Injury-hit Vunivalu set to rejoin rugby league with Hull after La Rochelle release

Suliasi Vunivalu is closing in on a return to rugby league with Hull FC, six years after leaving the NRL, following his release from French Top 14 club La Rochelle. The former Wallaby winger ruptured his ACL during a Champions Cup defeat to the Stormers in December, prompting head coach Ronan O’Gara to end his time on France’s Atlantic coast.

Vunivalu, 30, managed just two appearances for La Rochelle in the 2024-25 campaign after injuries repeatedly disrupted his stint at the club, which followed a move from Queensland Reds — where he had scored 16 tries in 39 games. His time in France never allowed him to show the form that made him one of the NRL’s most prolific finishers.

Before switching codes, Vunivalu was a standout performer for Melbourne Storm, scoring 86 tries in 111 NRL appearances and winning Grand Finals in 2016, 2018, and 2020. He also earned 10 caps for Fiji’s rugby league side, Fiji Bati.

His union career brought seven Test appearances for the Wallabies between 2022 and 2023, with two tries to his name, though his early caps were marked by two sin-bins in his first three games. Rugby Australia granted him an early release from his contract in November 2024 to facilitate the move to La Rochelle.

The 6‘4”, 102kg back was given a tour of Hull’s facilities last week and talks are now at an advanced stage. Hull’s incoming head coach Steve McNamara has an existing relationship with Vunivalu, which is understood to have been a significant factor in the club’s pursuit. Wakefield Trinity had also been linked with the player but withdrew from the running late last week.

Vunivalu is expected to be fit in time for the start of the 2027 Super League season. Hull’s interest is also sharpened by a salary cap incentive: as a player crossing from rugby union, only 50 per cent of his salary would count against the club’s £2.1 million cap in his first year, rising to 75 per cent in year two.