Before there was Joseph Suaalii there was Jordan Petaia.
The Queensland Reds star is a similar calibre athlete to the much-talked about code-hopper, with a similar size and skill-set.
Petaia looked set to become a global sensation when he starred for the Wallabies as a 19-year-old at the 2019 Rugby World Cup.
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He became the youngest player for any nation to start a World Cup game at outside centre and gave an assured performance in the quarter-final loss against England.
But while he has now made 25 Test appearances, injuries have robbed him of the chance to build confidence and consistency and reach his world class potential.
Perhaps until now, as Petaia tops the Super Rugby Pacific try-scoring charts with seven from six rounds, joint-leader with Shaun Stevenson and Leicester Fainga’anuku.
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“He’s such a great athlete. This Suaalii announcement puts a bit more pressure on him, because he was on that sort of trajectory, but his body has let him down a little bit,” former Wallaby Morgan Turinui said on Stan Sport’s coverage, before elaborating on the latest edition of Between Two Posts.
“All of these things we have seen since we saw him at the 2019 World Cup, his positional play is getting better and better, his defensive stuff is getting better, his effort-on-efforts are getting better.
“He seems more robust in the body, he’s not on the ground injured all the time.”
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Wallabies legend Tim Horan has argued that Petaia’s future lies at fullback but Turinui thought “it might have to be wing.”
“I think it demands less of him, especially at Test level,” he said.
“All of that stuff he brings all the time as a ball runner and a destructive runner can work for him. I would have thought Eddie (Jones)… wants his wingers working off the ball, imagine him sniffing off the 10.”
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