Payne Haas' telling admission as Broncos star on cusp of joining Jarome Luai in team switch

Brisbane Broncos star Payne Haas has admitted he's considering switching international allegiances from Australia to Samoa, and was considering defecting this year until injury meant he didn't need to make a decision. Haas has played four Test matches for Australia, and appeared a likely starter for the Kangaroos in the Pacific Championships until he was forced to undergo foot surgery.

But the front-rower is reportedly considering joining the likes of Jarome Luai, Brian To'o and Stephen Crichton in turning his back on Australia to play for Samoa. According to the Courier Mail, Samoa coach Ben Gardiner was confident of having Haas as early as this year's tour to England in which the Poms won 2-0.

Foot surgery meant Haas didn't have to make a decision quite yet, although it appears to be a foregone conclusion that he'll eventually defect. “I haven’t made up my mind,” the Broncos star said. “I knew I was injured (for the recent Test matches), so I didn’t have to make a decision, but when I do make up my mind, you will know straight away."

He added: “I love my Samoan side (heritage). I grew up around that Samoan heritage all my life through my mum, so it’s close to my heart. It’s great to see them do well on the world stage in rugby league. It does make me proud to watch Samoa doing well, but I haven’t made up my mind on the rep stuff yet.”

Payne Haas could join NRL superstars in defecting

With the likes of Tonga and Samoa improving out of sight in recent years, a number of high-profile players are opting to represent their families and heritage. Roger Tuivasa-Sheck played for Samoa against England in the recent Tests after spending the rest of his career representing New Zealand.

Jason Taumalolo also defected to Tonga in recent years after playing 10 Test matches for New Zealand, while Luai, Crichton, To'o and Spencer Leniu all represent Samoa despite playing for NSW in State of Origin. With Australia due to tour England in 2025, the Pacific Championships will see New Zealand take on Samoa and Tonga in what shapes to be an international rugby league blockbuster.

And the carrot of representing Samoa against their fierce rivals might be too great to resist for Haas. Samoa and Tonga haven't faced off in Australia since 2018, but in that time Samoa have reached a World Cup final in 2022 and now boast some of the best players in the NRL.

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Calls for annual Samoa and Tonga Test series

There is a legitimate belief the two sides could draw in a crowd of more than 50,000 when combining both fan bases and neutral followers, leaving officials with a tricky decision on where to host next year's Pacific Championships. "We would like to play it in Samoa and take a game back to the people there," Gardiner told AAP recently.

"But if it wasn't there I would like to give it the best possible chance to give it the biggest possible crowd. In a perfect world, 50,000 would definitely be do-able I think. It's something that would stick in people's memories, with the kind of crowd that would turn out and the noise and atmosphere it would create."

And Leniu has called for an annual three-match series between Samoa and Tonga, arguing the Tests could reach a similar status to State of Origin. "Hopefully they can do an Origin series with us and Tonga," the Samoa and Roosters front-rower said.

"It's probably the biggest Pacific Island rivalry between us and Tonga. It's unbelievable to see what they did this year making it to the grand final. I reckon Tonga and Samoa has to be like an Origin series. It would be unbelievable. Probably (play) one in New Zealand and then one or two in Sydney or Brisbane."

with AAP