Scott Sio hopes to move to Cardiff Rugby will help him realize his dream of playing in the third World Cup.
The Sydney-born props were the first choice for loosehead Australia in the 2015 and 2019 tournaments, starting with a total of ten matches, including the 2015 final at Twickenham.
Now he’s looking to represent Samoa at next year’s World Cup, which, ironically, is being held down under.
With that in mind, he knows he needs to play at a good level of club rugby and feels playing regularly for Cardiff in the BKT URC is the perfect fit, following his departure from Exeter.
On that front, he has a big Welsh derby coming up this weekend against the Ospreys – and their various Aussies – at St Helen’s, Swansea.
Sio won 74 caps for the Wallabies between 2013 and 2022 but has now embarked on a second international career with Samoa.
His father David – also a prop – played for Western Samoa in the 1991 World Cup, playing against Scotland at Murrayfield in the quarter-finals.
The game coincided with the birth of David’s son, who was named Scott in recognition of the occasion.
Now Sio Jnr is following in his father’s footsteps as he became eligible for the South Sea island nation having not played for Australia in three years.
He made his debut for Samoa last November against Namibia and then won the second game in a dramatic draw with Belgium in Dubai which sealed its place as the 24th and final qualifying tournament for next year’s World Cup.
Explaining his involvement, he said: “It wasn’t originally in the plans when I came to Exeter.
“I’ve been very grateful for the opportunities I’ve had with the Wallabies and the career I’ve had.
“I was just looking forward to establishing myself on this side of the world and playing out my career. But life has a funny way of leading you to bigger things and newer things.”
“I met my lovely wife in London. She’s a proud Samoan-Kiwi girl and she was probably the one who got me over the moon about playing for Samoa.
“We have a son together. Sometimes at different stages in your career you have something different to play for and a different purpose and responsibility and one of the big things for me was that I wanted to represent them and play for Samoa.”
“It’s very special to me. My dad played for Samoa, my sisters also play for Samoa. So we’re a proud Samoan family and it’s nice to represent them.
“My goal is to go to the World Cup next year with Samoa. It’s the biggest stage and it would be a great opportunity.
“The irony is that it’s in Australia, which is pretty funny in itself. There’s a hypothetical world where if the Wallabies are second in their pool and we’re second in ours, we’ll meet in the round of 16. There’d be a lot of fireworks there!”
The 34-year-old Sio believes that he is in a good position to fight for his third World Cup, having decided to Wales after completing a four-season stay at Exeter.
“I knew I still had to play good rugby domestically to contribute to Samoa,” he said.
“When the opportunity came up in Cardiff, it was great for us.
“The BKT URC format also fits. I like what the league is doing. It’s a pretty unique competition in the world.
“In football, they have to go to the Champions Cup to meet teams from different nations.
“We have a domestic competition where we can do that week in and week out, see different cultures and experience different players at different levels.
“At the end of the day, I’ll be playing against some of the best players in the world. I’m excited for the opportunity.”
Sio is clearly very much in Samoa’s plans as he has been included in the squad for next month’s Cup of Nations campaign which sees matches against Zimbabwe (in Wakefield), Portugal (Lisbon) and Spain (Malaga).
“It will be a big preparation period for the World Cup, a big foundation for us,” he said.
“Those are games against teams that will be eager to get stuck in.”
He added: “Rugby really needs a strong Samoa, especially ahead of the World Cup in Australia.
“There are a lot of people there who will want to come and watch the Pacific nations and you want to be competitive.
“That’s the mindset of the players. We don’t just want to go there to participate. We want to compete against the best teams out there. We have France, USA and Japan in our pool, so those are three big tests.”
Sio arrives in Cardiff after spending four years at Exeter, having previously been at ACT Brumbies in a decade.
“Things ended at Exeter and I was looking for opportunities to test myself as a player and grow in a new environment,” he said.
“I still felt great. After a good chat with my wife, we decided Cardiff was a good opportunity.
“I’ve played here a few times for Australia against Wales and I know the rugby weekends are huge.
“I really like how they just lock down the city. No one is allowed through. Anyone can walk anywhere they want and get as much beer as they can before the game.”
“Welsh fans are super passionate. They always get behind their teams and that’s one of the things that attracted us to come to Cardiff. There’s a rich history, not just for rugby, but as a nation. We’re looking forward to experiencing it as a family.”
He added: “The Welsh are tough. No matter the score, no matter the time of the game, they always fight hard.”
“That’s something that attracted me to come here and that’s something I feel I can add, adding that layer of toughness to the pack. You have to live in the trenches over there and hopefully I can get through that with the guys.
“One of the biggest things that Cardiff want to be proud of is the set-up and hopefully I can be a good wheel there and provide some good experience.
“I understand my role on the team and I’m excited about the opportunity.”
Sharing a win over Scarlets in Cardiff’s BKT URC opener, Sio then suffered a facial fracture during a Round 2 win against Zebras Parma.
But he quickly recovered and returned to action against Hollywoodbets Sharks at the Arms Park last Friday night.
Now he turns his attention to Ospreys and then onto the international scene with Samoa.