'Speechless': ACT Brumbies centre Siokapesi Palu on the verge of Wallaroos Test debut

Palu is one of five Brumbies named in the 40-strong Wallaroos player of national interest squad on Tuesday following a breakout Super W campaign.

Brumbies Grace Kemp, Michaela Leonard, Lillyann Mason-Spice, and Tayla Stanford all return to the Wallaroos squad alongside first-timer Palu.

Palu performed impressively throughout the Super W competition to earn her spot in the squad, but there is no doubt this selection has come as a shock to her.

"It is an overwhelming experience. I am still quite speechless, I still have family and friends congratulating me and I'm kind of muted, I don't know how to respond," Palu said.

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Palu excelled after shifting from outside centre to inside centre for the Brumbies, with club coach Dan Hawke backing her to shine if she earns a maiden Test call-up.

"I think she can be a revelation at that next level. She's still learning the game, but she adds something different that no other franchise has. She's an impressive ball carrying 12 who can get you the front-foot ball of a set piece," Hawke said.

"Pesi actually battled through injury at the start of the year and she did a hell of a lot to get back on the field just to get herself fit to play in the tournament.

"She drives high standards and isn't afraid to speak up when things aren't right, or call people out when they're not doing the right thing."

The support of coaches and teammates throughout the Super W season has been pivotal to her confidence and success as a player.

"There was a lot of support from coaches and players prior to the Super W comp and whilst playing I believe I put on a great performance," the Uni-Norths Owls star said.

"Having coaches and players back you up and reassure you that you had great games gives me much more confidence going into this.

"Learning to love your players on and off the field makes you want to play well alongside your friends on a club level and it makes it more fun.

"I only played rugby when I was young, at about 17 for two years and then I stopped playing and I picked it back up for my first season of Brumbies.

"Although it was a short period of time, there was a lot of learning involved both in club footy, and Brumbies footy."

The scheduled two-Test series against Samoa has now been postponed due to COVID-19 concerns and is due to be played later in the year.

"It's actually a blessing in disguise to my advantage. It will help me get my fitness levels up," Palu said.

"At a national level, coming up against different countries, the playing field will be much harder and I will have to keep up with that."

Coach Hawke is equally proud of all his named players, and says this selection acknowledges all their hard work and their selection shows a broader picture of women's rugby in the ACT.

"Some of these ladies have been working towards this opportunity for months, if not years just to get a crack at these upcoming tests," Hawke said.

"It shows the strength of the pathways in the ACT that there's local talented people who come through our Brumbies system that are good enough to play, and that have the potential to play on that world stage."

Wallaroos Player of National Interest Squad: Iliseva Batibasaga - NSW Waratahs, Destiny Brill - Queensland Reds, Emily Chancellor - NSW Waratahs, Bree-Anna Cheatham - Queensland Reds, Georgia Cormick - Melbourne Rebels, Lori Cramer - NSW Waratahs, Piper Duck - NSW Waratahs, Anita Faimasui-Brown - NSW Waratahs, Georgina Friedrichs - NSW Waratahs, Aleena Greenhalgh - Queensland Reds, Grace Hamilton - NSW Waratahs, Fiona Jones - NSW Waratahs, Eva Karpani - NSW Waratahs, Grace Kemp - Brumbies, Atasi Lafai - NSW Waratahs, Kaitlan Leaney - NSW Waratahs, Michaela Leonard - Brumbies, Lucy Lockhart - Queensland Reds, Ashley Marsters - Melbourne Rebels, Lillyann Mason-Spice - Brumbies, Jemima McCalman - President's XV, Arabella McKenzie - NSW Waratahs, Tiarah Minns - Melbourne Rebels, Tiarna Molloy - Queensland Reds, Layne Morgan - NSW Waratahs, Mahalia Murphy - NSW Waratahs, Sera Naiqama - NSW Waratahs, Bridie O'Gorman - NSW Waratahs, Siokapesi Palu - Brumbies, Liz Patu - Queensland Reds, Pauline Piliae - NSW Waratahs, Christina Sekona - Queensland Reds, Cecilia Smith - Queensland Reds, Tayla Stanford - Brumbies, Maya Stewart - NSW Waratahs, Adiana Talakai - NSW Waratahs, Jade Te Aute - Melbourne Rebels, Margot Vella - NSW Waratahs, Melanie Wilks - Queensland Reds,, Ivania Wong - Queensland Reds.

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