By Dan Walsh
Joseph Suaali’i left the World Cup with a backpack and returned home sporting a couple of extra names and billing as a teenage Samoan chief.
For all the talk of the rising star’s next NRL contract and preferred position following Samoa’s giant-killing World Cup run last November, Suaali’i’s standing in the island villages of Letogo and Satitoa has been known for some time.
Joseph Suaali’i during the saofa’i ceremony that formalised his new honour.Credit: Piui Simi/Samoa Observer
He was officially bestowed a “matai” title by the two communities of his grandparents during a Christmas visit to the Pacific nation.
The honour is also mouthful for the 19-year-old, who has shortened the title, slightly, to “Anavaotaua Iosefa Aukuso Suaali’i”.
“It’s probably easiest for everyone to stick with Joseph,” the Roosters star joked.
“Usually in Samoa, they’ll call you by one of your village names, but I’d prefer to represent both my grandparents’ people because of the honours they’ve given me.
“So I’ve combined the two and every time I go back to Samoa, they’ll greet me by my chief name.”
Suaali’i was told during an emotional pre-Christmas ceremony by Satitoa elders that while his World Cup exploits brought immense pride to the community, his influence on the next generation extends beyond the paddock.
He doesn’t drink and many people in NRL circles can’t recall anyone else so young with his character.
“They did tell me it’s rare for someone my age to have this honour,” Suaali’i told the Herald.
“But I was meant to get this matai title before playing for Samoa, I think just because they see me as someone younger people can look up to, that’s my role back home.
“They haven’t had someone playing NRL and they’re very proud, it’s about representing my family and my village and giving back to that community.
Joseph Suaali’i in action for Samoa.Credit: Getty
“I don’t look at it as a responsibility, it’s more a way of living my life. If I’m leaving a good legacy behind for the next person to come along, that next Samoan kid to come through, that’s special for me.”
So is the teenager’s outlook on life. Suaali’i spent three weeks travelling Japan on his own before joining his family in Samoa. He has since taken up language and culture lessons, aiming to speak it fluently. The Cambodian heritage on his mother’s side of the family also looms large on his backpacking bucket list.
“I’m learning about who I am and where I’m going,” Suaali’i said. “I’ve always seen Dad’s love for Samoa, and now after playing for them and going back home, and having these experiences – I only want to explore it more.
“I’m opening myself up to it because it’s going to help me find out who I want to be in life… Travelling solo, it was about the freedom and challenge of being overseas on my own. “Opening my eyes up to a different culture and waking up somewhere completely different to Bondi.”
Joseph Suaali’i.
Suaali’i will probably be an A-List celebrity in Samoa for the rest of his life.
Annual family trips in anonymity are a thing of the past following the rock-star reception he and World Cup teammates were greeted with during receptions with Samoa’s Prime Minister and countless street parades.
“I’ve been to Samoa lots of times, but this time, literally everyone knew me,” Suaali’i said.
“Honestly, everywhere I went, and it was the same for the other boys too, it was just overwhelming.
“It was crazy. Everyone at the airport knows you, eating somewhere, you’re taking photos [with fans] the entire time. The love is overwhelming and very humbling.
“From the family, too. We’re building my grandfather a house and he wants it painted Roosters colours now, we’ve got plenty of fans. It was just mental, very surreal.”
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