Forget the $1.6 million pay cheque. It’s a mum’s humble home cooking that could prove the more valuable factor in Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii leading the Wallabies to victory over the British and Irish Lions next month.
After a 12-year wait, the highly anticipated Lions tour is now just weeks away and Suaalii joined fellow Wallabies Angus Bell and Andrew Kellaway at Taronga Zoo on Wednesday to visit some real lions and promote the blockbuster series.
The smile on Suaalii’s face will be a welcome sight for Wallabies fans – and coach Joe Schmidt – after the star recruit suffered a broken jaw four weeks ago, throwing his involvement into doubt.
But after surgery and a rehab period that involved wearing a protective face mask, Suaalii says he is back to full health and will be ready to take on Fiji early next month, and then the Lions in the main show later in July.
Unable to eat properly for a while after his surgery, Suaalii revealed he’d lost valuable playing weight but that he’d since regained it – courtesy of his mum Salina.
“I lost around five kilos, but I’ve put it all back on now,” Suaalii said.
Wallabies Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, Andrew Kellaway and Angus Bell at Taronga Zoo’s Lion habitatCredit: Edwina Pickles
“I’ve been eating heaps, thanks to my mum and my family around me for the support to help me stay back on track. Just going back home, there’s always food there. Mum and Dad always try to feed me as much as possible when I’m back home, so I’m always just trying to stay away from it. But that’s good, I’ve put my weight back on.”
Suaalii suffered the broken jaw during a sickening friendly fire accident in the Waratahs-Reds game, where his head hit Kellaway’s knee during a tackle.
“Nobody wants to crash the Ferrari, that’s not what anyone wants. I was a bit worried I was going to go viral as the guy who damaged Joseph before the Lions series,” Kellaway joked. “He looks alright, he’s doing a lot of talking, which is a good sign.”
Suaalii, who was also knocked out in the clash, said he wasn’t concerned about a string of concussions over the past two years but felt a pang of concern when he went for x-rays a few days later, and doctors told him he had a fracture.
Wallabies Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, Andrew Kellaway and Angus Bell at Taronga Zoo’s Lion habitat.Credit: Edwina Pickles
“Obviously it’s such an important time for myself and Australian rugby, and I want to be playing,” Suaalii said.
“So obviously there’s a little bit of nerves, but they came back (down) straight away. I had surgery maybe three weeks ago now, and I’ve been looking good going into Lions.
“My face was really big for a bit. I was wearing a face mask everywhere, but it is slowly coming down. Still got a bit of baby fat around [but] going well. I’ll be fully fit.”
Suaalii said he was expecting the Lions Test series to be the biggest moments of his career, so far.
Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii suffered a broken jaw during an accidental head knock.Credit: Getty Images
“You don’t always get to play against the Lions,” Suaalii said. “Some people play it once in your career, and it happens every 12 years. So I believe it’s going to be one of the biggest games of my life.”
Along with the broken jaw, Suaalii also missed six weeks of the Super Rugby season with a foot injury. It meant he only played seven games for the Tahs, and while he was in strong form, it’s not the full season of re-acclimatisation to rugby that Suaalii would have wanted.
He is confident he has had enough time, however, and said the experience of playing fullback for NSW will help him if, as expected, he is returned to No.13 for the Wallabies.
“Even just being around the game, even just watching it, observing, learning from teammates, coaches – I feel like I’ve had a lot of time to digest a lot of information and just see it from a different angle, a different perspective.
“Playing at 15, playing at 13, even training on the wing. I feel like I’ve been learning so much. I feel like I’m just using all that information just to go out there and play rugby. Seeing it from a different perspective always helps you.”
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