Sione Tuipulotu: I could have been playing for Italy against Scotland - and I want to batter them

The Scotland captain’s grandfather, Ippolito, or Paul, hails from Calabria, the region in the ‘toe’ of the country’s boot-shaped peninsula.

Fortunately, Gavin Vaughan and Gregor Townsend were quicker off the mark than the Italians and, once they realised that Tuipulotu’s grandmother was from Greenock, a chain of events was set in motion which saw the Australian-born centre with a Tongan dad sign for Glasgow Warriors and make his Scotland debut soon after.

It is not a decision that Tuipulotu has had cause to regret, and neither has Townsend, the Scotland head coach, nor Vaughan, the national team’s performance analyst who is credited with flagging up the player’s Scottish heritage.

Tuipulotu retains a soft spot for Italy and it is a regular holiday destination for him and his partner but, in his own words, he “still wants to batter them” when the sides meet in their Six Nations opener.

“My mum's father is from Calabria,” said Tuipulotu who will partner Huw Jones in the centre for Scotland on Saturday for the first time since the win over Australia in November 2024. “I know it's kind of crazy, but yeah, things could have worked out differently for myself. So that's my nonno. My middle name's actually Ippolito, after him. So it's quite funny. Every time that I come through customs here they're looking at my passport. Obviously my first and last name's got Tongan background. And then they look at my middle name and they're like, ‘okay?’ But I'm sure he'll be watching the game along with my gran back home.

“My nonno's probably, looks-wise, the most stereotypical Italian you could probably get. Quite a short, stocky guy and he'd always have his polos on with his curly chest hair and gold chain. And his crucifix on, that's all I remember of him as a kid.

“So, he was massive input in my life, as was my gran. So these games, that's why they're so special, probably for me, more than other people. I get to represent a lot of different parts of my background and heritage. And yeah, I still want to batter them, you know?! But I'm sure my nonno will be watching. I'm proud for him watching his countrymen as well.”

Tuipulotu loves to visit Italy

Tuipulotu’s love of Italy has grown and it’s a lifestyle with which he can identify.

“It's probably my most visited place since I've been in Scotland,” he said. “I never came to visit when I was a kid but literally every time we get a chance, me and my partner Lara, we're always in Italy.

“I love the country. They do things right, with the food and wine and everything like that. It's a nice place to spend your downtime. It's pretty cool that, I don't know - just the feeling around Rome at the moment, you know? It has a little bit of a different feel to it. So I'm really excited to play tomorrow.”

The weather in the Italian capital on Friday certainly helped. The sky was cloudless and it was a balmy 15 degrees as Tuipulotu led the team through their captain’s run at the Stadio Olimpico.

Tuipulotu said he was “never approached” by Italy. “I don't know if they knew about my Italian heritage as much as Gregor knew about my Scottish one. I never really thought about going to Italy just because it was never posed to me. And I think things have worked out alright in Scotland, you know?”

He could also have played Test rugby for Australia - he represented them up to under-20 level - and Tonga and feels his multicultural upbringing has strengthened the bond he has with his brothers, Mosese, who plays for Edinburgh, and Octavio, who plays for Glasgow.

“I grew up really close with my brothers, specifically, because maybe growing up in Australia, you're all these different nationalities and you probably don't belong to one.

“That's probably why I'm so close to my brothers because we fought so much growing up. You probably don't align with anyone except your brothers, the ones that have the exact same genes as you. I'm just really proud to represent all of my heritage.

“In a little bit of a way, I've kind of always felt like the odd one out. I think that's what me and my siblings bond over, is probably being kind of like... I feel like a mudblood almost. You know what I mean?

“But it's cool, I get to represent all those different cultures and it's something I'm really proud about.”

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