Ben “Sweet” Niumata, owner of Grubbies Burgers & Hawaiian BBQ in Brisbane, has seen Laki grow – and grow and grow – since the age of 5. As Laki shed weight and honed his physique, Niumata began to see something more than a rugby player.
He saw potential. NFL-sized potential.
He picked up the phone and called Zen Ginnen of Ginnen Sports Management Group to get Laki on the agent’s radar. The only problem? Laki didn’t have a highlight reel. So Niumata helped him build one.
A year later, Ginnen showed up unannounced to one of Laki’s rugby matches. Niumata spotted him from the corner of his eye and grabbed Laki before he stepped onto the pitch.
“We didn’t actually know he was going to be there until he walked in,” Niumata said. “I remember stopping Laki, just grabbing his jersey and go, ‘Everything that we trained for during the week, everything we practiced for, just throw it in the rubbish. I just need you to manhandle guys as if you were playing football because there’s a guy here who’s come to see you.'”
“It was actually the best I’ve ever seen [him] play,” Niumata said. “And when I think about this whole story, I always look back to that day because that was pretty special.”
A week went by and Laki was at the forefront of Ginnen’s mind.
“Zen called me and said, ‘I can’t stop thinking about this kid.’ And I said, ‘Bro, I’ve been saying this for like two years because I couldn’t stop thinking about it either,'” Niumata recalled. “That’s why I was so persistent because I couldn’t get over it too, especially when you’re seeing the story of Jordan Mailata and all that kind of stuff. It’s kind of like, well, we’ve got a kid just as big, just as strong, very mobile, very agile as well.”
They urged Laki to try out for NFL scouts at NFL Academy in Australia’s Gold Coast – about an hour drive from Goodna.
Laki had never watched an NFL game. But curiosity kicked in.
“As soon as I searched up the YouTube about Jordan Mailata and the NFL IPP,” he said, “I realized how big it is.”
A week after tryouts, Laki got the call that would change it all.
“Hey, we want you at IPP. Congratulations and we’ll see you at work in January.”
