The real Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii story, from childhood tears to multimillion dollar contracts

Rugby’s $5 million man, cross-code superstar Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii has been big news since he was 14-years old, now Jamie Pandaram reveals the complex character behind the headlines.

To best understand Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, think back to your own priorities at 11 years old.

And then let him tell you his.

“I observe quite a bit,” Suaalii told this masthead during a revealing interview.

“I don’t say too much, but I love to observe. Seeing my old man work different jobs, working so hard, seeing my mum as well, we didn’t come from money.

“We didn’t have a lot of money at all. In my mind, I’ve seen sport in the sense of, if I can make it here, I can help my parents out.

“I was 11 when I started. It was weird, I used to wake up really early in the morning, like 4 o’clock in the morning, start doing my sit-ups and push-ups. Just to get to that point.

“I knew that it was hard work that was going to get me to where I am. Honestly, when I was 11 or 12, I used to get up really early in the morning, do push-ups, sit-ups, and then go for a run.

“Ever since then, I’ve had that drive just to get better every single day. Even still now.”

NSW Waratahs star Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii. Picture: NSW Waratahs

Suaalii’s father Chris, of Samoan heritage, and mother Salina, who is half Cambodian, helped shape an incredible will within their son.

He is now rugby’s $5 million man, a dual-code superstar who has represented NSW in State of Origin and played for the Wallabies. But Suaalii is not about to sit back and count his cash.

“I’m still not content with where I am right now,” he said.

“I feel like I always have that chip on my shoulder of getting better every single day. It’s a gift and a curse at the same time.”

The 21-year-old former Sydney Roosters flyer will spearhead the turnaround of the NSW Waratahs, who finished with the wooden spoon in last year’s Super Rugby Pacific tournament.

The league community was shocked by Suaalii’s decision to switch to rugby. It is, however, a game that is in his blood.

“Dad’s dream was to always play rugby, so it’s pretty cool for myself just to live his dream by playing rugby,” Suaalii said.

“He was the one who taught me the love of rugby. He’ll come to every single game I play. He hasn’t missed a game since I was really young.

“He loves the game of rugby and that’s where I got the love for rugby too.”

Suaalii was criticised as being money-hungry, overrated and it was even suggested he’d slink back to the NRL after he realised how “boring” union would be.

Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii walks from the field after being sent off in just the eighth minute of the match. Picture: NRL Photos

But Suaalii, who has signed a three-year, $5.35 million deal with Rugby Australia, says money is not his primary motivator.

“Honestly, I see money as, how could you say it? It’s not a big thing, it’s like a by-product,” Suaalii said.

“My life is my family. It plays a role in providing for my family.

“I love playing rugby, that’s just the biggest thing. And being able to grow every day.

“What I honestly focus on every day is my family, getting better every single day, and being able to learn. I keep it simple in that sense.

“I just like focusing on those three pillars of my life.”

Suaalii’s humble beginnings shaped his hunger.

Getting a full boarding scholarship to The Kings School in Parramatta – worth around $480,000 – changed Suaalii’s life. Particularly after he’d applied for the same at rival private schools Scots College and Newington.

“It’s weird because my mum always used to tell me as a kid, ‘Everything happens for a reason’. So moving from home to King’s, that was probably one of the big things, the King’s School helped me a lot,” Suaalii said.

“When I was in Year 6, we couldn’t afford to go to The King’s School, and I said to my mum, ‘I want to go to this school’. Mum never ever shuts down a dream. She just said, ‘Son, it’s very expensive to go to this school’.

“I’m like, ‘No, no, no, I want to do it one day. I want to come to this school’. I applied at Scots, and then I applied at Newington, and it didn’t work out.

“They helped out, but my parents couldn’t afford for me to go to these schools.

“And then King’s came across, and I was blessed enough that with the help of the Penisini family, (Parramatta Eels player and childhood friend) Will Penisini, they helped me come across, and I got into King’s.

(L-R) Will Penisini and Joseph Suaalii at King’s. Picture: Supplied

“That was a big moment for my life because then I started boarding that school, and I feel like it just helped me as a human. Just learning.

“I grew up in Kingswood and Glenmore Park and Claremont Meadows.

“I grew up out west, and out west, you stick to your family. You don’t see much past your environment, so even just being able to articulate different things.

“I was very quiet. I didn’t want to open up or anything like that, and I feel like going to King’s and learning that culture, you kind of see both sides of the world if that makes sense. You get the lower socio-economic, and then you get the higher.

“I was uncomfortable there at King’s, but I grew to love being there and being with my best mates at the school.

“That was probably the moment my life started to change.

“But I always had that dream since a kid to do the things that I’m doing today.”

Before he dominated the rugby fields at schoolboy level, Suaalii was often left in tears by his father and uncles during rough games of park footy.

“My uncles would come down and make me cry all the time, just belt me,” Suaalii said.

“I was always the young one and my dad would always give me a bump or two. It’s always the memories of me and my old man with a rugby ball.

“That’s all we speak about when we see each other. It’s always him kicking the high ball and I’d be just catching it. That was a fond memory I have as a kid.

“And with my uncles, they’d make me cry all the time as a kid.

“I used to cry a lot as a kid. I used to hate losing. As you get a bit older and you start winning a couple, you start getting that confidence within yourself.

“Now it’s just funny, it’s just passing it on to my little brother and my little sisters and cousins. It’s like a cycle.”

Each time Suaalii walks on to the field, he is representing his clan and culture.

“I’ve got six sisters and one brother, so I feel like every day I’m always getting better and being a role model to my siblings,” he said.

“I’ve always had that hard work and dedication. I’ve seen my old man work a lot of jobs growing up.

Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii with his parents Chris and Salina (left) and sisters Elina and Natalina.

“My mum, she’s tough, she’s a tough woman. The different traits of who I am, I feel like I do get them from my parents and my ancestors.

“Dad would work night shift, day shift, construction work.

“He was always a rig guard and he would do a lot of scaffolding, just all the hard labour work. He would do day shift, night shift, just to provide for my sister and I when we were younger and now all the different siblings.

“My mum’s always said, ‘You can do whatever you want to do in your life and dream of whatever you want to do’. And I feel like having that foundation of that family, I know if anything goes left, I always have my family there for me.

“I feel like that allows me to, in a weird way, spread my wings and try different things and do different things and be confident in myself. I feel like I have a freedom in myself to try things, do different things.

Joseph-Aukoso Suaalii in action for the Wallabies during the Autumn Nations Series 2024 match against Wales. Picture: Getty Images

“I was in the papers when I was like 14. At the start, you’re excited to see yourself in the papers, and then you get like 16, 17, you start to talk about it a lot.

“I’m not going to lie, there were times where it was tough, but at the end of the day, I just look back at it and say, it is a game of rugby that I’m playing. All you need to do is put the ball over the line to score a try and you’ve got to defend to stop them from scoring.

“That’s the way I see it. It’s very simple, the game.”

Behind the headlines, highlight reel moments on the field and hordes of fans, keeping it simple has allowed Suaalii – who lives alone in Sydney’s eastern suburbs – to become a cheerful recluse.

“I don’t drink alcohol, I love travelling by myself, I can go sit at a cafe by myself,” he said.

“I’m very comfortable in my own skin in that sense. I’m happy.”

Originally published as The real Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii story, from childhood tears to multimillion dollar contracts