NRL 2022: Rabbitohs’ warning for Roosters as poachers circle Joseph Suaalii
While South Sydney insist they harbour no ill-will towards Joseph Suaalii over his departure to the Roosters, they have warned their bitter rivals of a headache on the horizon.
South Sydney chief executive Blake Solly says no one at the club bears any ill-will towards Joseph Suaalii and has given the Roosters a friendly warning that they face some difficult decisions down the track over the superstar teen’s well-documented desire to play fullback.
Solly was in the middle of tense negotiations over Suaalii’s future two years ago, culminating in the prodigy turning his back on Redfern to accept a deal from the Roosters.
The Rabbitohs were reluctant to accept some of the demands from the Suaalii camp, most notably the request to include yearly player options in his contract that would have allowed him to walk out at the end of each season to join another NRL club or switch to rugby union.
It is understood when one high-ranking Souths officials was told of the requests, they replied with something akin to: “You do know Clive Churchill played for this club.”
It was their way of intimating the Rabbitohs were a proud club with a rich history and should think twice before caving in to Suaalii’s demands.
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Senior figures in the Rabbitohs opted to heed the advice and Suaalii departed at the end of 2020 to accept a deal from the Roosters.
Souths will be reminded of what they lost on Friday night as Suaalii plays against the Rabbitohs for the first time since he left the club when the arch-enemies celebrate the opening of the rebuilt Allianz Stadium.
“We always thought our offer from a financial point of view was competitive with the Roosters, but we were unwilling to accept the options or flexibility that Joseph wanted in his deal,” Solly said.
“We didn’t bear any ill-will towards Joseph. He is a good young man and a hugely talented athlete. We could understand why he wanted to leave those options open for rugby union or even basketball.
“Managing a salary cap is difficult at the best of times and player options like that make it even more complex.”
Those options are now a headache for the Roosters amid talk that Suaalii is about to become a big-money target for Rugby Australia. Under the terms of his deal, Suaalii is free to leave the Roosters at the end of next season.
Before then, he is expected to play for the Kangaroos in the World Cup in England, a tournament that will put him in the shop window for cashed-up French rugby union clubs. NRL teams can’t hope to match the big dollars on offer in France.
Nor can they hope to match the money on offer in Australian rugby if reports are true that RA is ready to load up on the 19-year-old.
Adding another layer of complexity to Suaalii’s future is the talk that he would prefer to play fullback. The Roosters are well-stocked when it comes to the No.1 jersey.
Captain James Tedesco has another two years remaining on his deal and is regarded as one of, if not the best fullback in the game.
Joey Manu is also under contract for another two years and has shown that he is an elite fullback when given the chance — he is likely to wear the No.1 jersey for New Zealand at the World Cup.
Suaalii’s path to fullback at the Roosters is full of potholes, leaving the Roosters with some big decisions to make if they want to keep him at the club.
“Joseph saw himself as a fullback so the Roosters may have some headaches down the track,” Solly said. “We also agreed with Joseph that his best position would likely be at fullback. We had signed Latrell and saw him as our long-term fullback.”
Rabbitohs try to downplay Latrell rumours
-Brent Read
The Ferrari is idling in Taree. South Sydney coach Jason Demetriou has given Latrell Mitchell a mini-break in the lead-up to Friday night’s blockbuster against the Sydney Roosters, ordering his fullback to head to his farm in the hope that it will freshen him up for the remainder of the season.
It meant Mitchell wasn’t with his teammates as they trained at Redfern Oval on Tuesday but Demetriou insisted he would play against the Roosters as the bitter rivals meet at a sold-out Allianz Stadium.
The lead-up to the game has been marked by more enmity between the two clubs, the latest angst stemming from the refusal to let Souths train on the ground this week.
Rabbitohs officials were told the Roosters men’s and women’s team would be given access to the ground but that was it. Souths complained to the NRL and head office inspected the surface on Tuesday.
News Corp understands that the NRL always planned to inspect the ground given a concert was held at Allianz Stadium at the weekend. Regardless, Rabbitohs officials Brock Schaefer and Mark Ellison joined the NRL on Tuesday afternoon as they surveyed the surface, which will be christened on Friday night.
Mitchell is expected to be front and centre, no doubt refreshed after being given time to relax and regenerate. While the likes of Damien Cook and Cameron Murray enjoyed some time off around State of Origin, Mitchell spent those weeks continuing his rehabilitation from injury.
“He is playing,” Demetriou said.
“He has been great since he came back (from injury). He hasn’t had a chance to have a break. I rested Cooky and Cam during that Origin period.
“Most players when they get to around that 10 or 11 game mark, they get that bye round. We need him up for another five weeks so we sent him back to Taree to freshen up.
“I just grabbed him after the game (against the Cowboys) and said I want you to go back to Taree and spend some time with your parents and get away from footy for a few days.
“He was like, are you sure. I spoke to him today. He is really good and he is ready to go. He will be at captain’s run and ready to go.
“He misses one training session because it is a short turnaround. Like I said, it is not even so much about this week. It is about freshening him up for the next month.”
Demetriou knows that if Souths are to threaten for the title, Mitchell will need to be firing on all cylinders. His return has ignited the Rabbitohs, bringing out the best in five-eighth Cody Walker and helping Souths find the consistency that was missing earlier in the year.
While Mitchell will play, the Rabbitohs will be without centre Campbell Graham for Friday night’s game, meaning Jaxson Paulo will play in the centres for the first time since he was targeted on social media after making a litany of errors against Penrith a fortnight ago.
Asked about the Rabbitohs being frozen out of Allianz Stadium in the leadup to Friday night’s game, Demetriou said: “I don’t care. Don’t get me wrong - I would have liked to have a captain’s run on there. We will get there a bit earlier and get a feel for the place.
“At the end of the day it is a 100 (metres) by 70 metre footy field. We’ll be right.”
ROOSTERS STIR UP RABBITOHS WITH SUAALII BACKHANDER
Joseph Suaalii’s time at South Sydney was short and sweet but he now finds himself at the centre of their bitter rivalry with the Sydney Roosters after James Tedesco questioned whether people would even remember the teenage sensation was once a Rabbitoh.
Suaalii, 19, was earmarked for big things at Souths — he was feted by seven-time premiership winner Wayne Bennett — only for the Roosters to weigh in with a deal at the end of 2020 that secured the signature of one of the most-hyped teenagers in the code’s history.
The two clubs wrangled for months over Suaalii before the Roosters eventually got their man after paying a transfer fee to extract him from Souths when he still had a year left on his deal. At one point the Rabbitohs cheekily suggested a trade for Daniel Tupou.
Finally, nearly two years later, Suaalii will play against South Sydney for the first time as the clubs prepare to open the rebuilt Allianz Stadium before a full house on Friday night. Roosters lock Victor Radley (concussion) and Tupou (groin) are expected to miss the game, although both made an appearance at training on Monday.
Suaalii has been a revelation at the Roosters, impressing enough to suggest he could force his way into the Australian squad for the World Cup at the end of the year.
“Do people even know he was at Souths?” Roosters captain James Tedesco innocently responded when asked about Suaalii facing the Rabbitohs for the first time.
“I didn’t think of that. I’m sure (they) will make something of it.”
The Rabbitohs wanted to keep Suaalii and offered him a long-term deal. However, there were reports at the time that they also harboured concerns over requests that his contract include clauses that would have enabled him to leave and play rugby union.
The Roosters were happy to have the clauses in their agreement with the teenager — Suaalii recently took up an option in his contract for next season.
Former Rabbitohs head of football Shane Richardson said Souths were also reluctant to break the bank given the fullback spot was occupied by a bloke named Latrell Mitchell.
“Everyone goes on that he is a Souths junior but he is not,” Richardson said.
“He is actually a Penrith junior — he is a Glenmore Park Bears. Cameron Murray is a Souths junior. Keaon Koloamatangi is a Souths junior.
“And we had Latrell Mitchell. He was always going to play fullback. We would have like to have retained him but at the end of the day we felt we could use the money elsewhere to have a more rounded side.
“We didn’t want him to go but the Roosters offered him too much money and we couldn’t match it. He is a freak athlete, there is no doubt about it.
“He reminded me a lot coming through of Greg Inglis — that sort of athletic build. But we had a Greg Inglis with Latrell Mitchell.
“You can’t have too many Greg Inglises. They cost a lot of money. He is going to be a great player — I don’t think anyone doubts that.”
There’s no doubt the Roosters feel exactly the same way, having watched Suaalii torment opponents from the wing through this season. He has seemingly got better by the week under the guidance of coach Trent Robinson and Souths will need to be on guard on Friday night.
“He’s so good to have in our team, it’s so good to see how he has developed as a player,” Tedesco said. “He’s got such a good head on his shoulders. He will be such a great player for the future and I’m glad he’s in our team. He’s got better every week and he still surprises me with some of the stuff he comes up with.
“He will enjoy this game. It’s a credit to the club and ‘Robbo’ [how Suaalii has progressed]. I think wherever Joey would have gone, he was going to succeed because he’s always keen to learn and is a great athlete.”
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