Joe Tuineau

Tuineau was a rugby and track star at King's College in Auckland but dropped the sport for several years to pursue a career in American football. He returned to New Zealand in mid-2008, and two days after arriving he represented Woodlands in the Galbraith Shield final. He trained heavily to lose excess weight and gain fitness, and played most of the 2008 season with the Southland Development team before getting into late season games off the bench in the Air New Zealand Cup for Southland.

In 2009 he became a regular starter with the Stags in the Air New Zealand Cup, appearing in all but one of the team's 14 games. He was a key figure in Southland'sRanfurly Shield win against Canterbury, ending the fifty-year drought for the province. He finished the 2009 Air New Zealand Cup with a team high four tries and was selected for the 2010Highlanders squad.

He continued as a starter for Southland during their extended defence of the Ranfurly Shield in the 2010 ITM Cup. He appeared in the first 5 matches of the 2011 ITM Cup, helping the province to another Ranfurly Shield triumph, before leaving to join the Tongan national side in preparation for the 2011 Rugby World Cup.^[2]

Tuineau's strong showings with Southland earned him a contract with the Highlanders for the 2010 Super 14 season. He didn't make his debut until the team's 6th match of the season, but an injury to starting lock Tom Donnelly saw an increase in playing time, and he appeared as a substitute in 7 of the final 8 games of the year.

على الرغم من أنه تم إدراجه مرة أخرى في تشكيلة فريق هايلاندرز لموسم سوبر رغبي 2011 ، إلا أنه وجد نفسه على هامش الفريق ولم يشارك في أي مباريات على مدار الموسم.

في الفترة التي سبقت بطولة كأس العالم للرجبي 2011 ، أعلن توينو نيته تمثيل تونغا ، وقام بأول مباراة له ضد فيجي في 2 يوليو 2011.