- Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii could play against Ireland
- Initial fears the centre, 21, had broken his wrist
- Signed $5million contract in 2023 to defect from NRL
Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii could feature in the Wallabies team to play Ireland in the final match of the UK tour this weekend after he was cleared of a broken wrist.
Suaalii, 21, who signed the most lucrative contract in Australian rugby history, was left wounded after handing out a big hit on Scottish captain Sione Tuipulotu, the Melbourne born former junior Wallaby who was inspirational in his team’s 27-13 win that halted Australia’s two-game winning streak.
Amid serious concerns about Suaalii’s wrist, after he walked from the field in Edinburgh, coach Joe Schmidt tried to downplay fears of a more serious injury and subsequent tests delivered the relieving news.
‘After making a tackle Joseph Suaalii lost function and had severe pain in his right arm and was substituted,’ a statement from the Wallabies camp read.
‘Since full time and after travelling with the team to Ireland, his function is returning, and pain is subsiding.
‘He was medically reviewed post-game and there is no evidence of a fracture and will be monitored throughout the week.’
The loss of Suaalii in the opening half in Edinburgh proved pivotal in the loss which ended the Wallabies chance of winning the grand slam for the first time since 1984.
In more positive news, lock Jeremy Williams also travelled with the side and is recovering from illness which ruled him out of the loss to Scotland.
Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii could feature in the Wallabies team to play Ireland in the final match of the UK tour this weekend after he was cleared of a broken wrist
The 21-year-old was injured in Australia’s disappointing last start defeat against Scotland at Murrayfield
Suaalii has impressed for the Wallabies on the Spring Tour after defecting from the NRL
Meanwhile, coach Joe Schmidt is anticipating a response versus the Irish after his team missed 34 tackles and conceded 14 penalties at Murrayfield.
‘I felt they still delivered a very good performance against a very good team,’ he said.
‘And I always said from the start, there’s going to be days where it doesn’t go as well as you’d like.
‘They’re not excuses, they’re just reasons for why we were a little bit out of kilter.
‘Hopefully, people can still see there’s some quality starting to be built through an Australian side that’s actually starting to show a bit of depth, albeit with some pretty inexperienced players.’
Schmidt was also Ireland’s head coach between 2013 and 2019.
Kick-off in Dublin is 2:10am AEDT on Sunday, December 1.
