Known for his huge blond afro haircut, Eloni Vunakece has been a Fiji Bati player since 2013.
After spending several seasons in the NSW Cup, he went to France in 2011 to play for Toulouse Olympique, one of the leading clubs in the Elite One Championship. The overseas experience was positive for him and his family.
A year later Vunakece decided to return home to join the Wyong Roos. At the 2013 Rugby League World Cup Vunakece scored one try in five games, before Fiji was eliminated in the sem-final against eventual champions Australia. Since then he has been a mainstay in the side, and has taken his wife and young daughters back to his ancestral village in Fiji. The humble forward finally earned an NRL contract in 2016, making headlines for the fact that he worked as a garbage man while also training full-time for the Sydney Roosters under coach Trent Robinson.
“I was initially training once a week,” he told Fox Sports.
Although first team football has been scarce, Vunakece is one of the standout performers for the Roosters’ feeder club Wyong Roos and was named as prop in the NSW Cup team of the year in both 2016 and 2017. This season he averaged 102 metres and 27 tackles per game, which bodes well for Fiji in their opening World Cup matches against the USA, Wales and Italy.
Personal background and games’ history
Eloni Vunakece (born 27 May 1987) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the Sydney Roosters in the National Rugby League. He plays at prop. He previously played for Toulouse Olympique in the Challenge Cup.
Background
Born in Sydney, New South Wales, Vunakece is of Fijian descent and played his junior rugby league for the Holy Cross Rhinos and Leichhardt Wanderers, before being signed by the Balmain Ryde-Eastwood Tigers.
Vunakece is married and has two daughters and one son.
Early career
From 2006 to 2011, Vunakece played for the Balmain Ryde-Eastwood Tigers, while also having a stint with the Western Suburbs Magpies New South Wales Cup side in 2011. In September 2011, he signed a 1-year contract with French team Toulouse Olympique in the Elite One Championship. In 2012, he re-signed with Toulouse on a 1-year contract
2013
In April, Vunakece played in 2 games for Toulouse in the 2013 Challenge Cup, scoring 2 tries. At the conclusion of the 2012/2013 Elite One Championship season, he returned to Australia to play with the Wyong Roos in the New South Wales Cup. In October and November, he played 5 games for Fiji in the 2013 Rugby League World Cup, scoring 1 try.
2015
On May 2, Vunakece played for Fiji against Papua New Guinea in the 2015 Melanesian Cup. At the end of the 2015 season, he got the chance to join the Sydney Roosters first-grade squad for the 2016 pre-season.
2016
In round four of the 2016 NRL season, Vunakece made his NRL debut for the Roosters against the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles. On 7 May, he again played for Fiji against Papua New Guinea in the 2016 Melanesian Cup, where he played at lock and scored a try. In September, he was named at prop in the 2016 Intrust Super Premiership NSW Team of the Year.
2017
On August 28, 2017, Vunakece was named at Prop in The 2017 Intrust Super Premiership NSW team of the year.
