LAFAI ANSWERS PARISH PRAYER
Red-hot Devil is back to seal dream finish
TIM LAFAI is the World Cup wild card who plans to deal a crushing blow to England’s hopes.
The Salford centre was not even in Samoa’s squad when the tournament kicked off last month.
A year away from rugby, following a mental breakdown during Covid lockdown, looked to have ended the 31-yearold’s international hopes.
But a raft of injuries earned him an SOS call from coach Matt Parish and Lafai is now one of the tournament success stories. He said: “It’s a dream come true. It’s a real honour to be called back into camp having had a year off rugby. I am truly blessed.
“I thought my time had gone. It means everything to pull on this blue jersey and represent my heritage and my family. The highest of highs is getting married and having four kids – but this is definitely up there.”
Lafai scored two tries in both pool wins against France and Greece and also impressed in the surprise 20-18 quarter-final victory against Tonga.
It has put Samoa in the semi-final against England at Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium on Saturday, and Lafai said: “My perspective on footy is different now. You appreciate the simple things. Mentally, I’m good. Getting to the semifinals is probably the greatest achievement of my career. ” It is in stark contrast to the dark days of 2020 when police were called to his house after he punched walls and blacked out during an anxiety attack. No charges were brought but he checked himself into hospital to deal with his mental state. He left St George Illawarra Dragons for a short stint with his first club Canterbury but then found himself without a club.
Desperate to earn a living, Lafai went labouring for a year before Salford signed him for this season, where he has been a sensation, winning a place in the Super League Dream Team and helping the Red Devils to the play-off semifinals. Samoa were beaten 60-6 by England in the World Cup opener, but Lafai added: “That first game is the past – finals footy is different. We’re very confident.”
Samoa captain Junior Paulo will miss the semifinal after a one-match ban for striking an opponent in the head with his forearm.