Paul Gallen plans on “shutting up” his trash-talking opponent, Fijian Puna Rasaubale, when the two meet in the ring at Sharks Leagues Club.
The Cronulla Sharks skipper will take on the former Fijian rugby league international and Commonwealth Games boxer during a fight night on November 10.
Rasaubale has used Instagram over the past year to taunt and trash talk Gallen – calling him out for a fight. In one post in September he didn’t hold anything back.
“Mr Paul, pussycat, g-string, freckle-fart from K-Mart, you know you're the fat kid from Hey Dad. You little midget, you with the large melon. I could throw a jab from Punchbowl and hit you from here bruz,” he said in the video. "Hurry up and sign the contract so we can fight already.”
Gallen responded this week, on the Cronulla Sharks website, that he was looking forward to shutting up Rasaubale.
“We actually know each other, he played for Cronulla and played with St George – never played first grade – but played grade,” he said.
“He went to the Commonwealth Games [as a boxer in 2006] for Fiji and won the Fijian heavyweight title a few times.
“We did spar each other probably a couple of years ago and about 12 months ago he came out with some of these call outs and said he wants to fight me ... it was a bit of a shock because I wouldn’t say we were mates but we certainly had a healthy respect for each other and knew each other quite well.
“It’s been pretty full on, so we have come up with a night and he has agreed to the fight after all the talk and I’m just looking forward to getting out there and hopefully shutting him up to be honest.”
The fight will be held at Sharks Leagues Club and tickets are strictly limited. Last year, Gallen held a boxing event on the field at Southern Cross Group Stadium but will hold this fight indoors at Sharks Leagues Club in Woolooware. Remaining tickets can still be purchased here.
“Last year it was out in the stadium and a lot more people turned up but this year we are doing it indoors and trying to keep it a little bit smaller, and there is only 120 tickets left.”
Gallen is currently 7-0 as a boxer.
- Gallen recently announced he would consider moving to the US to play as a marquee player for a US-based rugby league side after his career ends at the Sharks. A US consortium has reportedly considered joining England rugby league’s second division from 2019. Gallen, 36, has signed a one-year contract to play for the Sharks in 2018.