Wallabies tyro Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii was well aware of the interest in his potential rematch with British and Irish Lions centre Sione Tuipulotu even before fielding a barrage of questions on the matter ahead of Saturday’s opening Test in Brisbane.
The star league recruit and the Melbourne-raised Scotland captain had to be separated in a skirmish in their first meeting at Murrayfield last November.
Suaalii laid a massive tackle on his opposite but then stayed down after injuring his arm.
Tuipulotu then sledged the rookie Wallaby, who jumped back to his feet and fired back, warning “I will see you next time” before departing the field for treatment on his wrist.
Since then 28-year-old Tuipulotu was cautioned by Wallabies analyst Eoin Toolan, who he knows from his Melbourne Rebels days, to stop talking about the incident as Suaalii was “raring to go”.
“I don’t want to put any targets on my back,” Tuipulotu told the KOKO podcast.
“I know Eoin Toolan, who is the analyst at the Wallabies, and he used to be our analyst at Melbourne. He’s told me to stop talking on these podcasts about Joey, cause he says he’s raring to go. I don’t want to put any targets on my back from big Joey.”
With Tuipulotu favoured to start against the Wallabies, Suaalii faced several questions about the resumption of hostilities between the pair.
“I feel like there’s been a lot of talk around that moment but at the end of the day it’s just a game of footy,” the 21-year-old said on Monday in Brisbane.
Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii of Australia clashes with Sione Tuipulotu of Scotland as he leaves the field after picking up an injury during the Autumn Nations Series 2024 match between Scotland and Australia at Scottish Gas Murrayfield on November 24, 2024 in Edinburgh, Scotland. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)
“I’m a big believer that whatever’s said on the field stays on the field.
“I’m just focused on what I can do for the team, that’s it. I’m not going to speak on it, to be fair.
“I always focus on myself first before I put my energy into someone else, and obviously fans want to see a rivalry and all that but at the end of the day, it’s a team sport and I’m just trying to do the best for the team.”
While Suaalii was reticent to bait his rival, his Wallabies teammate Will Skelton happily chimed in that he could see some fireworks happening at Suncorp Stadium.
“Yeah, that’s what you want, no?” the giant lock said.
“You want our 12s going against their 12s, you want our 13s going against their 13s – I think no matter what, it’s going to be a physical battle and we’re up for the challenge.”
Suaalii rated his involvement in the Lions series above his sole State of Origin experience which was cut short by a send-off, and said it was the major incentive for his code switch.
“Yeah, that was probably the biggest carrot for myself,” he said. “These are the biggest games, they happen every 12 years, so that was probably the biggest thing coming across.
“I was nine, I remember watching it in my house, all the young kids sitting on the floor and I just remember being real close to the TV, watching it.
“Something so special as a kid sparks you to do something great in your life so to be a part of the squad, it’s amazing.”
Suaalii is using the experience of his Origin sending off as he prepares for the biggest game of his union career.
“The biggest thing I learned was my off-field, the way I was leading into that week,” he said. “It taught me a lot about myself leading into these big games. It’s just about being neutral, not being too high or too low, or not playing the game before playing it.
“I think that was my biggest lesson from that game. So obviously these games are going to be big, but we’re just focused on today’s training session leading into the game on Saturday.”
Suaalii’s stand-out memory of the 2013 series, which Australia lost, was the dramatic Test debut of another code-hopper Israel Folau, who scored two tries in the opening match.
“He did kill it in that 2013 series and that was a big reason it was a dream of mine to play the Lions, because I remember watching him, Kurtley Beale, all these different players do their thing in the game and it sparked something for myself,” he said.
The former New South Wales Origin player will predictably be the centre of attention whenever he pulls on the Wallabies jersey, but he is eager to avoid being seen as a saviour of Australian rugby.
“I think the first thing is it’s a team sport. It’s just not just me,” he said.
“I’m just trying to be my best self for my teammates, and that’s it. I don’t really buy into who’s going to save this, who’s going to do this. All I know I can do is prepare the best I can for the team, be the best teammate I can be, and that’s it. I don’t see anything else.”
(With AAP)
