Dual international Willis Halaholo announces retirement

Former Wales and Tonga centre Willis Halaholo has announced his retirement at the age of 36.

The nine-cap Wales international made the announcement on social media on Monday, sharing a video in which he said he plans to move into coaching.

The Auckland-born centre made the move to Cardiff from the Hurricanes in 2016, and qualified to play for Wales in 2019. After initially being named in a Wales squad in 2019, an ACL injury meant he would have to wait until 2021 before he would play international rugby.

A hamstring injury in 2022, followed by a ruptured Achilles, meant Halaholo’s Wales career was cut short, though he did return to play for Cardiff after it initially appeared that he would leave the club.

Halaholo cited these injuries in his retirement video, saying: “The mind is still keen to carry on, but I think the body has had enough. I’ve had quite a few major injuries.”

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The powerful centre secured a return to New Zealand in 2024, signing for Bay of Plenty in 2024, and earned three caps for Tonga in 2025.

In recent months, he has begun his transition into coaching, revealing that he earned his coaching certificates during Covid.

“I’m taking on coaching,” he said. “This year, I had a taste of coaching at Premier level. I was fortunate enough to do a couple of certificates during Covid. The amount of knowledge that I’ve gained, not only in New Zealand but on the other side of the world. I had played club rugby for six years before I got a Super Rugby crack.”