He spent the first 4 years of his senior career playing provincial rugby for with whom he racked up 36 appearances. His first season with the Stags saw him play 3 times as they were relegated from the ITM Cup Premiership. The men from
Invercargill finished 4th on the Championship log for the next three seasons which saw them qualify for the promotion playoffs, however, each time they lost at the semi-final stage to the eventual champions, going down to , and respectively. In
2013 and
2014, he was a key figure in Southland's line up, playing all 22 matches across both seasons. He moved back home to ahead of the
2015 ITM Cup with the switch seeing him join one of New Zealand's traditional rugby powerhouses. Four years of toil with Southland and an impressive season with Auckland saw him finally earn a Super Rugby contract with the
Wellington-based ahead of the
2016 Super Rugby season. His first year in New Zealand's capital turned out to be a roaring success as he formed an impressive second row partnership with
Vaea Fifita as the 'Canes, beaten finalists in
2015, went one better in 2016 and were crowned Super Rugby champions following a 20-3 victory over South African side, the in the tournament final. Fatialofa played 15 times during his debut Super Rugby campaign. On 4 January 2020 he suffered a serious neck injury in a match against
Saracens. He underwent surgery, and left intensive care on 23 January after which he was told to prepare for life in a wheelchair. In fact he was able to walk unaided by 21 March 2020; a recovery his wife described as miraculous: "proof that God is never limited to human wisdom." ==International career==