The 21-year-old made his Wallabies debut during their 42-37 win over England, just weeks after switching codes and leaving Sydney Roosters at the end of the NRL season; Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii earmarked for key role in Australia's rugby union future
Monday 11 November 2024 14:10, UK
Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii making his Australia debut as his first professional rugby union match could have been considered a gamble from the Wallabies, but the 21-year-old quickly announced himself as the sport’s new cross-code star.
Just weeks after switching to union from rugby league's NRL, Suaalii delivered a man-of-the-match display to help Australia to a dramatic 42-37 victory over England at a packed Allianz Stadium.
The 21-year-old played a pivotal role in ending Australia's three-match losing streak and saw them register their first victory over England on UK soil since the 2015 World Cup, with head coach Joe Schmidt leading the plaudits for a 'freak' talent.
"He certainly has a rugby pedigree, albeit having played a few years of professional rugby league, which has made him a really professional young man," Schmidt said. "He is incredibly diligent around his preparation, and that diligence I think pays off in the way that he performs.
"He's a bit of an aerial freak, but at the same time, it was a good learning experience for Joseph as well. I know there was some doubts expressed about him being selected and the risk. I think people would now see the opportunity of involving a young man like that."
It was a statement introduction for Suaalii, who will play the New South Wales Waratahs in Super Rugby from next season and is destined to be an integral part in Wallabies teams over the years ahead. We look at his rise to worldwide rugby stardom…
The Sydney-born player quickly gained a reputation as a teen prodigy, with his physique beyond his years and impressive play not going unnoticed when he received a scholarship to The King's School in Parramatta aged 13.
Stuart Woodhouse, the school director of rugby, said about the first time he saw him play: "He was over 6ft and it was a man playing against children. It was not a mismatch necessarily by size as he wasn't a big man at around 70kg back then.
"But just his skill level and his thinking was way above other boys. His training age would have been at least 10 years above his cohort."
Suaalii showed off his talents across multiple sports - competing in Australian rules, basketball and athletics alongside both codes, but playing in the school's first rugby union XV aged 14 was a sign of the rapid progress to come.
He continued to represent teams beyond his years for his school while playing league for South Sydney Rabbitohs' junior side, with Suaalii representing Australia Schools and Under 18s in union as a 15-year-old before being snapped up in a rugby league deal.
Suaalii signed a deal with the Rabbitohs in February 2019, with NRL clubs and Rugby Australia both continuing to battle for his services before he switched to rivals Sydney Roosters at the end of 2020.
Roosters had to get a special exemption from the Australian Rugby League commission to let him make his NRL debut before turning 18, making him the first 17-year-old to feature in over a decade, with Suaalii quickly making headlines for his performances.
Suaalii scored a try in his second Roosters appearance in 2021 and was named in the NRL team of the season the following campaign, the year he also turned down competing for Australia at the Rugby League World Cup in favour of representing his father's nation of Samoa.
He extended his Roosters contract in March 2023 but announced just weeks later that he would be switch codes at end of the 2024 NRL season, with his decision to sign a future multi-year, multi-million pound deal with Rugby Australia splitting opinion among former players.
Former Roosters player Phil Gould said at the time: "Every time he scores a try, every time he does something in our game, people are going to refer to the fact that he's going. Why do we need that?"
Suaalii continued to feature regularly for the Roosters across the four seasons, scoring 29 tries from 66 appearances, although his only State of Origin appearance for New South Wales saw him sent off for a high tackle early in the 2024 series opener.
Roosters secured a third-place finish that season ahead of them being beaten by Melbourne Storm in the Preliminary Finals, with Suaalii allowed to leave his contract a few weeks early of its October 31 expiry after being named in Australia's squad for the Autumn Nations Series.
Schmidt named Suaalii to start at outside centre for their match against England, his first competitive rugby union match of any kind since representing Australia at U18 level in 2019, despite a lack of experience and limited build-up as part of the Wallabies set-up.
"Everything's a risk, but I would challenge that with everything's an opportunity," Schmidt said about his selection. "It's a fantastic opportunity for a young man who's really excited about getting the chance."
It left Suaalli following the likes of Matt Giteau and Tatafu Polota-Nau to debut for the Wallabies before playing Super Rugby, with England centre Ollie Lawrence wary pre-match of the immediate impact he could make.
"I've seen a lot of his footy over the years and he's been an incredible player in league," Lawrence said. "If you just look at his stature, he's a big lad at 6ft 5in and he's quick, so you know you have to take time and space away from him as quickly as possible."
Suaalii stepped up and played the full 80 minutes in front of a sold-out crowd, helping to create a try, delivering some superb offloading and excelling on multiple occasions during Australia's historic Twickenham success.
The debutant relished the experience and the praise from his team-mates, saying post-match: "It's good things that they're saying, but I've come in, I'm 21 years old, and I feel like I'm just being myself. Honestly, I had so much fun out there."
Australia stay in the Northern Hemisphere for further Tests against Wales, Scotland and Six Nations champions Ireland over the coming weeks, with Suaalii likely to feature heavily as attention continues to turn towards the British and Irish Lions tour down under next summer, live on Sky Sports.
"He was great, did his job, and he'll learn. And he'll get better," was the glowing verdict of team-mate Fraser McReight, as Suaalii delivered a performance way beyond his years and experience.
Suaalii's addition comes as a boost to the Wallabies, who had finished bottom of the Rugby Championship after a dismal campaign, with Schmidt pleased to see "green shoots" of promise in his side ahead of next summer and then a home World Cup in 2027.
"As the coaches we've got a long-term aim, we know what's coming up next year in the middle of the year and we know the quality of what's coming in July 2025," Schmidt explained. "Everything we do now will be really important in building the belief to make sure that we're ready for that."
Suaalii has had to live up to lofty expectations throughout every stage of his rise through to the world stage. He certainly, so far in his young career, has not disappointed.
Watch every game of the 2025 British and Irish Lions tour of Australia, including all three Test matches against the Wallabies, exclusively live on Sky Sports.
