Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii lands loftiest of comparisons from Tim Horan

Rugby legend Tim Horan is convinced Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii is ready to emerge as a Jonah Lomu-like thunderbolt that could blow open the 2027 World Cup for Australia.

Ranked a lowly eighth in the world two years out from Australia’s hosting of the 11th global showpiece, the Wallabies will need something special to lift the Webb Ellis Cup for a third time.

Horan reckons that X-factor can be the code-hopping Suaalii, who continues to dazzle after making a spectacular man-of-the-match Test debut against England on last year’s grand slam spring tour of the UK.

“Rugby World Cups, you can identify with certain players – Jonah Lomu in ’95 and David Campese all those years ago in ’91 and Joseph Suaalii’s got the chance to do that,” Horan told AAP.

“He’s an athlete first and a footy player second and he could play three or four positions in the Wallaby backline and still be outstanding.

“So there’s still a couple more years to go and he’s really learning the game of rugby now and it’s a great opportunity for him to be the star of the Rugby World Cup 2027.”

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The two-time World Cup winner’s glowing endorsement of Suaalii aptly came on the day the late Lomu would have turned 50.

And Sonny Bill Williams fully agrees with Horan.

Having also switched from the NRL to the 15-man code, Williams was instrumental in New Zealand’s own Rugby World Cup triumph on home soil in 2011.

Now he believes Suaalii may well be the game’s premier player when the World Cup kicks off October 1, 2027.

“Anything’s possible,” Williams told AAP.

“He just needs a bit of time. You can play him anywhere – 13, wing or fullback. For myself, I like him at 13 with more ball in his hands in the air.

“But he’s a type of player that you can change the game plan around.

“He’s like Izzy Folau when he came into the scene, so it’s exciting times.”