year, but the plane was forced to New Zealand within three weeks due to homesickness. He never did play in a First-Grade NSWRL Premiership game. In 1993, Tana's brother Mike, who worked for Manu Samoa, persuaded him to join rugby union. In a Test match between Samoa and New Zealand in 1999, the brothers competed on opposite teams (the All Blacks won 71-13).
Personal life
Umaga began training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu after stepping down from professional rugby. He received a silver medal as a brown belt at the IBJF Masters Worlds in 2022.
Rugby union career
Umaga played for the Wellington Lions in 1994 and quickly established himself in the starting lineup alongside his brother, who also played on the wing. Umaga's first attempts were more than any other player in the team's three years, and the original Hurricanes squad was selected in 1996. In the 1994-1995 Italian season, he served for Viadana Rugby in Italy. He scored a New Zealand record of 12 tries (now broken by Rico Gear) and earned a call up to the national team in the absence of an injured Jonah Lomu. In his first test match, he scored a try. Umaga was cut from the All Blacks until the 1999 season, with Jonah Lomu regaining his fitness and a lack of form. Umaga, Lomu, Wilson, and Cullen were among the 98 All Black coaches who converted Christian Cullen into the midfield to accommodate outside backs.
Wayne Smith, the All Blacks' regular wing, became the regular wing. When the team smashed Tonga 102–0, there were fears about the team's shape. Doug Howlett and Sergent appeared in a game where debutantes Troy Flavell and Doug Howlett appeared. He appeared in the first Bledisloe Cup match in 2000, dubbed "the game of the century," with a score in the first attempt. He signed a new four-year deal with the NZRU, and although Alama Ieremia came to Japan, Umaga decided to shift his attention to center, scoring 9 tries in 7 tests on the wing this year. Umaga, who had only been centre for the Hurricanes, was slotted into the midfield for the All Blacks' match against France, the team that defeated the All Blacks in the World Cup semi-finals last year. Umaga won after a dramatic game. Umaga's 2000 season was one of the best of the year, with him winning the Kelvin Tremain Memorial Trophy for New Zealand rugby player of the year. Although the Smith period brought a number of new players to the New Zealand team, they were unable to recover the Tri Nations or Bledisloe Cup in 2000 or 2001. This culminated in his dismissal and the recruiting of former All Black mid-week player and top Chiefs coach John Mitchell.
Moving Umaga to the center wasn't to everyone's liking, according to his explanation for his lack of energy. Despite this, Umaga was voted captain of the Wellington Lions and vice captain of the All Blacks under Anton Oliver in John Mitchell's first squad. Crusader Mark Robinson was preferred by John Mitchell and assistant coach Robbie Deans early in the game. Umaga did not represent Umaga in the Tri Nations, so the squad that would compete against Italy and Ireland as well as compete in the Tri Nations did not feature Umaga. Despite news of him suffering a knee injury, Umaga played for his team Petone on the day when the All Blacks took on Italy.
Umaga and Taine Randell, the All Blacks 1999 world cup captain, were invited to play for the New Zealand Barbarians against the New Zealand Mori. Randell himself was Mori and did not want to play against them, and Umaga was placed on the wing, a position where he did not want to play. Umaga was called up to the national team to play Fiji after the game, but he suffered his knee during the game. Umaga told the coaches he was fit for selection for the Bledisloe match tie against Australia, but Daryl Gibson was not selected, with Daryl Gibson taking the bench. Petone's turnout was also cancelled again by Umaga.
At his home ground, Umaga came off the bench against South Africa at Westpac Stadium. Umaga will qualify for the Tri-Nations XV; a team based in Zurich's world player rankings. On the end of-year tour from injured regular captain Reuben Thorne, many considered him a good candidate to take over the captaincy, but Taine Randell took over the leadership. In 2003, Umaga was to lead the Hurricanes, taking over from Gordon Slater, under coach Colin Cooper. The Hurricanes advanced to the semi-finals for the second time in their history after winning a team record seven times in a row, removing the competition's legendary tag that had followed them since the competition's inception. His talent was recognized, and he was awarded a spot in the All Blacks as vice-captain under Reuben Thorne, who would lead the team to the World Cup.
Colin Charvis, the Welsh captain, was knocked out in a tackle by All Blacks forward Jerry Collins on June 21, 2003. Despite his team's position as an attacking team, Umaga stopped playing; to ensure Charvis was not swallowed his mouth guard. He put him in the best shape for this act, and the International Fair Play Committee awarded Umaga the Pierre de Coubertin medal for outstanding sportsmanship. Umaga was the first New Zealander to be honoured with the award. The Welsh Rugby Union also gifted him with a statue to commemorate sportsmanship's on display.
The All Blacks defeated the Springboks 52-32, and the Wallabies 50-21 away from home in a row. New Zealand won both home matches and the Bledisloe Cup. This was the first time the All Blacks had won the Bledisloe since 1997. They were considered early favorites to win the years World Cup, as well as eventual champions England.
The All Blacks' first Rugby World Cup appearance would have been in the tournament's first round. Umaga and actor Five-Eighth Carlos Spencer collided in a failed back line move. Spencer came out unhurt, but Umaga was forced to leave the field due to a defective posterior cruciate ligament. Despite being deemed fit to play in the semifinal by then All Blacks doctor John Mayhew, Umaga will not participate again in the tournament. Leon MacDonald, the regular backup fullback, was selected in the center position. The All Blacks will lose the game to Australia 22-10 and then fail to qualify for the final.
The world cup's aftermath was similar to the previous one, with coach John Mitchell suspended. Mitchell, who re-applied and Graham Henry, were the only two coaches for the position of All Blacks head coach. Graham Henry, the former Blues coach, was told he would never be back in the top job after leaving New Zealand to work with the Wales national team. Henry's work in New Zealand and overseas, as well as his ability in turning around the Welsh team's fortune, earned him the role and he got the job.
Umaga was Graham Henry's first pick as captain of his team, and after a disappointing Super 12, in which the Hurricanes finished 11th, was selected to replace Reuben Thorne. In a test match, he was the first New Zealander of Pacific Island origins to captain the All Blacks. Umaga's captaincy began well with victories in the first six tests, including two victories against World Cup holders England. One of them, a 36-3 victory in Dunedin, was the first loss by a World Cup holding team ever. The All Blacks of 2004 were able to regain the Bledisloe Cup. The winning streak came to an end, with the All Blacks losing in both home and South Africa, effectively ending the All Blacks' chance in the 2004 Tri Nations Series. Umaga became the first New Zealand rugby player of non-Maori descent to lead the Haka in Paris in 2004, making him the Prematch Haka chief.
He oversaw Dan Carter's introduction in the United States and a dramatic 4–6 win over the French in the 2004 end-of-year tour. When Umaga's team defeated the Blues, he also celebrated his 100th match for the Hurricanes. For the second time in three years, they made the semi-finals, but the champion Crusaders lost for the second time in three years. The British & Irish Lions toured in 2005, on top of the Tri Nations and the possibility of a Grand Slam tour of England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland.
Umaga was involved in an incident that caused friction between the Lions and the All Blacks on June 25, 2005. In a post-ruck clean-out early in the Test, Umaga and hooker Keven Mealamu upended Lions captain Brian O'Driscoll. O'Driscoll needed surgery on a dislocated shoulder, and he missed the remainder of the tour. Umaga was accused by British and Irish journalists of foul play. The incident was described by O'Driscoll and the Lions' leadership as a "deliberate spear tackle." The independent citing commissioner found that neither Umaga nor Mealamu had a case to answer at the time due to inconclusive facts, but that the IRB had warned referees to suspend players for three to six months for such offences. Brendan Gallagher, a London journalist, characterized it as one of the fifty 'ugliest moments' in sports. When Brian O'Driscoll finished the ALS ice bucket challenge and immediately nominated the Umaga, he resurrects his rivalry with Tana Umaga. During the Lions tour and gained the Tri-Nations, which included the retention of the Bledisloe Cup. Umaga was nominated for the 2005 International Player of the Year award by the IRB (an award that was eventually won by fellow All Black Dan Carter). The All Blacks also defeated Umaga in their second Northern Hemisphere Grand Slam. Umaga, who has played 74 test matches for his country, has announced his retirement from international rugby at a press conference on January 10, 2006. His main reason for resigning was to spend more time with his family, as he had just had another baby with his wife Rochelle. Richie McCaw was named captain after Umaga's inception. In his last game to Sonny Bill Williams, Umaga wore the All Blacks jersey, which later said: "Just getting that jersey gave me butterflies." I'm hoping to bring the real thing to life one day."
Umaga's captaincy for the 2006 Super 14 season was given to All Black number eight Rodney So'oialo who was focusing on his own game. For the third time in four years, the Hurricanes made it to the semi-finals. Umaga was seen in a bar wrangling Chris Masoe, breaking her cellphone after Masoe reportedly threatened another patron, after the Hurricanes lost to the Crusaders in 2006. Umaga replaced the woman's broken cell phone, and the woman went on to sell her handbag and broken cellphone for NZD23,000 on the New Zealand internet auction website Trade Me. Umaga was named an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2006 for services to rugby.
He was expected to be on several top European clubs' wish lists in the months to come; his former All Black teammate Andrew Mehrtens was forced to explicitly deny rumors that Umaga was a target of his club at the time – Harlequins. Umaga eventually signed for Toulon, a French club who had been recently dropped from the Top 14 to Pro D2. Before heading to France, his deal allowed him to play the entire 2006 Air New Zealand Cup (ANZ Cup) season for Wellington. When Wellington reached the ANZ Cup final, he played only seven matches for Toulon. Despite that Toulon's co-chairs reportedly paid out of their own money, he still earned nearly €350,000 (GBP 250,000). Mayor Hubert Falco's day, he was given the medal of honour of Toulon's city (médaille d'or de la ville). Umaga's first game was played three days after arriving in Toulon, scoring his team's first try in a 22-16 victory over Lyon on October 29. He was surprised to see how close the players were and how raucous the crowd was.
Following their victory over Grenoble on January 7, Umaga returned to New Zealand at the end of his tolerance deal. Umaga arrived in Toulon in ninth place in the Pro D2 class; when he left, they were ranked third, boosting to third. Toulon played eight of nine games with Umaga on the roster, with the only loss coming when he was out injured. Umaga was in his last season with the Hurricanes in 2007. They were playing at Westpac Stadium in Wellington on May 5, 2007. Umaga published a book on September 25, 2007, detailing his career.
Umaga was selected in the Chiefs' starting lineup for their first Super Rugby match of the 2011 season against the ACT Brumbies. This was his first Super rugby game since being a regular member of Wellington Hurricanes in 2007. After playing 7 games, he officially retired as a player at the 2011 ITM cup championship season.