Speaking for the first time about the pre-match incident at Eden Park, Hopoate told this masthead that he would speak if his time was up.
“I had mixed feelings because I was to blame for what happened to Eli with his first concussion,” Hopoate said.
Eli Katoa was on the end of that nasty hit with Lehi Hopoat ahead of the Tonga-New Zealand clash.Credit: Nine
“We both went for a high ball, didn’t see each other and then collided.
“I knew [he was not well]. I kept checking on him. For him because he was wearing red [Tongan] jersey, he felt he owed it to the boys [to play].
“I wrote him a few weeks ago to see how he was doing. I sent him a couple of presents. I saw Melbourne posted about him.” [on Instagram] to be back on the field and running.
“[As for the social-media abuse]I didn’t fall into that negativity. I was sweet.”
When pressed on whether he would encourage Katou to postpone the game if faced with the same situation, Hopoate said: “Yeah, sure.”
Whether Katoa should have played will never be the responsibility of a teammate, who will be 21 on Monday.
The The NRL has fallen hard on two Tongan doctors and two trainers with punishments ranging from a formal warning to a two-year ban. Some in the Tongan camp were left frustrated as footage of the collision between Katoa and Hopoate was televised at the start of the game but not shown to anyone in the coaches’ box.
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Trainer Kristian Woolf was so worried about Kata that he stayed in Auckland for over a week to visit him in hospital every day.
Hopoate tried to escape the Eden Park drama by heading to Bali on holiday with friends days later, only to arrive at Sydney airport and realize he had left his passport in the washing machine.
The Manly junior has played full-back for Tonga, and while he has been touted as No.1 successor Tom Trbojevic on the northern beaches, Hopoate said he is more than happy to play on the left wing off Tongan team-mate Tolu Koulu.
Sea Eagles coach Anthony Seibold signed Hopoate up at the time of the Katoa clash and was grateful the youngster had such a healthy support network.
“I admired Lehi’s perseverance and resilience from the moment he came into the classroom,” Seibold said.
“He came for a six-week training and rehearsal. [at the end of] He did such a good job in 2023 that we extended it to a 12-week trial, then we extended it to take him to Vegas with the NRL team.
“He got our player’s player on his debut when we beat the Storm at Brookie.
“This year, I want him to focus on the wing position; he’s getting ready to have his best year, which is what we’re looking for. He’s just a good kid and he’s so coachable.”
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