Sydney Roosters captain James Tedesco has fired the first shot at bitter rivals South Sydney over Joseph Suaalii’s defection when still one of the most-hyped teenagers in the game’s history.
Joseph Suaalii’s time at South Sydney was short and sweet but he now finds himself at the center 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.
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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 harbored 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 liked 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 gotten 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.”
Originally published as Sydney Roosters’ Joseph Suaalii jibe at Rabbitohs: ‘Do people even know he was at Souths?’
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