- Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii and Ruben Love are good friends
- Both players have also shared a rivalry since 2019
All Blacks and Hurricanes playmaker Ruben Love says he is looking forward to getting even with good friend Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii when the Waratahs play Wellington in round seven.
Love and Suaalii matched up against each other on the wing in 2019 when the Aussie under-18 team beat New Zealand Schools.
‘That was a tough one,’ Love told Wide World of Sports.
‘I remember that one. He played great. They had another winger on the other side who now plays for Manly, (Tolu) Koula, who was also awesome.
‘We marked each other. He (Suaalii) stepped me in that game. I missed the tackle on him and my friends still send me that video. But, yeah, since then we grew that rapport and got close.’
Both players, now two of rugby’s most talented young stars, showed exceptional skill in other sports – with Love representing New Zealand for cricket in 2019.
Ruben Love (pictured right) says he is looking forward to getting even with good friend Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii when their sides clash this season
Love was a talented youth playing cricket for New Zealand’s U19s
‘There’s been plenty of messages supporting and congratulating each other,’ Love said.
‘But I think that’ll be a lot different when we play against each other this year. It’d be pretty cool, man, if we go against each other for the Wallabies and All Blacks, the way we did in 2019 for the juniors.
‘We’re both extremely proud of each other. Just two friends chasing their dreams, I guess.’
The pair have stayed in touch over the years and watched each other progress, with Suaalii even inviting the Kiwi to stay at his place while Love was in Sydney in 2023.
Suaalii was hailed as a ‘freak’ by his teammates after winning man of the match in his impressive Wallabies debut – but Love wasn’t shocked at all.
‘Na – he’s a freak athlete bro,’ Love said.
‘He’s got such a mind for rugby and being able to manipulate defenders. So seeing him play the way he did was no surprise and it’s only a matter of time before he does even greater things.’
Shunning suggestions he’s the new face of Australian rugby, Suaalii can’t wait for the season to start so he can let his football, literally, do the talking.
Love says he is not surprised that Suaalii has made the mark he has on rugby in Australia
Love is relishing playing Suaalii when the Waratahs play Wellington in round seven
‘I just play rugby and that’s what I do,’ he said.
‘And I love playing rugby. I don’t really see much of the external stuff.
‘I wouldn’t say I’m the biggest talker. I don’t say too much. This is probably the most I will talk in the day doing this, doing press.
‘So I don’t say too much. I just go about my work. I love talking on the rugby field because you’ve got to have that.
‘But otherwise I don’t talk too much.’
The Super Rugby season kicks off on Friday.
