When Suliasi Vunivalu walked into Wallabies camp for the first time in November 2020, he arrived with an ‘aura’ that swept over his team-mates.
Three-and-a-half years later, the former NRL star became a laughing stock after receiving a one-match suspension for picking up two yellow cards in a win away to Fiji Drois.
Describing his Test career as disappointing would hardly tell how big of a flop Vunivalu has been since scoring a superb try in the NRL grand final win for the Storm.
He focused on the speed of coach Dave Rennie and the wingers, who had struggled a lot in the early days. “Every interview (with Rennie) was based solely on speed, speed, speed,” he said.
“It put pressure on me. I started getting my technique wrong and kept pulling my hamstring.
“Having my first serious back-to-back injuries was mentally challenging and I didn’t have the confidence to come back and run at full speed.
“I wasn’t that kind of person. I never reached top speed until race day. I was so focused on getting my speed back that I forgot about the football.
Suliasi Vunivalu. (Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)
“Now that’s behind me… I just want to have football in my hands again.”
Rennie’s exit may have helped Vunivalu’s relaunch. His successor, Eddie Jones, used him during the World Cup to bring a herd of cattle into the Wallabies camp to try and provoke a reaction, but he too failed to make the impact he really wanted.
His head coaches Brad Thorn and now Les Kiss have stuck with him, but no one has been able to help him reach his full potential.
There were flashes of light, but there were also too many missing ones. The double-brained fart on Drua seems like the last straw. The ridiculous nature of his suspension makes it feel like the floor. A disciplinarian above all else, it’s hard to imagine Joe Schmidt finding a place in his ranks for a dangerous player who doesn’t injure his rivals.
Matt To’omua, co-host of The Roar Rugby Podcast, recalled Vunivalu’s arrival on the Wallabies set this week.
“I remember feeling this aura about him when he came into the Wallabies camp,” To’omua said. “We were very happy with the current players. I remember seeing him at Sanctuary Cove and we couldn’t wait for him to join and unfortunately for some reason it didn’t work out.
“Nobody feels more frustrated than him, but as a fan, I just wish he had a little more luck.”
To’omua was as surprised as everyone last weekend when Vunivalu received two yellow cards for the same offense.
“When I saw that the first attempt was also a penalty attempt, I thought, ‘Oh my gosh, I’ll never see that,’” To’omua said. “And to have another opportunity in the second half is tough.
“One, he was definitely on the wrong foot and was just trying to take the guy down. Obviously, you don’t plan it. It’s instinctive. So he had a wrong foot and somehow, trying to knock him down, he threw his foot out.
“But if you do something like that again, I’m going to be confused, buddy, I don’t know. When you are stepped on, you are stepped on. It certainly seems like poor technology in many ways.
“Unfortunately Suli has been making it difficult to support him over the last few years.”
This bewilderment was reflected on Stan Sport’s Between Two Posts panel this week, with Sean Maloney, Stephen Hoiles and Morgan Turinui barely able to contain their laughter over the double yellow.
Hoiles said his various rugby WhatsApp groups were “falling apart” and the pressure to return to his country of birth may have had an impact on the Reds winger.
“I’m watching the Fijians very carefully when they go back and play a Fijian dominated team, it’s never easy for them,” Hoiles said.
“For a boy who leaves and becomes a superstar, there is a kind of responsibility or burden. “It’s a huge burden.”
But Vunivalu’s rugby struggles are neither new nor limited to the Fiji Islands.
Toumua, who described the Reds winger as a “lovely guy”, wondered if he was proactive enough.
“I think it shows that it’s not always easy for high-profile wingers to make the transition from rugby league. If you look at Caleb Clark now, he’s splitting his time between rugby league and rugby union, but he’s concentrating solely on rugby for the time being.
“He’s playing with real confidence. He came out of his wing and went looking for his ball, rushing into his first step from a set piece and repeatedly breaking his line.
(Photo by Albert Perez/Getty Images)
“If you look at players like Marika (Koroibete), they have shown that they can jump from league to rugby and become really good players.
“And he excels at everything. When you watch a game, the left winger’s defense was amazing, but how often do you say he will dominate the defense?
“He would go and pick things up and drive. He really shows a lot of effort.
“And I think it’s easy to get left behind. With Suli, he is a very patient player. “Sometimes I’d like to see us be a little more active in finding the ball and making a few mistakes here and there.”
Toumua emphasized that she chose her words carefully because Vunivalu is a “lovely man.”
“There’s probably no one more frustrated than him. He knows his potential. He believed in himself and accepted a much lower contract to try and push for more options. It’s a little annoying, but that’s the way it goes sometimes.”
