Vatuvei: From cult hero
For much of the 2000s, a hulking winger with a glittering golden smile was one of the Warriors’ most recognisable players, but his career – and life – has taken some rusty turns.
The most serious came late in 2019 when Manu Vatuvei was arrested and charged for allegedly possessing methamphetamine for supply and importing the Class A drug. He has denied the charges.
The former Warriors star outed himself on Sunday night,
48 hours ahead of the deadline for him to take his suppression fight to the Court of Appeal, as the sportsman facing a string of methamphetamine charges, following a long battle to keep his name secret.
‘‘All of these charges are accusations and
I will be fighting my innocence for these charges,’’ Vatuvei said in a video posted to his Instagram.
Vatuvei first burst onto TV screens in 2004 with long flowing curly locks, as an
18-year-old making his NRL debut for the Warriors against the Rabbitohs.
A year later, he would make his test debut for the Kiwis in a whirlwind rise from the domestic Bartercard Cup competition to international league stardom inside 18 months and before his 20th birthday.
Cult hero status quickly followed for the hard-running winger who scored a club record
152 tries in 226 appearances – third most for the Warriors behind Simon Mannering
(301) and Stacey Jones (261).
Vatuvei’s onfield highlights were topped by a World Cup victory over the Kangaroos in
2008 and playing in the 2011 NRL grand final won by Manly.
Vatuvei, who was named player of the year for the Warriors in 2010, was the club’s top tryscorer for seven straight years between 2008 and 2014.
His popularity was arguably never greater than when he won reality TV series
alongside dance partner Loryn Renyolds in June
2019.
Just six months later, Vatuvei would be arrested and charged. His name would remain a secret until late last week.
A fan favourite during his 13 seasons at the Warriors, an out-of-favour Vatuvei left the club after limited game time to join Super League club Salford in
2017.
His final two seasons at the Warriors were blighted by injuries, talk of an impending move to play overseas and a prescription drugs saga when he was one of six players suspended over the incident.
Five of the group, including Vatuvei, mixed prescription pain pills and energy drinks on a night out in Auckland just a day after a 42-0 thrashing from Melbourne on Anzac Day. Vatuvei was given leave by the club on medical grounds following the incident.
A year earlier, Vatuvei was caught up in a saga alongside Konrad Hurrell and Dominique Peyroux when the trio attended a concert by R&B star Ginuwine the night before the team left for Australia in 2015.
Vatuvei also landed in hot