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Suliasi Vunivalu is already thinking of returning to Melbourne after his teammates learned a Fiji anthem to send him off long after the masses left ANZ Stadium.
Vunivalu’s latest outing in purple was spectacular Sunday night, with his 80-meter interception of Nathan Cleary’s long pass, a critical 12-point swing in the Storm’s 26-20 win.
The Fiji manager told NRL.com that he “still has doubts” about his lucrative return to rugby with the Queensland Reds on a two-year deal that was confirmed last December.
Financially, the move is a no-brainer for the 24-year-old winger and his young family, but he has explored more than once this year whether the Reds’ contract would be fulfilled given the rugby union’s financial struggles after the COVID-pandemic. 19.
In a nod to the esteem Vunivalu holds among his teammates, the Storm returned to the drenched turf at ANZ Stadium at 1am with a moving farewell to their star winger.
Storm’s emotional tribute to Vunivalu on the field
NRL.com understands that the Melbourne players learned the lyrics to the Fiji anthem, “Noqu Masu”, while at camp on the Sunshine Coast.
The song has provided some poignant moments throughout recent rugby league history, having been sung by the national team, the Bati, before games since the 2008 World Cup.
Speaking before receiving his emotional farewell from his teammates, Vunivalu said that he would be well and truly open to a Storm reunion at some point in his career.
“I want to come back and end up here one day,” he said.
“I still have doubts about [his rugby move], to be honest.
“I want to stay, but I have to take on this new challenge myself.
Cameron Smith pays tribute to Victoria, then lifts the Provan-Summons trophy
“And there are younger guys coming through the club as well, so I’ll give way to them.
“I’m trying not to think about it tonight, I’m in the moment and celebrating.
“I’m very, very happy right now. It’s my senior year, so dating a ring is very special.
“I was thinking before the game started how difficult it would be to come out with a loss. This is my fourth grand final and I’ve had two wins, I definitely didn’t want to be 1-3.
“I am very grateful to Craig [Bellamy] and everyone here. I didn’t know anything about rugby league when I first appeared.
“But I was always a huge fan, so when my manager told me ‘Storm loves you,’ I went straight to it. ‘Take me there, I want to meet Billy Slater.’
While the Storms have made a particular point of playing for their home state of Victoria, for Vunivalu which includes the couple and two young children that he has only seen via daily video chats since moving from Melbourne to Queensland.
“My family has been back in Melbourne all season, there are some of us in that position,” he said.
“I’ve only seen them on FaceTime. It’s hard, sure, but this is my job and this is how I put bread on the table for them.
“They understand and there are a lot of people in Victoria making it much more difficult.
“I have my brothers from Fiji, my two children and my wife. I think the children were allowed to stay up for the game.”
Vunivalu comes out as one of the game’s elite finalists so far with 86 attempts to his name from just 111 Storm appearances.
Match Highlights: Panthers v Storm
Of all those four points, none has elicited Bellamy’s reaction quite like that runaway effort in the 30th minute of Cleary’s looped long ball.
The veteran coach rode Vunivalu’s sprint from the coach’s box as Seinfeld’s Kramer in incredible mud, celebrating his own player as he tossed off a late challenge from the Panthers in Jarome Luai’s five-eighths.
“I was seeing [Dylan] Edwards to my left and I had no idea someone was coming from behind, “Vunivalu smiled afterward.
Vunivalu gets a Cleary pass
“Luai almost got me there. I didn’t see it, I should have been staring at the big screen!
“I like to get up strong on defense and once I saw that ball floating in the air, I was always putting my body on the line.
“Before the game I was thinking ‘this is your last game, risk your body.’ I didn’t want to be sitting there thinking ‘what if?’
“A while ago I probably wouldn’t do that. I would probably leave [the opposition] catch it and tackle them. But that’s a great moment and you should take advantage of it. “
