DESPITE having already played for Samoa at the 2013 Rugby League World Cup, Wests Tigers forward Sauaso Sue said that playing for the Pacific island in the recent 2014 Four Nations was a special moment in his short career so far.
So much so that he described the Samoan camp like “family”.
“It was a great feeling to play for Samoa again,” Sue said.
“We really built a little family in camp.
“All the boys bonded together and grew really close with one another – that probably showed on the field with how close we were to winning those first two games, but we just fell short a few times. We had a great bunch of blokes, great coaching staff and there was always a great atmosphere at camp and at games.”
The Macquarie Fields Hawks junior, who’s now chalked up six Tests for Samoa, said that the support of fans throughout the tournament didn’t go unnoticed by the players, and really helped continue the close bond developed amongst the boys.
“The fans were unreal,” enthused Sue. “They got really vocal and gave us a great boost on the field every time we ran out — no matter where we were.”
“There’s a surprisingly big Samoan community in Brisbane and New Zealand and in Sydney, and they really got us through those tough times.”
Sue will return to 2015 pre-season training under new Head Coach Jason Taylor in a few weeks, with the powerful forward determined to stake his claim as a vital cog in Wests Tigers’ engine room alongside the likes of Aaron Woods.
“I think having played for Samoa makes me better prepared for the year ahead. Now that the Four Nations is over, it’s back to Wests Tigers and I’m ready to get stuck in and do the hard yards, and hopefully that will set me up for a good season,” he said.
“We’ve got a great team here and plenty of great young forwards like Woodsy [Aaron Woods] and that and hopefully we can all get in a good place to start 2015.”
