Suaalii free to face England as Paulo gets one-week ban

Warrington: Joseph Suaalii will be free to play in Samoa’s semi-final against England after escaping with just a caution for raising his knees into Tonga’s Felise Kaufusi at the Rugby League World Cup.

The news, though, was not all good, with Samoa now set for a date with the judiciary after skipper Junior Paulo was slapped with a one-game ban for raising his forearms into the throat of David Fifita in the final minutes of their victory over Tonga in the quarter-finals.

Before the match-review committee findings, Samoan officials had privately raised concerns about the impartiality of the panel, which was largely made up of UK-affiliated members. A number of teams have raised concerns over a perceived bias from the tournament’s organisers.

Samoa may have to overcome Shaun Wane’s England side without Paulo in this weekend’s semi-final showdown at Emirates Stadium in London following their 20-18 win over Pacific island rivals Tonga in Warrington on Monday morning (AEDT),

Suaalii has a history of raising his knees while running in the NRL. He accepted a $1800 fine from the NRL’s match-review committee because of his running style following an incident in the Roosters’ loss to South Sydney in the first week of the finals.

He had earlier been handed a warning over a similar incident in a match against Wests Tigers. The World Cup match review committee decided against taking action.

The Samoans were privately concerned about the pair’s chances of escaping a suspension. Publicly, though, they said they had nothing to worry about. Samoa coach Matt Parish heaped praise on Suaalii for his performance, and expected him to dodge the ban.

Samoan players celebrate after their historic win.Credit: AP

“I would be surprised if anything came of that,” Parish said.

“He was unbelievable, wasn’t he, for a 19-year-old kid. He has been unbelievable for our group for a young man. He has been well-schooled and well-educated. Certainly, I think he is enjoying the ride at the moment.

“He is pretty good in any position you put him in. He has a long career ahead of him, which is going to be exciting to watch. He has been part of this and I am pleased for him too, because he could have chosen to play for Australia. He committed to Samoa like a lot of these young men. which is pleasing.”

With his team leading by two points late in the game, Suaalii burst through the Tongan defence and beat six players before being dragged to the ground just short of the line. The linebreak led to Samoa scoring what proved to be the match-winning try.

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