NSW Waratahs have poached a potential All Blacks hooker from under the nose of New Zealand rugby.
The Waratahs have signed 20-year-old Junior All Blacks forward JP Sauni on a development contract for the 2018 Super Rugby season.
“The main reason is I want to be at a club that really wants me,” Sauni said.
“The Waratahs have offered me something really positive and will help me develop my rugby to get to where I want to be.
“Secondly, my family is in Melbourne. Being in Sydney it feels like Melbourne is like a two-minute drive.”
Born in Auckland, Sauni moved to Melbourne with his family when he was 16-years-old and played rugby for the Endeavour Hills club.
Sauni may not have progressed very far in the game if not for the tough love of his uncle Filipo Saena, who played five-eighth for Samoa at the 1991 World Cup.
Sauni had ballooned to 150kg and his uncle whipped him into shape, training him so hard it made him cry.
“My uncle saw potential and rugby skills at a massive weight,” Sauni said.
“He said how ‘bad do you want to play? What are your goals?’
“I told him I just want to play rugby.
“He gave me his honest opinion. He said ‘if you want to play rugby you have to chop that weight, you are way too heavy’.
“He trained me really hard every day.
“I remember my first session I cried.
“I couldn’t really run at that time and he just kept pushing me.”
Sauni, who is now a trim 104kg, played for the Melbourne Rebels in the Super Rugby under 20s competition in 2016 before returning to New Zealand for a year.
He played for the successful New Zealand under 20s team at the world championship in Georgia last year.
Sauni decided his future lay in Australia after he was spotted by Australian under 20s coach Simon Cron, who is now the Waratahs forward coach.
“My goal is to take it step by step,” Sauni said.
“”The first step was to join the Waratahs and just kick off the pre-season.
“I’m not really thinking further ahead.”
Sauni is still eligible to play Test rugby for Australia, New Zealand and Samoa and is keeping his options open.
“I’ll go to whichever country wants me,” Sauni said.
“All I care about is getting back with my family.”
CJ
Guest
They should get his uncle over as trainer as well.
Jumbo
Guest
It's okay to be proud, but lets be realistic, you play for the country your born in and which you hold a passport. I can't see any of these families moving back to the islands now, I certainly wouldn't.
Terry Tavita
Guest
why don't they go play for their european heritage then?..just because they aren't doesn't mean you should expect other people - different from you - to not be proud of their pacific island heritage either..
Jumbo
Guest
Do they consider themselves samoans? I bet they consider themselves kiwis like the rest of us. I know alot of the aussie born polynesians consider themselves aussie and have no connection to the islands. If we picked players on heritage all white kiwis and aussies can play for england, ireland , wales and scotland then. International rugby would be pointless.
Train Without A Station
Guest
Started.
Terry Tavita
Guest
yea..let's sign them up before they're old enough to make an adult choice..
Terry Tavita
Guest
filipo saena was born and raised in samoa and played for manu samoa..
Terry Tavita
Guest
they're samoans..i wasn't talking about samoa the country..
Brisvegas
Guest
Yep another escaped the clutches of might have been an All Black. I hope he does well in what he decides to do and that his development will continue at the amazing Waratah turn em into superstars production line. Happy 2018 all
Jacko
Guest
As soon as a player makes any rep team from U16s onwards then sign them to NZRU for life as amatures( therefore no fee to player) until a transfer fee is paid to release them....
Jacko
Guest
His Samoan uncle was probably born in NZ and is an NZ citizen too
Jacko
Guest
So Tman called him an "F...ing cheat"??? Thats Cheika style
cashead
Roar Rookie
Pretty much. There's quite the log-jam at the moment. Looking at the Super Rugby sides: Blues: James Parsons - All Blacks Matt Moulds - All Black Sevens Leni Apisai - Maori All Blacks Chiefs: Nathan Harris - All Blacks Liam Polwart - NZ U-20s Samisoni Taukei'aho Hurricanes: Asafo Aumua - All Blacks (non-test) Dane Coles - All Blacks Ricky Riccitelli - NZ U-20s Crusaders: Ben Funnell Andrew Makalio Codie Taylor - All Blacks Highlanders: Liam Coltman - All Blacks Ash Dixon - Maori All Blacks Greg Pleasants-Tate - NZ U-20s Further, Ben Funnell and Ricky Riccitelli have been included in All Blacks training squads, indicating they're rated reasonably highly. JP Sauni could have gotten past a few of these guys, but it would've been a tall order.
bluffboy
Guest
"Behind Coles and Aumua the quality drops off considerably" That's a bit of a tough call. Both Taylor and Harris would walk into most International squads, all be it starting. But your right, I also don't like young talent walking away, BUT, no one needs or should be strung along for what if and maybes. Good Luck JP, whoever you play for will grateful I'm sure if your heart is in it.
taylorman
Guest
I think the reality is that they're not over somehow. We can't dictate which country they play for. I can see them taking up NH contracts and playing for their Island nations at World cups as test level gets consumed by club rugby. Get into the NZ U20's, get noticed by scouts, get a NH contract now that many PI players are over there for company, play for Samoa, Tonga etc World cup. Never mind the rest. ABs are too hard and will start losing anyway as they struggle to retain players. Nobody but the SH is concerned that both SA and OZ have been hit by player drought, why should they care about the ABs?
taylorman
Guest
And if you read Piru saying he'd been thinking about it a lot you'd get the connection...Fionn.
Old Bugger
Guest
If he is eligible for MABs, then he is up against Macca, Mounga, Black and Falcon (from the last NZ U-20s team). That's an impressive line-up of youngsters which QC, has long since passed, on their age. Question will be - does his experience count for him?? Unfortunately, I don't think it will.....because, I've never seen any of those youngsters fall back into a sweepers role, when they play.
julius
Guest
@ clownshoes "Julius, one attention grabbing headline on one fan website, frequented by an audience made up of 30-50% NZers hardly justifies your generalisation ‘Australian media’." The article is sourced from Australia. It fits the usual pattern of other Australian- sourced stories about "Tongan Thor", Robbie Deans and countless others. You would have to be an intellectually- challenged pipsqueek to not see this. And you, of all people, talking about obsessions. Hilarious.
ClarkeG
Guest
I guess some people are more easily amazed than others.
Digby
Roar Guru
Good on him, hope he does well. Family is everything and to be closer is a good thing for him.