Background
Lau'ese was born in Invercargill, Southland as Barry Papalii where he attended Surrey Park Primary School.
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Bubba Lau'ese
Edit ProfileEducation
He moved to Auckland, however, for secondary school where he attended Onehunga High School.
Career
It was here that he first started playing basketball. Rugby, however, was still his true passion. In 2007, Lau'ese narrowly missed out on the Samoan national squad for the 2007 Rugby World Cup and later played second division rugby in Wales and France.
In 2009, Lau'ese was lured back to Invercargill by Rugby Southland and the Excelsior Rugby Club. In February 2010, Lau'ese signed with the Southland Sharks for the 2010 New Zealand NBL season. In July 2010, he joined the Southland Flyers for the 2010 Conference League competition held in Porirua.
He re-joined the Sharks for the 2011 season but did not play for them throughout the year. In 2010, he changed his surname back to his family name of Lau'ese. Outside sport, Lau'ese is a probation officer at the Corrections Department.
