Tino Fa’asuamaleaui and Payne Haas get off with a fine — but grandma is waiting

Tino Fa’asuamaleaui and Payne Haas have been cleared to resume their rivalry in the third and deciding State of Origin game.

Payne Haas’s Blues jersey came off worst in his brawl with Tino Fa’asuamaleaui Picture: Brett Costello

Payne Haas reckons his last fight was in the under 10s.

“We were losing so I was being a bad sport,” Haas said.

“It is out of character for me to lose my cool. I probably put my (NSW) teammates in a position where they were a bit vulnerable, especially with me coming off.

“I was a bit hard on myself when I did come off. That is not really me, it is out of my character.”

Haas at least gets the chance to atone. On Thursday morning, the NSW front-rower was charged by the NRL match review committee but spared a suspension, instead incurring a fine for his stoush with Queensland forward Tino Fa’asuamaleaui in Origin II at ANZ Stadium.

The pair were sent to the sin-bin and subsequently charged with contrary conduct for sparking a melee, but they will be free to continue their nascent rivalry at Suncorp Stadium next week.

The decision was a win for both men, as well as the rugby league publicists and purists who no doubt took great joy from a return to the fire and brimstone that used to dominate the Origin arena.

The young forwards have clashed in the past, the origins of their enmity reported by News Corp papers in the lead-up to the second State of Origin game. Queensland coach Wayne Bennett claimed the reports may have contributed to the tension between the pair, although Haas played it down afterwards.

He even suggested Fa’asuamaleaui’s manager Simon Mammino, who was quoted in the story, was attempting to use his profile to enhance his own client.

“I don’t read any paper or nothing,” he said. “It just happened tonight and I guess everyone got their wish. I have actually hardly versed him growing up. He is a year younger than me. I don‘t know where that came from, whether it is his agent trying to ride my coat-tail or whatever.

“It is what it is. They can talk all they want.”

There certainly looked like there was bad blood between the pair as Haas made his way off the field on Wednesday night, his jersey in tatters and his eyes burning.

Haas seemed to be suggesting to Fa’asuamaleaui that he was keen to continue their stoush. At full-time, they embraced and Haas insisted he harboured no ill-will. His focus now is on winning the series at Suncorp Stadium next week rather than seeking revenge.

“I just saw red,” he said. “It was a bit dumb of me to keep carrying on like that. I should have left it as it was. I just saw red and kept on going.

“Freddie (Coach Brad Fittler) and the coaching staff put the faith into me this week. I just wanted to repay that faith.

“They were speaking to me all week about expressing myself and playing my own game. I thought I did an all-right job.”

He walked off ANZ Stadium at full-time with a broad smile on his face, but nervous about the response that was waiting from his grandmother, Soledad.

“My grandma will be getting up me,” he said. “Obviously it is part of footy. I will wait for her to see what she says. She gets scared of that kind of stuff.”

The challenge for Haas and the Blues is to repeat their performance next week at Suncorp Stadium, a ground that has been a graveyard for the Blues over the years.

They have tasted victory on few occasions, although they head to Brisbane with the wind in their sails after a morale-boosting victory that levelled the series.

“I thought you saw glimpses of how good we can be,” Haas said.
“We have to back that up next week at Suncorp — it is going to be a tough task. We will be ready for it.

“Last year I played there and it was the hardest game I played in my life. I expect that next week from Queensland.

“Their fans are going to be roaring and ready to go. Queensland are going to give it to us and we have to be ready for it.

“I know the ground — it is hard to win up there especially against Queensland. They always turn up, like we turn up here. It is going to be a really tough game.

“We can’t try to fancy our way through them. If we weather the storm, I think we can get the job done.”