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Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii picked in 34-man Wallabies squad for UK tour
Code-hopper Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii is being thrust straight into the big-time after being named in the 34-man Wallabies squad for spring tour of the UK fresh out the NRL having not played a game of rugby since he was a schoolboy star.
Suaalii, who signed the biggest contract in Rugby Australia history, only joined his NSW Waratahs teammates last week having recovered from what he called a “brutal” season with the Sydney Roosters, which ended in preliminary final defeat.
The 21-year-old was expected to be included an Australia XV squad initially but coach Joe Schmidt has decided to inject him in to the Wallabies squad which assemble in Sydney over the weekend before departing for the United Kingdom on Thursday next week.
Last week, Suaalii said he was ready for either, having been a schoolboy rugby star, which included some prominent performances in Australia’s series win against New Zealand in 2019 before making the switch to rugby league, adamant only some “finetuning” was needed for him to get back to his rugby roots.
“I played the game at school, just finetuning and getting the skills back that I’ve had in rugby and just being able to play footy,” he said.
“I love playing footy and I love playing union, so that’s what I’m just looking forward to.
“I’m ready. If they throw me in, I’m ready to go. I’ve always backed myself playing footy. I’ve always backed myself going against anyone, so I’m very confident in my abilities to play.”
Suaalii is one of five-new faces in the squad from the Rugby Championship including 2023 Rugby World Cup squad members Samu Kerevi and Will Skelton.
NSW Waratahs flyhalf Tane Edmed and Western Force winger Harry Potter also selected for their first national squad.
This year’s Spring Tour will feature Tests against England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland over four consecutive weekends in November.
“The squad has had a chance to regenerate over the last few weeks. At the same time, it was good to catch up with a wider group of players in the two-day training hubs we had in Canberra and Brisbane last week,” coach Schmidt said.
“We have a relatively consistent group but will integrate a few new players on tour.
“Trying to balance opportunities for players, some recent squad members will get much needed game time with Australia XV, which also enables us to broaden our cohort of players in what will be highly competitive fixtures.”
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