I was unimpressed by Sisa Waqa when he started at the Melbourne Storm. Although it was clear if you gave him the ball he could run, defensively he was the weak link in the side, and the Storm conceded too many tries down his wing.
I was happy to admit that I had misjudged him and grew to respect him more and more with every game I watched him play.
Craig Bellamy was right and I was wrong and that’s why he is a professional coach and I sit there watching on TV.
As a result, it was with disappointment but understanding I watched Sisa make his debut for Canberra on the weekend, and with trepidation wondered who would take his place in the number 2 jersey.
I needn’t have bothered.
Against the Dragons, Young Tonumaipea stepped up and showed why he is considered one of the bright young things (no pun intended) in the Melbourne Storm.
At 22 years old, and with one season of first grade under his belt, Tonumaipea started out on the wing and was a stand-out in what was at times a sloppy, but hard-fought defensive arm-wrestle. He scored the first try of the match, and put every other coach in the NRL on notice.
Although the night didn’t start out too well for him (he was the recipient of a great tackle by debutant Eto Nabuli which caused the first error of the match) he was the first to gather a great kick into the in-goal area by Cooper Cronk to open the scoring.
He played his part in the defensive kicking game by providing support for Billy Slater under the high ball and fielding a bomb himself. He took a couple of turns at dummy-half and had one good dummy-half run in the second half.
For me though, the highlight of the match was watching him in defence, both by himself and in partnership with Will Chambers. The way the two of them worked together, it was clear that more than a little work had been done in the off-season. There was a marked contrast between the way Chambers and Tonumaipea worked together and the opposite side of the line, which saw Marika Koroibete coming in off the line to cover youngster Kurt Mann. I am not criticising Mann’s game (he was better than average) simply highlighting the contrast between the two pairs and, in fairness, St George really didn’t attack that side that often.
Even the St George try, which came from a kick to Tonumaipea’s corner, spoke more to the skill of Benji Marshall than the defensive deficiencies of Tonumaipea’s game. He was up on the line when he needed to be and when he did come out of the line, he never came further out than he could get back and cover.
In a side where 90 per cent of the press space is dedicated to three players (maybe four if you want to argue about it), I was impressed by Tonumaipea both as an individual and as a team member. Storm fans can only hope he stays healthy over the season.
Can he keep improving? Will he back up next week with another great performance? Watch this space!
Gus Paella
Guest
Agreed. Rep quality would demand 400k for a winger. Rep quality. As the salary cap increases I doubt every player will be on more money. The small increase would likely only accommodate the pay rise of one marquee player per club in my opinion.
ScottWoodward.me
Roar Guru
John, I can only suggest you are related to Young T. He was clearly the worst player in the Storm team on Mon and nearly cost them the match. Joe is spot on with Fonua, Duffy or Suli who are all rated ahead. Fonua did not have an off season and had his first full game in Q Cup at right centre and scored a good try. He must be close while Duffy, a class act, is still in rehab. Suli is a future rep player but still a baby and when he makes his debut he could be there for 10 years.
Alex L
Roar Rookie
250k wouldn't so much be a win as an absolute steal for Waqa (who has been very good for a few years now), one could argue it's low for Semi too but with only one full season in the top grade and being a bit dodgy defensively (and limited in offence due to a lack of passing). Rep quality backs cost 400k+ at this stage, especially if some of that is TPAs.
Gus Paella
Guest
I never said he couldn't play. I was questioning how offering someone 3x the pay is a mastermind move. If Ricky got him for say 250k (same price as Semi Radradra) in the current contract environment I would consider that a win.
Geoff from Bruce Stadium
Guest
Very happy to have Sisa Waqa on board at the Raiders this season. Provides a lot more starch in defence than Reece Robinson and should form a potent back 3 with Wighton and Rapana.
Alex L
Roar Rookie
A very good winger, in fairness, and with the cap at 6.5 million and rising it's far from massive overs being paid.
Craig Watson
Guest
Got a couple of bell ringers from the resident Dragon Fijian winger. Looked good on his feet and is quite toey. Surname is too difficult to pronounce. Instead call him Young Ton.
Joe
Roar Rookie
I think Young has quite a way to go before being in the same league as Sisa Waqa but as you said Sisa didn't start out a great wing either. One thing that Sisa really improved apart from his defence was his skills under the high ball. He was pretty poor when he joined the Storm but has now become one of the best both in attack and defence. I think they do a really good job at the Storm of coaching this and I noticed that Marika seems to have improved under the kicks as well if that first game is anything to go by. I thought in this game Marika went way better than Young, his carries were much stronger and even though he had to come in in defence I think it was more because of Mann. He even got a mention at the presser afterwards from the coach. The Mann/Koroibete combination needs some work especially against Manly. Even though Mann scored the winning try in the last game against Manly, Matai had it all over him until he got injured as was replaced by Symonds who was caught out by that kick off which Mann scored. I think Manly will target his side in this game and unless they fix their defence will be in for a long night. The other point about Sisa is that his carries had much more impact due to his size and build, Young although very willing just hasn't got the physical attributes, this is also the case with Mann...I just think Storm need Fonua back and Duffy or Suli once they're fit to bring some size back into the backline as sometimes that is the point of difference as shown by Chambers try on Monday.
Gus Paella
Guest
And the mastermind paid $430,000 a season for a winger.
Kirk
Guest
Sisa scored a great individual try for the Raiders in his first game. A mastermind purchase by Stuart.
lao hu
Guest
local product
fiddlesticks
Guest
wingers - people who hang out with football players