Tadulala converted to cause in more ways than one

Leeds Carnegie's Semi Tadulala has a big reputation... in rugby league. He talks exclusively to Nick Westby about how a little help from his friends gave him determination to succeed in union.

THE two friends responsible for persuading Semi Tadulala to cross codes into union are the same players Leeds Carnegie's new Fijian winger has in his sights.

For Leeds's opening two opponents in the Premiership are Bath and Gloucester, which for Tadulala means a reunion with first Shontayne Hape and then Lesley Vainikolo, his trailblazing union converts.

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It was they who convinced the prolific Wakefield Trinity and Bradford try-scorer to follow them into the 15-man game and after a six-month learning curve at Gloucester, the 32-year-old hopes to start his two-year contract at Leeds with victories over his old pals.

"Lesley and Shontayne were encouraging me to make the switch and accept the challenge," said Tadulala, who, after nine years in rugby league, is poised to make his Premiership debut on Sunday.

"When I was down at Gloucester, I stayed with Lesley and he helped me make the transition, and although Shontayne was at Bath, he was always available to give me advice.

"Being with them and seeing what they went through has made all the hard work to get a two-year contract with Leeds all the more worthwhile.

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"Shontayne and Lesley were both fortunate in that they signed two-year contracts straight away in union, whereas with a six-month contract I felt I had to impress immediately.

"Fortunately, Leeds had shown an interest in me previously and I'm happy now that I've got a two-year deal.

"Hopefully, I'll be in the 23 on Sunday against Bath. I would love the chance to play against Shontayne and then Lesley."

It was Hape who was by his side on a defining day in his life in 2006, when Tadulala – the Wildcats player who had a reputation as a wildcat – arrived at a crossroads in his life.

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"It was a case of, if I go left there's destruction and I'm not going to get anywhere with my life, but if I go right there's life and there's light," said the now devout Christian.

"Ali Lauititi (Leeds Rhinos) wanted us to go to church with him and Shontayne said 'come on let's give it a go'.

"I'd been out in Leeds until 5am and here I was at 9.30am on my way to church at the Abundant Life church in Bradford. The way the preacher spoke it felt like she was talking directly at me, about my life. I knew then, I needed to do something about my life."

Now back in west Yorkshire, Tadulala is at peace with himself and eager to make his mark in union.

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He first came to the attention of Headingley coaching duo Andy Key and Neil Back 18 months ago when Leeds were striving to win promotion back to the top flight.

He was a rugby league Bull at the time but the pace and power that saw him score 37 tries in four seasons at Belle Vue and a further 32 in 49 games as a replacement for Vainikolo at Bradford excited Key and Back.

Issues with visas blocked any potential transfer but after earning his union stripes with his native Fiji and Gloucester, Leeds swooped.

"At Gloucester, I knew it was going to be hard to get into the first team so I saw it as a learning curve," said Tadulala.

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"I tried to do learn as much as I could. I'd never played rugby union professionally, only as a child growing up in Australia.

"So Gloucester was a great developing stage. I played a couple of LV games and a handful of A league games, and it was a good stepping stone.

"Lesley was a big help to me at Gloucester, as was James Simpson-Daniel. They helped me understand the game and learn which positions I needed to take up.

"I learned a lot off the boys at Gloucester, but my ambition was always to play for Leeds.

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"It's good to be back in Yorkshire, it's familiar for me and has helped me settle back in quickly."

Having followed Vainikolo and Hape into rugby union, the natural progression would be to follow them onto the international scene. Both former Bulls players have gone on to represent England despite their southern hemisphere heritage, Hape the more successful.

Tadulala has tasted the international 15-man arena with his native Fiji and is already eyeing World Cup selection next autumn.

"It's a childhood dream to play in the World Cup for Fiji and I'm in a good position to do that," he said. "There'll be a lot of sacrifice and hard work to get there, and it's at the back of my mind right now, but anything that happens with Fiji is a knock-on effect of what I do with Leeds.

"And the priority is achieving my goals for Leeds and the goals the team have set out."

Which begins on Sunday with victory over old pal Shontayne.