THE passing of former Fiji rugby winger Ratu Tevita Makutu is a great loss to the champion Nadroga rugby side, Sigatoka community and will be missed by former rugby players and fans in all walks of life.
He was laid to rest at his Nasama village last Saturday December 5. Makutu was a chief of the chiefly Louvatu clan in Nasama and a former town councillor. He officially holds the joint top try-scoring record of six tries in a match with Nadi’s Senivalati Laulau and was also a former Nadroga rugby coach.
His close friends called him by his nickname Main Boy.
He last coached Nadroga in 2002 losing the Telecom Cup semi-final to Naitasiri at Lawaqa Park and then lost the Farebrother-Sullivan trophy challenge to Naitasiri at Ratu Cakobau Park after three tries were disallowed by referee Sairusi Tagivetaua.
He was one of the first top Nadroga players who became a police special constables using his rugby fame and influence to help reduce crime in Sigatoka and Sigatoka Valley area. More Nadroga players followed suit and now there’s a strong relationship between the two organisations.
He holds joint top try scoring record in a match for Fiji with Nadi’s Senivalati Laulau.
Makutu scored his six tries on his debut for Fiji against Papua New Guinea in the 1979 South Pacific Games held in Fiji while Laulau scored his six tries against Solomon Islands in the Samoa Pacific Games in 1983.
While Fiji rugby union has only updated records of try-scorers of the eighties until this year, they still have Laulau as top try-scorer with 20 tries.
Laulau, Makutu and Suka Waqabaca were wingers of the 1980 tour of New Zealand then Argentina raking up tries in matches against provincial teams.
But other records have another Nadi try-scoring machine, the legendary Joseva Levula as the top try-scorer in the fifties. Levula scored ten tries each in the 1951 and 1957 tour of New Zealand and he also scored in almost every game in the 1952 and 1954 tour of Australia.
Those details are yet to be updated by the specialists at Gordon St.
He was a fitness fanatic and hard running rugby player who had a burning desire to stamp his authority early in the game and score tries.
In his playing days he once admitted that every first ball he received he made it a habit to run straight at his opposite number to test his defence.
One of his former captains Pita Nacuva paid tribute to Makutu for his loyalty, courage, rugby skills, commitment, obedience, comradeship and sacrifice to uphold the honour and integrity of his teammates and his country Fiji.
Nacuva captained Fiji in the 1980 Test against the All Blacks here and played with him on the tour of New Zealand and Argentina.
Fiji won four out of eleven games in New Zealand including losing to the Maoris 9-22 and to a New Zealand XV 0-33.
In Argentina Makutu scored five tries on tour as Fiji won five out of sevens matches but losing the Tests against Argentina 22-34 and 16-38. He played in both Tests against Argentina. Of the five tries he scored three were against Tucuman and two tries against Cuyo Regional XV.
He has contributed immensley to Nadroga rugby over the years as mentor and his Gaunavou side produced the fittest players in the Nadroga and national teams.
Gaunavou club players in the Flying Fijian team include Napolioni Nalaga while Viliame Mata is in the Vodafone 7s team now in Cape Town, South Africa.
Makutu was one of the originals, a true gladiator who held rugby at heart, who was always positive and courageous and a leader on the field, intense in everything he laid his hands on, but was a humble, affable man.
Many people who once cheered him on the field came to Nasama Village to farewell a rugby hero on and off the field. So long Ratu Tevita Makutu.
Thanks for the memories.
