Deal turns Warrior into Chief

A fire has been burning inside Glen Fisiiahi for a while now, and it’s only getting stronger.

For that reason, Fisiiahi has gone with his gut and will leave NRL side the New Zealand Warriors at the end of his contract, switching sports and cities to link with the Chiefs in Super Rugby.

Fisiiahi’s signing bolsters the thin outside back spots on the Chiefs’ roster, and could be the first surprise signing of the season with rumours World Cup-winning first five-eighth Stephen Donald could return to Waikato and the Chiefs.

The 24-year-old Fisiiahi will move to Hamilton in October to begin a two-year contract with the Chiefs, while linking up with Counties Manukau to play his national provincial championship rugby.

He said

it

was

only

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few months ago that he instructed his manager to look for a new gig in rugby.

‘‘It’s been wanted to do Fisiiahi said.

‘‘I approached my manager, Bruce Sharrock, about it, and he sort of put out the SOS call and then the Chiefs opportunity came up.

‘‘That definitely made me want to come down and give it a crack.’’

Chiefs coach Dave Rennie was excited about bringing Fisiiahi on board, and compared him to a former fan favourite in the way he plays the game.

‘‘Glen is a great addition to our group,’’ Rennie said.

‘‘In the mould of Asaeli Tikoirotuma, he is electric, has a strong skill set and is an outstanding support player. The opportunity to roam on both sides of the park in our game will suit him.’’

Fisiiahi will play on either wing or at fullback for the Chiefs, joining James Lowe and Toni Pulu

something I’ve since last year,’’ in contesting for those positions among those contracted so far.

One of the keys for his future with the franchise will be his fitness, something Fisiiahi is confident he can keep on top of after constant injury problems during his time with the Warriors.

‘‘I am quite nervous about [the switch to rugby], but at the same time I am confident that I can do it because I know I’ll have great coaches and great players around me,’’ he said.

‘‘My body is my temple. I’ve had some bad luck with injuries, and I’m carrying a few little niggles at the moment, but it’s something that I can get on top of and basically when I start pre-season in late November I’ll be injury free.’’

Fisiiahi played rugby union at Wesley College alongside the likes of current Chiefs halfback Augustine Pulu and departing Blues player Charles Piutau.

He spoke with Pulu about the switch to union and the Chiefs in particular, and Pulu gave him all the information he needed to be sure of his move to the franchise.

‘‘Before I signed I had a chat with Augustine Pulu and he was just talking about how great the environment is down there and the culture.

‘‘One person I also talked to was Israel Folau. Last week, after [the Wallabies] captain’s run, he said he loves the game, he’s got no regrets in switching from league to union, so I hope to have that as well.’’

Fisiiahi is signed on with the Chiefs until the end of the 2017 season.

Meanwhile, former Waikato and Chiefs stalwart Donald could be on the verge of returning to represent region in the NPC. Donald trained with the Waikato squad in the past month before a planned return to Japan, although sources suggest he could line up in Mooloo colours during the 2015 season.

He has also been linked with a possible return to the Chiefs in 2016.