Nacho, Nacho Man. I want to be a Nacho Man.
Catchy tune. Spot on, too.
Every Highlander who walks through the doors at the club’s Logan Park headquarters aspires to be a little like Tavake Lecanus Liukanasi Manu, the man known as Nasi or Nacho.
He is THE Highlanders man.
Manu simply oozes mana, and it is possible there has not been a more respected member of the club.
He was actually a bit of a slow burner on the field. He copped a nasty injury in his debut, and he did not really shine fully until the second half of his Highlanders career, at which point the fans would not have traded him for any other No 8 in the game.
Manu became a relentless, dependable, durable ballcarrier and rugged defender who shed gallons of sweat for the cause.
The man trucked it up time and again, and never seemed to lose possession, indicating he had rugby smarts as well as all the physical tools.
The Nasi Manu legend really grew in the 2015 season.
He was co-captain, alongside Ben Smith, as the Highlanders staged that amazing, still-a-bit-unbelievable run to their first and only championship.
A lasting image from the fairytale campaign was Manu holding the trophy while barely able to open an eye that had been injured in the semifinal.
Like so many Highlanders, he came from elsewhere before embracing the life of a southern man.
Manu was a Cantabrian, a Christchurch Boys’ High School product who had a sniff with the Crusaders before, and as he said in our special publication just three weeks ago, he found his calling in Dunedin.
‘‘The Highlanders is a place where I grew into a man, really. Moved away from home, first time renting, being away from family — all my team-mates became pretty much like family.
‘‘I can never repay or say enough words to what the Highlanders mean to me.’’
Manu had brief playing stints in Scotland and Italy before ending his career with some games for Otago and a season of Heartland rugby with Mid Canterbury.
He played nine tests for Tonga, and provided a heartwarming story when he played at the 2019 Rugby World Cup after treatment for testicular cancer.
Manu is a Highlanders man again.
He rejoined the club in an operations and mentoring role in 2023, and is now officially listed as assistant team manager.
