He plays against his old province in another semifinal in his first year back in New Zealand rugby.
Levi (33) has been a professional rugby player overseas for the last six years but settled back in New Zealand this year and was snapped up by Tasman.
Otago was beaten by Waikato 44-15 six years ago and Levi knows that it will not be easy to be on the winning side when he plays for Tasman in the ITM Cup championship semifinal at the Forsyth Barr Stadium tomorrow night.
The former Otago lock expects a tough game.
"History shows that it will be tough to win down there," Levi told the Otago Daily Times from Blenheim yesterday. "I regard Phil Young as one of the best forward coaches I've had and Tony Brown is an astute and intelligent coach."
When Levi played for Otago, Carisbrook was dubbed the "House of Pain" and visiting teams always found it difficult to win at the ground. He knows it will be just as difficult at the Forsyth Barr Stadium.
"It will be awkward playing against my old coaches, and old team-mates with my old teachers and neighbours watching from the sidelines.
"They will be trying to cheer me on but I'm wearing a different jersey. It will be weird but also exciting. I know that Otago is a team that will never give up."
Levi left Dunedin in 2007 after playing 70 games for Otago from 2000 to 2006 and 63 games for the Highlanders from 2002 to 2007.
"It's weird," he said. "I've been overseas for six years and this will be my third game at the stadium in Dunedin since I got back this year.
"It's good to come back home to see my family and the old faces of Otago rugby."
He is impressed by the stadium.
"It's amazing. I've been around the world and it is one of the best world class stadiums I have played in."
Levi has had a varied rugby career since leaving Dunedin.
He played for the Ricoh club in Japan for two years (the same club Ma'a Nonu played for) and then spent a season with Ospreys in Wales.
At the end of the 2009 season he played for the Newcastle Falcons in England for two years when former Otago All Black Carl Hayman was captain.
He then came back home to play for Samoa in the World Cup and settled back in New Zealand this year.
Levi wanted to play for Otago but opted for Tasman when he had doubts about Otago getting a team for the ITM Cup because of the financial problems of the ORFU.
No 8 Jordan Taufua, a loan player from Christchurch, has been called back into the Canterbury team for its premiership semifinal against Taranaki on Saturday. He has been replaced in the Tasman team by Tevita Koloamatangi.
Injury problems have delayed the announcement of the Otago team. It will be released today.
• If you can't get to tomorrow night's game, be sure to follow the action here, which will have live scoring and analysis from kick-off to the final whistle.
Filipo Levi
Career moves
Age: 33
Wife: Natalie
Residence: Blenheim
Position: Lock
Record: Otago 2000-06 (70 games), Highlanders 2002-07 (63 games), Pacific Islands 2004 (2 games), Ricoh, Japan 2007-08, Ospreys in Wales (2009), Newcastle Falcons, England 2010-11, Manu Samoa (2011),Tasman 2012.
Tasman team
to play Otago in the ITM Cup semifinal at Forsyth Barr Stadium
