FOOTSCRAY rising star Josh Kaifa has a whatever-it-takes mentality in his drive to become a professional rugby union player.
The 20-year-old made a brave decision 18 months ago to leave his native Auckland and settle in Melbourne for better opportunities in the game.
Kaifa saw a clearer path to the top than the dog-eat-dog system for youths back in New Zealand.
“Back in Auckland, you’re just another rugby player,” he said.
“Moving here, I’m getting more of an opportunity. With the Rebels starting up, I saw it as a good opportunity to make a name for myself.”
The talented flanker has not regretted the move for one minute. He’s turned heads from the moment he set foot on Henry Turner Reserve.
Kaifa is a permanent fixture in the Footscray first team in the Premier 1 Dewar Shield, which is on the verge of playing in the finals.
And he recently captained Victoria to an unexpected title at the under-20 interstate carnival.
Kaifa’s team blew away its much-fancied rivals in all three matches, including a 42-5 drubbing of Queensland Country in the final.
“They [Victoria] usually don’t do well in this competition,” Kaifa said.
“The scores we won by were quite overwhelming.”
Kaifa said Victoria was given little respect before it arrived on the Gold Coast for the tournament. But it certainly departed with a burgeoning reputation as a state to watch.
“They saw that we had come from down south and thought we couldn’t play the game. They looked down on us. It just shows what we can do.”
Kaifa has rugby in the bloodline. He is a cousin of Wallabies international Tatafu Polota-Nau.
“It just clicked for me that I wanted to be a professional rugby player when I met him,” Kaifa said.
Meanwhile, Footscray’s hopes of a double chance in the top-tier Dewar Shield took a blow with a 14-11 loss to Harlequins on Saturday.
VRU scoreboard
Premier 1 Dewar Shield: Footscray 11 Harlequins 14
Premier 2: Footscray 20 Harlequins 39
Premier 3: Footscray 6 Harlequins 10
