While all the talk is centred on the battle of the giants when Toa Samoa sets out to topple Tonga XIII at Suncorp Stadium on Sunday, it’s one of their smallest who could hold the key to victory.
Amid the 30-degree temperatures and humidity expected in Brisbane on game day, forward fatigue will be a factor, and senior leader Josh Papalii has anointed young gun Benaiah Ioelu to play a major role off the bench in breaking the game open.
“He doesn’t have an ‘eight-pack’ for no reason, so he can go out there, play his game and use the forwards as a real big driver to play footy,” Papalii said of the interchange hooker.
It’s not just the on-field impact he can have on Sunday or as a long-term lynchpin of the Samoan spine, Ioelu’s leadership and cultural immersion off-field has also impressed.
The 21-year-old was front and centre supporting the cultural celebrations that unfolded at the Toa Samoa and Fetu Samoa fan day at the Kingston Butter Factory precinct, in suburban Logan on Brisbane’s southside, on Tuesday.
A sign of respect from Benaiah Ioelu and Kiwi Keano Kini in Auckland last Sunday.
“He’s such a good kid but he just comes from a good family, good parents and you can just tell with the values he carries daily, so to see him come through and choose Samoa is a blessing.”
It’s now up to Papalii and his fellow big boppers to set the platform and win the middle in the face of the Tongan behemoths.
“It should be a good battle. It was so good to get a game under our belt and there was a bit of rust there and we’re looking forward to this week and hopefully we can play well,” he said.
Big Papa is always a big favourite with the Samoa fans.
©Bella Mene
“This is what it’s all about, seeing our people, our fans come out in numbers… that’s the little fire in the belly to come out and perform in front of our people.”
The level of support wherever the team goes would’ve been hard to fathom for him as a youngster growing up in Logan where Samoan is now the second-most spoken language.
“It special, man. I’m a Logan boy through and through and to see our people turn out in numbers, it’s such a blessing,” he said.
“So many kids come through Logan and Queensland and all they need is an opportunity. Many years ago, I grabbed it with two hands and made a lifestyle out of it so for me to come back to see all the parents and all these kids going through what I went through as a kid, it’s such a humbling experience.”
There’s more talent in the works and many of them will be embracing and sharing their culture through rugby league at the junior edition of the Queensland Pacific Island Cultural Carnival on Saturday.