Stanley Waqa woke up yesterday a 19-year-old Fijian-born prop from the Sydney Roosters' under-20 squad. By the time he hit the pillow last night, he was a first-grader dealing with comparisons to Arthur Beetson. And all because he ran around like a headless chook - literally.
After being told he was part of a 22-man squad for the Foundation Cup clash with Wests Tigers, Waqa made the mistake of loitering in the foyer of the club's offices at Moore Park. With the launch of the game at the Sydney Football Stadium next door looming, and no mascot, Waqa was asked to don the Roosters suit. In front of half a dozen television cameras. Which he did, in what must go down as the finest piece of marketing carried out by a player before a game he is due to play - although former Balmain centre Hal Browne will be remembered as the most talented footballer/mascot after donning the tiger suit in the 1969 grand final, a game he missed due to injury.
Waqa said: "I was just in the office and all the other blokes were gone - now they're all coming back to see me because they asked me to wear [the suit]."
But while Waqa was posing as a make-believe rooster, he is certainly no footballing pretender. A former NSW under-17 representative, he has talent. And he is too big for the suit, which is by no means small.
"It doesn't fit. I'm too tall," said the 190-cm front-rower. "But I've got respect for the bloke who does this now. I've only been in it five minutes and I'm boiling".
At 118 kilograms, it may have been a plot by coach Brad Fittler to get him to shed some excess weight in the lead-up to Saturday's game. Clearly, however, he has skill to match his size. Roosters boss Brian Canavan even said Waqa had "a bit of Arthur Beetson about him - he's huge through the legs and the hips".
Waqa, already nicknamed Younis by his teammates, was born in Fiji but migrated with his family to Sydney when he was four years old. He made his first hit-up as a junior in the Parramatta district, but switched to the Roosters in SG Ball three years ago.
He will be part of the Roosters' National Youth Competition squad this season, but Fittler said he may play a part in his first-grade plans at some stage.
"He's worked pretty hard," Fittler said. "He's got a Fijian background, and that doesn't normally promote massive amounts of enthusiasm - they're pretty relaxed. But he's done some really hard work over the last month."
Waqa made a brief appearance during the trial against three Port Macquarie sides last Friday night, and impressed Fittler enough to warrant a second audition. "He's a big bloke, and he's got a nice soft touch, and that's one thing Arthur Beetson had," Fittler said. "He's pretty impressive."
While the attention yesterday overawed Waqa slightly, he said the occasion on Saturday would not. "It's going to be exciting for me. It's my first game. But it'll be good," he said.
Eagles view adds,"for those of you who do not know Stan, ... he is Rev Saimoni Waqa and Radini Tarisi's youngest son.
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