Rugby league: New Zealand Warriors confirm interest in Melbourne Storm forward Tino Fa'asuamaleaui, deny reports of done NRL deal

The Warriors have confirmed they are chasing highly rated Storm forward Tino Fa'asuamaleaui, but say stories about a done deal are extremely premature.

It was reported earlier this week that the Auckland club had agreed terms with the 19-year-old, who only made his NRL debut in July.

But Warriors recruitment manager Peter O'Sullivan said no contracts have been signed, and suggestions that the 110kg, 1.97m giant has already agreed to join the club are a "complete fallacy".

"He is a player that we are interested in and he would be a great addition to our roster," O'Sullivan told the Herald. "But a lot of factors go into these kind of decisions and nothing is confirmed at all. There's a process that Tino has to go through and he has some decisions to make."

O'Sullivan confirmed the Warriors have a long term deal on the table for Fa'asuamaleaui, and said he would "extend that term if he could".

He wouldn't discuss monetary details, but said Fa'asuamaleaui has been offered a deal "appropriate" to his value.

Tino Fa'asuamaleaui. Photo / Getty

The Storm would like to retain him, but won't have the space in the salary cap to compete with the offers that have come in from several clubs, including the Warriors and the Titans. However it's unlikely the Melbourne club would offer the Samoan representative an early release, which means he would only be available from the 2021 season onwards for any new club.

O'Sullivan has been tracking Fa'asuamaleaui for the last few years, ever since he saw him performing for the Sunshine Coast Falcons in the Queensland Cup.

He was also a standout for the Queensland Under-20 side, as well as the Junior Kangaroos against the Kiwis in October.

Fa'asuamaleaui has played at prop and in the back row, but O'Sullivan feels his best position was on the edge, saying that's where he would do the most damage.
The teenager has played just five matches in the NRL — a total of 113 minutes over five games — but O'Sullivan denied it was a risk to spend big on a raw youngster.

"These ones do" was his succinct reply, when it was pointed out that not all boom youngsters fulfil their potential at the top level.

A decision on his future is expected in the next month or so.