Four years ago, the Aussie Pearls’ dreams of winning a gold medal were shattered when they lost to arch-rivals New Zealand in the Rugby Sevens final at the Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast.
That same year, Alysia Lefau-Fakaosilea, a 17 year-old New Zealand-born rising Sevens star from Logan was patiently waiting in the wings for her Australian residency requirements to tick over, which would allow her to don the green and gold.
Fast forward four years to the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, the now 21-year-old not only fulfilled her dreams of debuting for the Aussies at the Games, but helped her teammates to redemption in the semi-finals against her home country–the Kiwis, and claim gold in an epic win against Fiji.
“I just can’t believe it, it’s been a dream come true,” said Ms Lefau-Fakaosilea.
“If you look at our celebration when we won against New Zealand, we looked more excited than when we won in the final; obviously we had a big rivalry against them and we knew that New Zealand was one of the best teams to try and beat so it was really good to push them out.
“It was like a gold medal game in itself.
“We were just focusing on our role in physicality and also starting strong from the beginning… I knew we had it when we started off because of how hyped we were.”
Ms Lefau-Fakaosilea, who has already represented Australia at the Tokyo Olympics and for Queensland in Sevens, 10s and 15s, said her time at the Games was unlike anything she had experienced before.
“It was a bit different because it was really packed and I think the nerves really got to me. But I think we really absorbed the crowd’s atmosphere,” she said.
“Some of the girls’ parents were there, I’m really close with Faith Nathan’s family so it felt like my mum and my family were there too.
“So it was great to have support from the Aussies and from our family in there, that really helped us on the field as well.”
The Canterbury College graduate said she’s a “real family person” and while they couldn’t come to Birmingham, she felt their support from afar.
“I am really close with my family. Not only was I representing Australia, but I was also representing my family and my culture which is Samoan Tongan– and which I’m proud of,” she said.
“They were there up in Berrinba at five every single game, even before that at 2am, so I knew they’d be watching every game.”
Ms Lefau-Fakaosilea inherited her love for the game from her family. Her mother played representative rugby for Auckland and the Otahuhu club, even while pregnant with her. She is also the niece of Wallabies giant Will Skelton and former All Blacks full-back Mils Muliaina.
Originally born in South Auckland, Ms Lefau-Fakaosilea made the move to Australia in 2016 and instantly burst onto the scene, selected for the Wallaroos as a teenager.
She and the squad are currently training in Sydney as they build up to the Rugby World Cup 7s next month in Cape Town.
