Sua determined to provide an energy boost for his mates

Apart from the flashy footwork and blinding speed, Sua Fa’alogo has made it his mission to “bring the energy” to the Storm dressing room every time he gets a crack in the top grade.

The Samoan flyer has been named in Craig Bellamy's extended squad for Friday's preliminary final against the Roosters as he looks to return from a hamstring injury in what would be his 15th appearance of the season.

“That’s just me personally,” he said. “I love to always bring the energy to training and games."

The 21-year-old burst onto the scene a year ago when he crossed for a double on debut against the Broncos before backing that up with two eye-catching performances for Samoa in the Pacific Championship. 

The Storm speedster told pan66.com that his main takeaway from that tournament was the positivity that was fostered at training. 

“I got lucky last year to represent my country,” he said.

“I wasn’t really sure if I was going to get selected so I was very grateful for the opportunity. 

“The big thing is just that energy you bring to training.

"Obviously there’s times when the boys are down, that’s when you can really bring the energy to the boys and stuff. That’s one thing I learned. 

“It means a lot to me [to represent Samoa], especially for my parents back home, to represent them and my village.” 

Boasting an impressive stats line of 10 tries, 49 tackle and 13 line breaks in his 15 NRL games, Fa’alogo has already proven himself to be a game-breaker, an electric presence in a backline oozing with match-winners.

“I learned so much this year compared to last year," he said.

"Having Billy Slater coming in helping me out, and all the coaching staff and players – especially Paps [Ryan Papenhuyzen] – helping me out when he was out.

"I was really grateful for those guys for helping me out with my footy.

“Obviously there’s a few things I need to work on. I’m happy, but I’m still learning the game."

Fa’alogo moved to Melbourne from Samoa at the age of nine and soon found a home at the Northern Thunder, where he would start his journey that would eventually lead to the NRL. 

“When I moved here, I didn’t know much about rugby league,” he said.

“I was from a union background. Lucky enough, my old coach at my club at Northern Thunder helped me out through my journey. 

“I hung out with his son. We used to go to school together. He was the one who was telling me to come play rugby league.” 

It adds an extra layer of pride for Fa’alogo to represent Melbourne, as one of only five players to graduate from the NRL Victoria system into the powerful Storm outfit since 1998.

“Especially for a kid coming straight from the island and then to Melbourne, it’s very special to me to represent Melbourne,” he said. 

“We don’t have many Victorian boys playing for the Melbourne Storm but I’m just so grateful and lucky to represent Melbourne.”