Rugby league superstar Joseph Suaalii will line up against Wales at the Principality Stadium this weekend.
The 21-year-old code convert is the hottest prospect in Australian rugby right now, and he put in a sensational debut performance against England last Saturday
Sonny Bill Williams, Jason Robinson and Andy Farrell are some of the most famous code converts, and Suaalii looks like he could well follow in their footsteps and become a Test match star in rugby union.
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Here’s everything you need to know about the man of the hour….
Background
Suaalii was born in Penrith, Sydney, in 2003 to Samoan and Australian parents. At the age of 12, he set the male high jump record – an athletic trait that would go on to help him when he made his rugby union debut nine years later.
During his childhood, Suaalii played for Glenmore Park Brumbies and the Coogee Wombats in rugby league, with his focus being fully on that specific code of the egg-shaped game.
He went on to represent South Sydney Rabbitohs in the Harold Matthews Cup, NSW Schoolboys and Australian Schoolboys in rugby sevens. From this point, Suaalii became a hot prospect in the league scene Down Under – so much so that he secured a two-year deal with South Sydney Rabbitohs in 2019 at the age of 15. After making this move, the Rabbitohs boss was excited to get Suaalii on board. “We believe Joseph and Lachlan have long and fruitful NRL careers in front of them,” Rabbitohs’ general manager of football Shane Richardson said.
“Joseph has the body shape and skill levels that extend well beyond his years, but most importantly, he has a desire to achieve everything he can in rugby league through hard work and persistence.”
Signs for his arch rivals
After being released by the Rabbitohs, Suaalii signed for arch-rivals Sydney Roosters in 2020 in a transfer fee worth £25,000. In an article written by the NRL themselves upon announcing the move, they described him as “the most hyped schoolboy footballer of his generation”.
Just 17 years old at the time, the NRL gave a special exemption for Suaalii to make his debut for Roosters before his 18th birthday, at the age of 17 years and 294 days. A week after making his debut, he scored his first try, too.
He sustained an injury in his first season with Roosters, but made his big return in 2022. That year, he went on to represent Samoa at the 2022 Rugby League World Cup, qualifying to play for the country through his father. He played every game of that tournament.
Multi-million-dollar contract
In March 2023, the big news broke that Suaalii had signed a huge three-year deal to quit rugby league and join union with Rugby Australia.
In a deal which will see him earn more than £800,000 per season, Suaalii will represent Australian Super Rugby side NSW Waratahs as well as the national side. Rugby Australia made their big announcement with a simple statement: “Rugby Australia (RA) and the NSW Waratahs today announced that they have signed Joseph Suaalii from October 2024 until at least the end of 2027.”
This means he will be available to Australia for the British & Irish Lions tour next year, as well as the Rugby World Cup in 2027.
Speaking about his big move, Suaalii said: “The Sydney Roosters have been great to me and my family since I got here and the club is always going to be a big part of me.
“There’s still a long way to go in my journey with the Roosters and my sole focus is on working hard every day to keep improving and performing my role for the team.”
It went down as one of the biggest ever code switches in Australia, with rugby league the more popular code, by far. There is reportedly a clause in Suaalii’s contract that he can extend his stay in union until 2029 in a deal with more than £6million.
Huge debut performance in union
There was a lot of anticipation ahead of his debut in union, with the 21-year-old last playing a game of union in school.
Would he be able to handle a different code? Would he flop? Would it all be a massive disappointment?
The answer was no.
He picked up a player-of-the-match performance for Australia as they defeated England 42-37 in their own back yard. As previously mentioned, setting the male record for high jump at 12 years old certainly nods to your future athletic ability, and this certainly helped him on his professional rugby union debut.
Take this one example. Kicking off the second half, Wallaby fly-half Noah Lolesio stuck a hanging, shallow kick into England territory, giving time for the chase. Having already won a few kick-offs in the first half, Suaalii timed his run nicely and jumped head and shoulders above his opponents to win the ball easily.
In a frustrated yet admirable tone, TNT Sports co-commentator Ben Kay simply uttered: “He’s got it again,” which perfectly summarised Suaalii’s contribution to the match.
And not only that, either. He impressed fans and the commentary team with a fine assist for Tom Wright’s try on the stroke of the 26th minute. He simply used his height to offload the ball over George Furbank’s head.
Wales get ‘freak’ warning
Speaking to the media ahead of Australia’s clash with Wales in Cardiff, centre partner Len Ikitau warned of his team-mate’s ability.
“He’s a freak, man,” explained Ikitau. “Just being able to play next to him and seeing what he can do on the field is awesome. I’m just expecting more from him now he’s had his first game.
“I thought it was awesome to see him defending in the 13 channel – I know as a 13 it’s pretty hard to defend and I thought he was great in that space – then, he just wanted to be involved and get the ball, so that was good.
“Honestly, we saw all of that in training. He came in and learned exactly what he needed to learn, and just showcased that on the field. It was awesome to see.”
Wales face Australia on Sunday, November 17 at 4.10pm.
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