Toutai Kefu facts for kids
| Full name | Rodger Siaosi Toutai Kefu | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | 8 April 1974 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Tonga | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Notable relative(s) | Mafileo Kefu (brother) Steve Kefu (brother) |
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| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Rodger Siaosi Toutai Kefu (born 8 April 1974) is a famous Tongan-Australian rugby union coach and former player. He has been the head coach for the Tonga national team since 2016.
Kefu played 60 international matches, called test caps, for Australia. He mostly played as a number eight, which is a key position in rugby. In 2012, he was a temporary coach for Tonga. He also coached Queensland Country when he had time between international games.
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Playing Career: Toutai Kefu's Rugby Journey
Toutai Kefu was a strong and fast player from a young age. He played for his school, Coorparoo State High School. At 21, he joined the Queensland Reds in 1996 for the first Super 12 season.
He played his first international game for Australia at 23. This was against South Africa in 1997. A year later, he became the main number eight player for Australia. He helped Australia win big against England with a score of 76–0.
Toutai Kefu was a very important part of the team that won the 1999 Rugby World Cup. This was Australia's second time winning the famous Webb Ellis Cup. He played in four matches during the tournament. He even scored a try against Romania in the first game. He played the whole final match, helping his team to victory.
In 2000, Kefu helped Australia win their first ever Tri Nations Series title. This also meant they won the Bledisloe Cup for the third time in a row. In 2001, he helped Australia win a series against the British and Irish Lions. This was the first time in over 70 years they had achieved this. Later that year, he scored the winning try against the All Blacks. This helped Australia keep the Bledisloe Cup and gave his captain, John Eales, a perfect farewell.
After the 2003 Rugby World Cup, Kefu left the Queensland Reds. He had played 103 games for them. He then joined Kubota Spears in Japan. He played for the Japanese club for six seasons before retiring in 2010. In 2006, he also played one game for the Barbarians against England.
Playing Honours: Toutai Kefu's Awards
- Rugby World Cup / Webb Ellis Cup
- Winner: 1999
- Tri Nations Series
- Winner: 2000, 2001
- Runner-up: 1998, 1999, 2002, 2003
- Bledisloe Cup
- Winner: 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002
- Mandela Challenge Plate
- Winner: 2000
- Tom Richards Cup
- Winner: 2001
- Puma Trophy
- Winner: 2002
- Trophée des Bicentenaires
- Winner: 1998, 2000, 2002
- Cook Cup
- Winner: June 1998, Nov 1998, 1999
- Hopetoun Cup
- Winner: 1998, 2000
- Lansdowne Cup
- Winner: 1999
Coaching Career: Leading Teams to Success
In 2010, Toutai Kefu became the head coach of the Sunshine Coast Stingrays. This team plays in the Queensland Premier League. In his first year, he led the Stingrays to win the Senior Championship title.
In 2011, he briefly left the Stingrays to become an assistant coach for the Tongan national team. This was to help them get ready for the 2011 Rugby World Cup. He helped Tonga finish second in the 2011 IRB Pacific Nations Cup. This was their best result in that tournament. Tonga also beat Fiji and Samoa during this time.
During the 2011 World Cup, Tonga won two matches. They beat Japan and, for the first time since 1999, they beat France. Even with these wins, Tonga did not move further in the tournament.
In 2012, Kefu was the temporary head coach for Tonga. He led them to a win against Japan. Later that year, Mana Otai took over as the full-time coach.
After coaching Tonga, Kefu returned to Japan to coach his former club, Kubota Spears. He helped the team get promoted to the top league for the 2013–14 Top League season. He brought in new players and helped the team improve.
In August 2016, Kefu was also named the head coach of Queensland Country in Australia. He led them to a big win against the top team, New South Wales Country Eagles.
Head Coach of Tonga: A Long-Standing Leader
On May 6, 2016, Toutai Kefu became the head coach of the Tongan national team. He took over after Tonga did not automatically qualify for the 2019 Rugby World Cup. He started his time as coach with some tough matches.
Kefu got his first win as Tonga's head coach against Spain in 2016. A week later, Tonga beat the United States. Then, they had a big win against Italy, a top-tier team. This was Tonga's first win over Italy since 1999.
In June 2017, Kefu brought many new players into the Tongan squad. He wanted to make the team stronger. Tonga played their first home game since 2009 against Samoa. They won this match, which was their first victory over Samoa since 2011.
Tonga kept their position as the second-best Pacific Nation team in 2018. They beat Samoa and then had a historic win against Fiji in Fiji. This was the first time Tonga had beaten Fiji in Fiji since 2011.
In 2021, Tonga qualified for the 2023 Rugby World Cup. They beat the Cook Islands and then Hong Kong to secure their spot. In November 2022, Kefu led Tonga to an undefeated tour. They won against Spain, Chile, and Uruguay.
During the 2023 Rugby World Cup, Tonga won one game against Romania. After the tournament, Toutai Kefu stepped down as head coach. He had coached the Tongan national team for seven years. This made him the longest-serving head coach in the team's history.
Coaching Honours: Toutai Kefu's Achievements
- World Rugby Pacific Nations Cup
- Runners-up: 2017, 2018
Personal Life
Toutai Kefu is married to Rachel. They have a son and a daughter. They live in Coorparoo, a suburb of Brisbane, Australia.
In August 2021, Toutai Kefu and his family faced a difficult situation at their home. He was injured and received a lot of support from the rugby community around the world.
