By Jonathan B Geddes

TWO Western Sydney Two Blues players have paid tribute to the Shute Shield club after their inspired call-ups into the Manu Samoa national squad.

Fullback Latrell Smiler Ah-Kiong and prop Kaynan Siteine-Tua were both picked on the  back of their performances this season in the Sydney premiership.

“Our selection blends experience with fresh talent – players who rise to the challenge of representing our people,” said Samoa head coach Lemalu Tusi Pisi. 

The addition of Ah-Kiong and Siteine-Tua is a credit to the Two Blues and the work of their head coach Sailosi Tagicakibau – as well as demonstrating the talent often hiding in plain sight across the Shute Shield.

“It’s pretty surreal – club rugby to the big stage, I’m just grateful,” Ah-Kiong said after the Two Blues’ tight 29-24 loss to Northern Suburbs at North Sydney Oval on Saturday.

The player who has quickly established himself as one of the most exciting attacking backs in the competition said the Two Blues have played a big part in his elevation to the Samoan squad.

“100 percent,” Ah-Kiong said. “I’m grateful to  have coaches like Sailosi and (assistant) Travis Church to help me acquire the skills I need to compete at that level.

“They keep me grounded, they tell me what I am doing right and doing wrong and it comes from a good place.”

Siteine-Tua is in his fourth season with the Two Blues after moving from Auckland.

“They have definitely helped me in so many ways, building my game which has got me to where I am now,” he said. “All that hard work has paid off.”

Siteine-Tua wants to repay Tagicakibau for all the work he has put into developing his game.        

ALL IN THE FAMILY

AH-KIONG admits he never expected to be selected in the Samoan squad when he moved from New Zealand to join Western Sydney this season.

“No way, that’s the team you dream of making when you are a little kid- the Brian Limas, the Tuilagis- you always idolised them and you wanted to be like them,” he said.

What makes the achievement even more special for both players is the key role their close-knit families have played in their rugby journeys.

“It means everything,” Ah Kiong said. “I didn’t take the easy road, I took the real hard one.

“To see my name up there represents everything my family have done for me.

“My father and I had a moment, we cried together,” he revealed.

Siteine-Tua said his selection was more for his family whom he also singled out for special praise.

“They always put in that work for me, always driving me to my games,” he said. “To be named in this squad it just feels like I owed it to them.”    

WORDS OF WISDOM    

THE two selections meant a lot to Tagicakibau, who represented Samoa in three World Cups.

“I’m very proud, that’s what the Shute Shield is for – providing opportunities for guys to step up to the next level,” he said.

“For them it is going to be a massive learning experience and I’ve tried to have good  conversations with them around what the blue jersey means, how you behave in that environment and the standards that we set for ourselves to really push the top-tier nations.”

The recognition of the Two Blues’ pair is another example of the largely untapped potential of rugby in Sydney’s west.

“The Waratahs are struggling a little bit and I think they should look in the west,” Tagicakibau said  “There is a lot of talent in the west, our under-16s won the State champs last weekend.

“Coming into our program we want to make sure we produce more players to take the next step up.”  

PREPARING FOR BATTLE  

THE Two Blues duo go into camp with the Manu Samoa squad in Auckland on July 7.

“It all starts from there,” Ah-Kiong said.

Samoa plays Scotland at Eden Park on July 18 before heading into the six-week 2025 Pacific Nations Cup. That is the World Cup Qualifier against Tonga, Fiji, Canada, USA and Japan.   

“I have chosen warriors who understand the weight of the jersey,” head coach Lemalu Tusi Pisi said.