All eyes on 'freak' Suaalii ahead of Wales Test
SPOTLIGHT: Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii was hailed as a ‘freak’ on monday by his Wallaby centre partner Len Ikitau after an eye-catching Test debut performance against England.
The former rugby league star won the player-of-the-match award in Australia’s 42-37 win over England at Twickenham on Saturday and is now turning his attention towards Wales.
“He is a freak, man,” Ikitau told a Wallabies press conference in Cardiff, ahead of Sunday’s clash.
“Just being able to play next to him and see what he can do on the field is awesome. And we are just expecting more from him now he has had his first game.
“We saw all of that at training. He came in, he did what he needed to learn and just showcased his skills on the field.
“I thought it was awesome to see him defending the No.13 channel. He just wanted to be involved and wanted to get the ball.”
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Wales are a solitary defeat away from a record 11th straight Test loss after going down to Fiji by 19-24 this past weekend.
The visitors will be confident going into Cardiff to claim their 10th scalp from their past 12 visits.
Suaalii is set to be at the heart of that, and even if Wales have not faced him in person yet, they know all about him.
“Seriously impressive,” was how Wales flyhalf Gareth Anscombe described Suaalii’s masterclass.
“He made the game look pretty easy, didn’t he?” Anscombe said.
“But look, it is going to be a great challenge and I am sure he will probably start in the midfield.
“I thought he had a sensational debut.
“He was dangerous, good in the air and quite a rangy player.”
