Epalahame Lauaki

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Epalahame Lauaki is a New Zealand rugby league player. He plays second row for the New Zealand Warriors and was selected for the New Zealand Kiwis 2006 tri-nations squad. He is brother of All Black Sione Lauaki. Epalahame was educated at Kelston Boys (Auckland, New Zealand). He made his first-grade debut on March 14, 2004 against the Brisbane Broncos at Suncorp Stadium. He is a big man capable of producing big hits and busting runs. He is a player that oppositions fear and when he comes off the bench he adds more intensity to the game. When the warriors tied 31-31 with the Sydney Roosters last year in the game dubbed the "match of the decade" he played a huge part. With the Warriors losing 16-0 coach Ivan Cleary injected Lauaki in the game with immediate effect. Within 10 minutes "Epa" as he is known, assisted two tries and scored one himself in a powerful run and dive at the try-line, flattening three Roosters players, to spark a wonderful comeback and at that stage the Warriors were leading 18-16 and were 30-18 ahead before a dubious decision by referee Shayne Hayne to sin-bin Warriors centre Simon Mannering let the Roosters score two tries before the close of the match. Stand-offs Braith Anasta and Michael Witt each added a drop-goal before full-time enabling the match to go into extra time. As no points were scored the match became the fourth ever match to be drawn since golden-point extra-time was introduce in 2003. Lauaki was unanimously declared man of the match and this really sparked his New Zealand Warriors career as a class player and an impact player.

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