So far so good for London Irish’s new ‘offloading machine’ Seitaimata Sa

Plenty of Rugby League converts take months if not years to adapt to the intricacies of Union, but London Irish-bound Setaimata Sa says his Kiwi upbringing will help him hit the ground running.
Sa will not link up with the Exiles until his Super League commitments with the Catalan Dragons finish in the later this month but Brian Smith is buzzing with excitement about his arrival describing the 6ft 3in, 16st 8lb powerhouse as an “offloading machine”.
Already the 24-year-old is being described as the heir to London Irish legend Seilala Mapusua.
But while Sa played down those lofty comparisons, he told The Rugby Paper he has no qualms about being thrown in the deep end of the XV-man game having grown up playing in the same Christchurch youth team as All Black brothers Owen and Ben Franks.
“I’d always played Union before League, since I was seven or eight,” he said. “That was always my first sport as a kid. It was only once I was 17 that I started playing League and an opportunity came to go to Australia that was too good to turn down.
“But I was in the same side as Owen and Ben Franks and that really is my first sport so it is not like I will need a period of time to adapt.
“I will have to see what London Irish want me to do. It is not so much physically but mentally I might need a break, but personally I am happy to go out there and play straight away.
“I’m not going there to make up the numbers. I know the sport and the rules so I don’t need too much time to adapt.
“I’m not going to be dipping my toe in there. I am going there to make an impact and I want to develop and push my game to new heights.
“Seilala was a great player and I watched him growing up. He was a hero there but I want to bring my own sort of game. I feel we are different players and I want to stamp my own mark on things.
“I bring a bit of aggression, I love running with the ball and I have that offload option which I know Brian Smith is keen on me using.”
Smith was first alerted to Sa’s talents in the NRL by his close friend Ricky Stuart, coach of the Sydney Roosters, before his move to the Dragons where he has emerged as one of Super League’s hottest properties.
A combination of Smith’s sales pitch and the fact his English wife gave birth last week partly prompted his return to union.
But Sa was also relishing the prospect of forming a little-and-large midfield combination with Jonathan Joseph – a centre permutation that could form England‘s 2015 World Cup midfield with the three-year residency rule making him eligible for the Red Rose for the flagship tournament.
He added: “I watched a bit of Jonathan at the JP Morgan Sevens and he looked a very good player with his pace and feet.
“If we play together I feel we have the attributes to complement each other and form a very good combination.
“He looks an outstanding player for his age. When I heard Brian was really keen for me to come to Irish it just felt like it was the right time, particularly as my wife wanted me to settle down in England.
“The way he was talking about Irish and how he saw me playing got me excited. He was talking about attacking rugby which is not something I thought of with Union in the northern hemisphere.
“Further down the line we’ll see what happens with international rugby, it’s a long way away at the moment.”
DANIEL SCHOFIELD