It’s not often the first day of a new job comes with so much attention and scrutiny. But then again, there is only one Joseph Suaalii.
On Monday morning, Suaalii finally began his time back in rugby at his first extended Wallabies camp in Canberra under coach Joe Schmidt. The former Rooster’s potential $9.3 million deal over five years and his massive profile attracted a far larger than-normal press pack at an otherwise sleepy facility.
If Suaalii’s extensive talents equate to a highly tuned and expensive sports car the Wallabies cannot wait to get out of the garage, it was difficult to tell how he tore around the track at the Australian Institute of Sport as the media were only allowed to watch a few minutes of passing drills at the end of the session.
Dressed in a Waratahs training kit, Suaalii happily mixed with his new colleagues, then took a brief break before addressing how he has dealt with the criticism that has come his way for taking the big money in union. There were no nerves, just a belief in what he is doing.
“At the end of it, it’s just my life and my dreams and what I want to do with my life,” Suaalii said. “So obviously, everyone’s going to have an opinion on it, which is respected, but at the end of the day, what I want to do is play for the Waratahs and the Wallabies, that’s the goal and the aim, and, yeah, win games.”
Joseph Suaalii chatting to coach Joe Schmidt Credit: Alex Ellinghausen
If only it were that simple. There has never been a deal in the history of Australian rugby like Suaalii’s. It brings the player huge guaranteed financial benefits far beyond the majority of his new teammates but also attracts scrutiny. At 21, how can he cope with this level of expectation?
“Yeah I’m ready for that,” Suaalii said. “I feel like, as a young kid coming to NRL, I feel like I had a lot of eyes on me coming through, so it’s no different.
“I’m just keeping everything simple, just sticking to the process of chatting every day, getting better every day, and just learning from my teammates and just trying to be the best player I can be.”
Suaalii last played representative rugby as part of an Australian under-18 side that beat New Zealand in 2019 with Wallabies teammates Zane Nonggorr, Billy Pollard, Josh Flook and Tom Hooper, a feat replicated at the start of October.
Suaalii also knows prop Angus Bell from the Sydney schools rugby circuit, immediately giving the young player an easy icebreaker on his first day.
“I think that’s the first thing you want to talk about [schools rugby],” Suaalii said .“It’s basically just getting back to know each other, our families and seeing how you’re going and what the journey’s been like.”
Joseph Suaalii with prop Angus Bell who he knows from schools rugbyCredit: Alex Ellinghausen
During drinks breaks, Suaalii would have had quite a journey to share since his days as a schoolboy star for the King’s School in Parramatta, where he used his pace and strength at wing and fullback.
Since those more carefree days, he established himself at the Roosters and was sent off seven minutes into his State of Origin debut. Suaalii knew that he was making this move for 18 months and his first preparation for his new code, was simple, he needed rest.
“ I needed rest from that NRL season,” Suaalii said .“I think it’s a long, brutal season that was the first thing, just rest, and then now it’s just about learning each day… But I’ve played the game [rugby] before, and I’m very confident in my abilities.”
Suaalii will travel with the Wallabies for their upcoming Spring tour in November.
He is desperate to be thrown into the deep end, be it with the second string group or the full Wallabies side and in any position that Schmidt wants to utilise him in. He is not keen to travel into the depths of the European winter to slowly learn his craft under the protective confines of the training ground.
“I feel like anywhere, honestly, wherever Joe puts me. I’ll just put my head down, learn as much as I can and just play footy, at the end of the day it’s just a game of footy, nothing else,” Suaalii said.
“If they throw me in, I’m ready to go. I’ve always backed myself playing footy. I always backed myself against anyone. So yeah, I’m very confident in my abilities to play.”
Australia will play their first tour game on November 8 against Premiership club Bristol Bears with a second-string Australia XV showing Joe Schmidt whether they are ready for the step-up to the more unforgiving Test arena. Suaalii will be desperate to get his opportunity to audition for a chance to shine as a Wallaby.
Until then, Suaalii will focus on the small things that matter. With all of his teammates gone from the training paddock and almost everyone else had departed, unprompted, he grabbed a huge box of training gear to help staff clean up. He knows that his journey to the Wallabies will starts from the ground up.
