Payne Haas made a surprise appearance at the Kangaroos camp on Monday, but the South Sydney recruit was not answering a World Cup SOS; he was simply having lunch with mates before starting pre-season training.
The 26-year-old prop, who has been ruled out of the World Cup due to a hand injury, visited the Kangaroos camp. He was warmly received by players including Pat Carrigan, David Fifita, Tino Fa’asuamaleaui and Cameron Murray.
Murray joked that Haas might be using his new contract money to buy a house in the area. “I know he’s on the lookout for some real estate,” Murray said. “Who knows, we might see an article or two about him sniffing around this area. I’m looking forward to rubbing shoulders with him in the red and green.”
Reports had emerged Haas might be fit for a late World Cup cameo with Samoa, the nation he had planned to represent before he was ruled out with a hand injury. Samoa coach Ben Gardiner ruled that out after Sunday’s match against Tonga.
Fa’asuamaleaui told this masthead: “It’s good to see him come into camp and say hello to all the boys – we’re all close mates – and ‘Kevvie’, who is his former coach. He had hand surgery and starts pre-season training on Friday.”
Fa’asuamaleaui also discussed having been tempted to commit to Samoa for the tournament. “But there were a few things I wanted to tick off here,” he said. “We won the World Cup in 2022 when I was coming off the bench. Now I’m in the No.10 jersey, and that was something I wanted to achieve. I also enjoyed my time under Kevvie last year [during the Ashes], and didn’t want to hand over the green and gold jersey just yet.”
He said he cried during the anthem when he played for Samoa in 2019. The pre-game scenes this weekend at Allianz Stadium would be emotional for him. The front-rower, whose father Fereti died on the eve of Origin II, added: “People think if I’m not wearing a Samoan jersey that I’m not honouring him. I have my last name [tattooed] on my back, and I’m wearing his last name on any jersey I wear. He’s the person I love so much and miss and wish I could continue to talk to him; I’ll honour him in the green and gold jersey.”
Analysis
Why This Matters
- The visit highlights the close bonds among NRL stars, even across team and international loyalties, and underscores the strong ties between Australian and Samoan rugby league communities.
- Fa’asuamaleaui’s emotional comments about honouring his late father while playing for Australia rather than Samoa show the personal weight of international selection decisions.
- With the World Cup semi-finals approaching, the Kangaroos camp atmosphere and player morale can affect performance on the field.
Background
Payne Haas, a premiership prop, was originally set to represent Samoa at the Rugby League World Cup before suffering a hand injury that required surgery and ruled him out of the tournament. The Kangaroos are preparing for a semi-final against Samoa on Sunday at Allianz Stadium. Tino Fa’asuamaleaui played for Samoa in 2019 but has since committed to Australia, winning the World Cup in 2022.
Key Perspectives
Cameron Murray: joked Haas may be using his new contract money to buy a house in Double Bay. “Who knows, we might see an article or two about him sniffing around this area. I’m looking forward to rubbing shoulders with him in the red and green.”
Tino Fa’asuamaleaui: said it was good to see Haas, and explained his decision to stay with Australia: “But there were a few things I wanted to tick off here. … I also enjoyed my time under Kevvie last year [during the Ashes], and didn’t want to hand over the green and gold jersey just yet.”
What to Watch
- How the Kangaroos perform in Sunday’s semi-final against Samoa, especially given the emotional subplots.
- Whether Haas makes further appearances at Kangaroos or club events before his pre-season starts.
- Any further decisions by Pacific-heritage players on international allegiance following Fa’asuamaleaui’s comments.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 11 supported.
Show each claim
- SupportedHaas visited the Kangaroos camp for lunch with mates.WA Today - Latest News: “It turned out the 26-year-old was simply taking the opportunity to catch up for lunch with a few good mates”
- SupportedHaas was not answering a World Cup SOS.WA Today - Latest News: “he wasn’t answering a World Cup SOS from good friend and Australian coach Kevin Walters.”
- SupportedHaas had been ruled out of the World Cup with a hand injury.WA Today - Latest News: “the Pacific nation Haas had been planning to represent before he was ruled out of the tournament with a hand injury.”
- SupportedHaas made a surprise visit to camp on Monday.WA Today - Latest News: “South Sydney recruit Payne Haas made a surprise visit to Kangaroos camp on Monday”
- Partly supportedHaas is due to start pre-season training next week.WA Today - Latest News: “Fa’asuamaleaui told this masthead: “It’s good to see him come into camp and say hello to all the boys – we’re all close mates – and ‘Kevvie’, who is his former coach. He had hand surgery and starts pre-season training on Friday.””
- SupportedCameron Murray said: “I know he’s on the lookout for some real estate,” and “Who knows, we might see an article or two about him sniffing around this area. I’m looking forward to rubbing shoulders with him in the red and green.”WA Today - Latest News: ““I know he’s on the lookout for some real estate,” Murray said. “Who knows, we might see an article or two about him sniffing around this area. I’m looking forward to rubbing shoulders with him in the red and green.””
- SupportedFa’asuamaleaui said Haas came to say hello to the players and Kevvie, and that Haas had hand surgery and would start pre-season on Friday.WA Today - Latest News: ““It’s good to see him come into camp and say hello to all the boys – we’re all close mates – and ‘Kevvie’, who is his former coach. He had hand surgery and starts pre-season training on Friday.””
- SupportedReports had emerged that Haas might be fit for a late World Cup cameo with Samoa.WA Today - Latest News: “There were reports Haas might be fit in time to make a late Cup cameo for Samoa”
- SupportedSamoa coach Ben Gardiner ruled out a late cameo after Sunday’s match against Tonga.WA Today - Latest News: “coach Ben Gardiner ruled that out following Sunday’s epic match against Tonga”
- SupportedFa’asuamaleaui said he had wanted to achieve the No.10 jersey and keep the green and gold jersey for the time being.WA Today - Latest News: ““But there were a few things I wanted to tick off here,” Fa’asuamaleaui said. “We won the World Cup in 2022 when I was coming off the bench. Now I’m in the No.10 jersey, and that was something I wanted to achieve. I also enjoyed my time under Kevvie last year [during the Ashes], and didn’t want to hand over the green and gold jersey just yet.””
- SupportedFa’asuamaleaui said he cried during the anthem when he played for Samoa in 2019.WA Today - Latest News: “Fa’asuamaleaui said he cried during the anthem when he played a Test for Samoa in 2019”
- SupportedFa’asuamaleaui said: “People think if I’m not wearing a Samoan jersey that I’m not honouring him. I have my last name [tattooed] on my back, and I’m wearing his last name on any jersey I wear. He’s the person I love so much and miss and wish I could continue to talk to him; I’ll honour him in the green and gold jersey.”WA Today - Latest News: ““People think if I’m not wearing a Samoan jersey that I’m not honouring him. “I have my last name [tattooed] on my back, and I’m wearing his last name on any jersey I wear. He’s the person I love so much and miss and wish I could continue to talk to him; I’ll honour him in the green and gold jersey.””