Latham Tawhai

Latham Tawhai (born 23 August 1972) is a rugby league coach and former player from New Zealand. He has also represented his country in softball.

Latham Tawhai
Personal information
Full nameLatham Dean Henare Tawhai[1]
Born (1972-08-23) 23 August 1972
Auckland, New Zealand
Height175 cm (5 ft 9 in)
Weight82 kg (12 st 13 lb)
Playing information
PositionFive-eighth, Halfback
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
19?? Northcote
1994–96 North Harbour 62 16 51 2 167
1996–97 Keighley Cougars 13 2 0 0 8
1997–99 Hunslet Hawks 77 32 0 11 139
2000–21 Doncaster Dragons 38 21 0 3 87
2001–02 Rochdale Hornets 51 12 2 1 53
2003 Hull Kingston Rovers 26 8 3 4 42
2004 Hunslet Hawks 24 8 5 4 46
2005 Doncaster Lakers 21 3 0 0 12
2006 London Skolars 5 3 0 3 12
Total 317 105 61 28 566
Representative
Years Team Pld T G FG P
Auckland
New Zealand Māori
Coaching information
Club
Years Team Gms W D L W%
2005–07 London Skolars
Source: [2]

Playing career

A Northcote Tigers junior, Tawhai played in the Auckland Rugby League competition before being selected for Auckland, and making the North Harbour Lion Red Cup side.[3]

After playing for the champion North Harbour Sea Eagles in the Lion Red Cup, Tawhai represented New Zealand at the inaugural Super League World Nines, helping the side to victory before signing for Keighley in 1996. He later went on to play for Hunslet (winning the Tom Bergin Trophy for Man of the Match in the 1999 Grand Final[4]), Rochdale Hornets, Doncaster and Hull Kingston Rovers.[5]

Tawhai then left Hull KR to take up a player-coach role at Hunslet in 2004.[6]

Coaching career

Tawhai was part of the RFL's coaching pathway starting with the Leeds Service Area and Rhinos Scholarship Programme. He went on to assist with the Bradford Bulls Foundation before coaching on the RFL's Elite Player Camps.

In 2005 after guiding local amateur club Drighlington to success in the Pennine Premier League, the Yorkshire Cup Final and winning the Pennine League Coach of the Year, he moved to London where he became the first full-time coach at the London Skolars. In October 2007, after London Skolars best ever season, Latham was named the Co-operative National League Two Coach of the year. He left Skolars at the end of 2007 to become assistant coach at Harlequins RL under Brian McDermott.[7] He remained with the renamed London Broncos until mid-season 2012 when he left the club, moving to Wales for personal and business reasons.[8]

Other sports

Tawhai was a New Zealand Fastpitch softball representative.[9] He went on to play in the United States with the Larry Miller Club in Salt Lake City and make the USA National U23 Tournament Team.

After being resident in the UK for a number of years, he represented Great Britain at the 2004 World Softball Championships.

Tawhai was also an Auckland Rugby Union Junior representative.

References
  1. Companies House
  2. Latham Tawhai rugbyleagueproject.org
  3. Northcote and Birkenhead Tigers Rugby League and Sports Club Inc Archived 2011-07-20 at the Wayback Machine Auckland Rugby League
  4. "LHF Healthplan National League One Grand Final". sportfocus. 6 October 2006. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
  5. "Quins Appoint Latham Tawhai as Assistant Coach". Quins. 2007-12-03. Retrieved 2007-12-03.
  6. Season of Change Hull Daily Mail, 7 February 2004
  7. "'BENSON MAKES SKOLARS SWITCH". Sportinglife. 2007-12-03. Archived from the original on 2011-06-05. Retrieved 2007-12-03.
  8. London assistant coach moves to new venture in Wales Archived 2013-02-01 at archive.today rleague.com, 6 July 2012
  9. Full-time coach for Skolars Haringey Independent, 11 October 2005
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