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Three Pasifika All Blacks open up about how they're preparing for retirement

May 29, 2020

Ofa Tu'ungafasi is one of a network of players being mentored by a real estate boss and Jonah Lomu's former agent.

Sports star is broke is a story that’s been told too often, which is why three Pasifika All Blacks stars have opened up about how they're preparing for the day they're no longer in the spotlight.

All Blacks prop Ofa Tu'ungafasi dreamed of being able to check in on two new investment properties and learning how to use money when he moved from Tonga as a 14-year-old.

He is part of a network of players being mentored by real estate boss Don Ha and Phil Kingsley Jones, Jonah Lomu's former agent.

“I've seen first-hand you know, athletes that in the highest of their career earning good money, good salary and then a few years after retirement not knowing,” he said.

Today, Tu'ungafasi, All Blacks prop Nepo Laulala, and ex-All Black Augustine Pulu have multimillion-dollar property portfolios.

Normally they would never talk publicly about their money but they’re doing it because they want better financial advice, especially for Pasifika stars.

“Two years ago, I was renting out in Ellerslie for 850 a week,” Pulu said.

Ha says players are fearless on the field, but freeze when tackling money issues.

“We coach them how numbers work, how finance work, how repayments work and how the rent can cover the mortgage,” he said.

“For us islanders we're deep thinkers, we take time to be convinced and just through Don's actions he's slowly proven to us,” Laulala said.

Ha, who fled war-torn Vietnam, doesn’t shy away from sharing his toughest lessons having lost $60 million in the last recession.

Criticism is also never far behind.

“I made a mistake, I came back, I was refugee when I come here as a 12-year-old boy, dreams can come true so never take that away from you.”

“It's about that generation change, breaking the cycle,” Tu'ungafasi said.

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