Keebra Park gun PJ Poutasi’s personal battles en route to Australia rugby union debut
Suicide, roadside accidents and stabbings. The lives of six of this sporting prodigy’s closest family and friends have been taken in recent times. Discover how the teenager has used the inner anguish to put himself on the cusp of greatness.
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Heartache has followed PJ Poutasi for the past two years, as the teenager has been forced to comprehend the deaths of friends and family he cherished.
But the resilience of the sporting phenom has powered him through to a life changing moment, a moment that has him primed to one day join the rugby elite.
For such a young man, the Keebra Park product has dealt with the loss of several family members to suicide and roadside accidents.
Just last year, the fatal stabbing of his close friend Yannis Leulusoo in Brisbane devastated him and his community.
They were the sort of tragedies that could tear down anyone; such a toll, especially for someone so young, would prove impossible to prepare for.
However, according to his dad Phillip, Poutasi has turned to sport and his teammates to fight through his anguish, and those efforts have culminated in his selection in the Australian schoolboys rugby union side.
“That kid has gone through a lot of heartache over the past two years,” Phillip said.
“He’s suffered a fair bit of tragedy, losing family members to things like suicide and tragic accidents, and one of his best mate’s was murdered in the city. He’s had six close people to him pass on.
“That’s why I spoke up; he groans quietly, he keeps it all in, but for him it’s been the support of family and his close knit friends that have kept his head square on the shoulders and helped him along.
“Very rarely does he break down in front of us, but at Keebra they had the senior group and the A’s team have an open discussion where they spoke about what they were feeling.
“He spoke about it and as a group they were there for each other. You make lifelong friends through it, people don’t understand when you train hard and spend so much time together and you go to battle together you become brothers.
“For any kid, regardless of whether he’s my son or not, to go through that and keep pushing himself is remarkable.”
What has only added to the enviable rise of Poutasi in the 15-man code is that rarely does he pick up the Gilbert.
As a prop for Keebra’s Langer Trophy side, rugby league is his primary passion, while family friends from his childhood such as Phillip Sami and Anthony Milford have gone on to don the Queensland colours in State of Origin.
Just to take his place among the school’s light blue brigade, the Forest Lake local takes two trains and an uber just to attened each session. Early morning sessions means hitting the road at 4.30am.
But now, after he captained South Coast to a tournament victory, before earning selection as skipper for the Queensland schoolboys side, the 17-year-old’s ability has garnered the attention of Super Rugby franchises — the Queensland Reds and the ACT Brumbies.
With the Steeden in hand, Poutasi has even been used in the halves from time to time, while in union he has been chosen in the green and gold as a tighthead prop.
Now with his September flights booked to take part in a three-game series in Japan, it appears he will have a decision on his long-term future to make.
For now, however, Phillip said his son was simply relishing the opportunities he has earned.
“League is his passion, but I think he’s the type of kid to not close doors and keep his options open,” Phillip said.
“He’s hard working because he’s had to. He’s naturally a big boy, so if he takes the time off his weight balloons.
“He’s not a fit lad, he just works hard. Like anything my boy hasn’t perhaps had the talent but he’s worked hard at it.
“As a parent I couldn’t be any prouder.”
Poutasi will fly out to Japan on September 25.
Nine Coast guns crack Country side, two ‘unlucky’ omissions
— July 8
With a plethora of Gold Coast products to fill the Queensland Country Colts side, calls have only strengthened for the region’s first-grade competition to return to an eight-team battle.
Nine talented members of the Cyclones side who triumphed at the South Queensland Championships have been elevated into the Heelers side who will challenge for the national title.
Among them are the likes of Topi Apatu, Jacob Meyer, Benjamin Tauerihi and Tyler Maxwell, whose current clubs Coomera, Palm Beach Currumbin and Helensvale have not lined up in the Glitter Strip’s top competition this year.
It is a decision that, while coming from a noble place, means Apatu, Mayer, Tauerihi and Maxwell would have to move clubs should their desire be to play among the elite in 2023, particularly given the absence of a colts competition in the city.
However should that not eventuate, the Griffith Knights top coach said considerations needed to be made regarding how to get the likes of Coomera, Helensvale and PBC back into the upper echelon.
He said given those clubs had strong junior bases, a theme replicated across the Coast, every side needed to fight for the top gong to ensure the exciting next generation had avenues to reach their potential in the region.
“It’s a big discussion point for Gold Coast rugby in the off season, even if a team is going to struggle for a year it’s better to have a first-grade than in second-grade and dominating that comp,” Cole said.
“The focus should be all clubs for a first-grade team and build from there. I think all nine of those boys will be pushing first-grade at their respective clubs, that is if they do stick around in the Gold Coast comp.
“I can’t remember how many still have another year to go in the under 19s, but I’m sure that Bond University would look at them to run in that competition (Brisbane Premier Rugby).
“It’s obviously a step above if they wanted to try the Brisbane comp, otherwise all of them are close to playing first-grade at their respective clubs and I expect they’ll be featuring.”
Cole said the nine players selected for the state’s Country side were unsurprising given the form they had showed, with Maxwell in particular proving to be the “really classy” player he had seen for the past two years.
However he admitted he was shocked that Cyclones captain Mitchell McGreevy and Helensvale forward Baxter Brown missed the cut given their efforts throughout the representative season.
Cole’s focus, however, will now turn to guiding his Knights to victory over Surfers Paradise as the Gold Coast District competition enters its final three weeks.
On Saturday his men will be faced with a stern Dolphins test, led by former All Blacks halfback Alby Mathewson.
While the five-time New Zealand international brings with him plenty of pedigree, Cole was confident his own number nine had the tools to thwart his more senior rival.
Cameron Dodd has been lauded by his coach as “the most underrated player” on the Gold Coast of the past five years, with his leadership in particular crucial in their Round 8 over their forthcoming adversaries.
“Alby is obviously a class player, he’s one of the best in the comp hands down but it’s good knowing Cam doesn’t shy away from that challenge and is always up for that battle,” Cole said.
“I’m sure being a Kiwi himself he loves playing against him. Cam to me has probably been the most underrated player over the last five or six years as we really turned into a strong first-grade squad.
“I don’t think he gets the recognition he deserves because what he does for our team is phenomenal.”
THE UNLUCKY DUO
Despite the Gold Coast’s featuring heavily in the Heelers squad, Cole said he could not understand why McGreevy and Brown were absent on the team sheet.
McGreevy, who led the Cyclones to glory earlier in the season, in particular has perplexed the man who gave him the Glitter Strip’s captaincy tag, given how he had not only thrived for the colts but also the Bond Pirates first-grade side.
“I thought they were awesome, the two that did miss out I thought were really unlucky,” Cole said.
“I thought Mitch in particular, who I’m pretty sure was the captain of that side, across those games he was really strong up there.
“He seemed to be doing exactly what he did at the Cyclones games carrying strong. He’s a big guy for that age group as well and he’s strong around the breakdown.
“I was really surprised he missed out, I’m not too sure if he’s injured or something but that was a big surprise.”
SHOCK MOVE FOR YOUNG GUN?
He has dominated at the back of the ruck throughout his junior ranks, but Tyler Maxwell’s future could even be in the pivotal number 10 jumper.
Cole has seen enough of Maxwell to know he has the tools to be a long-term halfback, but given the strength of his running game believes a shift to fly-half could be on the cards.
“He’s just really classy, I’ve thought the last two years with Gold Coast Colts he’s had a really good kicking game, a great pass,” Cole said.
“But he could even, if push comes to shove and he gets more size, I wouldn’t be surprised if he was in the ten jersey down the road.
“He’s got a great running game as well, and with all those other attributes we can transfer that into the 10 jersey.”
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