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The incredible story of the Fijian-born British soldier and his Premiership debut at the age of 33
It’s been a common thread the spring, a long list of names of Championship players who have seamlessly gone on to feature in the Premiership.
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Ever since the RFU caused a kerfuffle with its plan to halve its grants to the clubs in the English second tier, the developmental merits of the league have constantly been highlighted.
(Continue reading below…)
Fiji and the contractual dilemmas caused by the postponed Tokyo Olympics
But how about this double whammy – a player earning his stripes in the Championship before moving up the ranks after a stint in Britain’s armed forces.
This is precisely the pathway Ifereimi Boladau has taken to Gallagher Premiership prominence this season with Leicester Tigers.
It’s rare that a player makes a top-flight debut at the veteran age of 33, but that is what Boladau did when stepping off the Welford Road bench last November for a first Premiership appearance in the Tigers colours after three teething runs in the Premiership Cup.
He went on to appear on four more occasions in the league, starting at Sale at the end of February while also playing four times in the European Challenge Cup.
All the while, the Fijian-born forward never cut his ties completely with his parent club as he turned out for Nottingham in their pre-Christmas Championship match at Coventry.
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It all makes for quite a story, especially the fact that Lance Bombardier in the British Army even spent 2018/19 out of the game to concentrate full-time on his military career.
Having started in pro rugby at Ospreys in 2014 prior to stints at London Scottish and Rotherham, the suspension of the current rugby season due to the coronavirus outbreak has finally given him the opportunity to reflect on his breakthrough campaign at Tigers.
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Speaking to his loan club’s website, he said: “I’ve been so blessed to have been involved as much as I have with Leicester.
“One of the things you need to have in the army is to be mentally strong. In any job, you need to be mentally strong to push yourself forward, but especially in professional sport. Likewise, army life is quite physical, but if you don’t have that mental strength, you won’t last.
“To have all of that coming into such a big club like Leicester was important because you play rugby on a weekly basis, train every day, and if you’re not mentally strong, then you could struggle to keep up.
“Growing up in Fiji, the physicality is one of the big things of the game and that is one of the aspects that I really like about it.
“The physicality, the ball-carrying, the tackling – I love the physical side of rugby. When I joined (the army), I didn’t even know there was a rugby team.
“But I managed to get into the team and was so blessed to get a contract out of that as well. I couldn’t believe it when clubs started approaching me.”
WATCH: RugbyPass goes behind the scenes at the Leicester Tigers academy
Comments on RugbyPass
A wallaby front-row of Bell, Blake and Tupou…now that would be hefty
1 Go to comments“But with an exceptional pass accuracy rating “ Which apart from Roigard is not a feature of any of the other 9s in NZ. Kind of basic for a Black 9 dont.you. think? Yet we keep seeing FC and TJ being rated ahead of him? Weird if it’s seen as vital to get our backline beating in your face defences.
1 Go to commentsThanks BeeMc! Looks like many teams need extra time to settle from the quadrennial northern migration. I think generally the quality of the Rugby has held up. Fiji has been fantastic and fun to watch
13 Go to commentsLets compare apples with apples. Lyon sent weak team the week before, but nobody raised an eyebrow. Give the South African teams a few years to build their depth, then you will be moaning that the teams are too strong.
41 Go to commentsDid footballs agents also perform the scout role at some time? I’m surprised more high profile players haven’t taken up the occupation, great way to remain in the game and use all that experience without really requiring a lot of specific expertise?
1 Go to commentsSuper rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
11 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
10 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
11 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
24 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
4 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
10 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
35 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
35 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
17 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
4 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to comments