Frank Amituanai is leading Footscray’s push for a Dewar Shield finals berth in the Victorian Rugby Union.
The Bulldogs missed Amituanai’s impact earlier in the season when he was sidelined with a knee injury.
Amituanai has assured Bulldogs fans that he’s fully recovered and getting back to playing the kind of rugby he knows he can produce.
“It was a hard knock,” he said. “I had a lump in the cartilage and I had to wait for that to clear up before I could get full mobility of the leg. It’s 100 per cent now.”
There is no more important player to the Bulldogs than Amituanai. The 28-year-old wears many hats for this team, on and off the field.
He is club captain and has a versatile skill-set in the heat of battle with punishing go-forward with the ball, stingy defence, drive in the scrums and jumping in the lineouts.
Amituanai is one of the most revered players at the Kennel, a point his coach, Justin Carroll, is happy to convey on behalf of his players.
“It’s humbling,” Amituanai said of the praise. “It blows my mind to even think that some of the boys say the things they do. It’s a great honour to be spoken positively of by my peers. I love the brothers at the club.”
Amituanai takes his leadership responsibility seriously.
The Bulldogs are a developing club striving to break into the upper echelon of the league. He’s the perfect leader to point the way.
“It’s my first time as club captain and it’s a big responsibility,” he said. “I’m there to be a positive figure for everyone.”
Amituanai’s influence over the Bulldogs has been noticed externally.
The Derrimut Village resident has been named alongside teammates Shane Imo and Tim Diack in the Melbourne Rising extended training squad for the national rugby championships.
To have three Bulldogs in the squad shows the progress being made at the club.
“It’s an honour because I come from the Bulldogs club,” Amituanai said.
“We’re a developing club and we’re always looking to push forward some talent. It’s awesome seeing the boys from the Doggies progress.”
Meanwhile, Footscray is only just clinging to its spot in the Dewar Shield top four after a surprising 27-22 loss to cellar-dweller Power House at Henry Turner Reserve on Saturday.
