Suli eyes off unexpected honour after club switch

Moses Suli has had a career's worth of change in his 89 games.

From an 18-year-old star on a million-dollar contract with Wests Tigers to a 23-year-old held out of the Manly Sea Eagles side by Morgan Harper and Brad Parker.

Acquired by the St George Illawarra Dragons in the off-season and with his first full pre-season under his belt, Suli is ready to put all that behind him and get back to what he does best.

In an article by Adam Pengilly of the Sydney Morning Herald, Suli states that not only does he have his heart set on securing a spot on the Dragons edge but that he sees himself pulling on a New South Wales Blues jersey in the future, something that was talked about when he first entered the competition.

It almost means he has a preference to play State of Origin ahead of Tonga.

“I’ve always wanted to play Origin and I’m still eligible for that,” Suli said.

“That’s been one of my goals. If I get the chance to play for the Kangaroos, I’ll play there, and if not I’ll play for Tonga.”

While it may seem a lofty goal, there is no doubting what Suli can do on the field. The Tigers and Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs didn't throw money at a teenager for no reason. The question with Suli has always been his work ethic. Finding himself under Anthony Griffin, who is known for demanding hard work, could be perfect timing.

“To be honest, I just wanted a fresh start,” Suli said.

“I thought I was getting too comfortable at Manly and as you could see, I wasn’t playing much footy last year.

“I reckon I’ve matured heaps from my past few years. As everyone knows, I went through a struggle in my first few years, but I’m a different person now. The boys have been really welcoming and I’ve enjoyed every second of it so far."

Suli also said that this pre-season was "his best one so far."

“I’m about 109 [kilograms] and I want to lose a bit more,” Suli said.

“When I debuted I was 103 and I want to see if I can get down there. I haven’t finished a full year without getting injured. I feel like this pre-season has been my best one so far. Hopefully, I can play some finals footy here as well.”

While he may not be able to kick Tom Trbojevic and Latrell Mitchell out of the NSW Blues side, Suli should have Anthony Griffin and the Dragons team salivating.