At the 2013 National and Rookie drafts, Hawthorn welcomed eight new players to the Club, with three selected to join the primary list and four to the rookie list.
Over the Christmas period, hawthornfc.com.au is giving you the chance to get to know the Club’s new players on both a football and personal level.
Getting to know: Shem Tatupu (International Rookie)
What kind of player are you: I’m a player that likes to get amongst everything and then get on the outside and use my speed and agility.
What are your strengths: My agility, I’ve got a bit of speed and using my big body - I guess it can be a bit of an advantage.
What can you work on: I’ll need to get to a specific weight so that’ll be a good challenge.
Childhood or current sporting hero (non-AFL): I like Greg Inglis, he’s been one of my idols since I was a kid. I like his speed and his skills and he’s a big bloke too who likes to use his size and his explosiveness.
Favourite food: Anything big. I like quantity and not so much quality. Just anything really.
What is your pump-up song before games: It depends on the day. If I’m feeling hyped I’ll listen to some techno but if I’m feeling calm I’ll listen to a bit of RnB or old school music that will soothe me into the game. It depends what kind of mindset I’m in.
Favourite band or performer: I like them all.
Best band or performer you’ve seen live: I haven’t seen any live but I like Avicii. I want to go to one of his concerts.
Favourite TV show: Breaking Bad is pretty good, I’ve watched a bit of that.
Favourite character in a TV show and why: In IT Crowd, there’s this one guy that just cracks me up. I actually don’t know his name but he’s pretty funny.
Do you have any hobbies: I like a bit of table tennis and I like to just listen to music throughout the day.
What is your favourite thing to do when you’re at home: I like to get outside and get a tan go out to the pool and practice my bombs. They pretty much stink anyway though.
Favourite movie and why: Drive. It makes you think about a lot of things and I like Ryan Gosling as an actor.
Ideal holiday destination: Gold Coast. I haven’t been there yet but it sounds like it has a good buzz. I’d like to get there and get a good tan going.
Best country or city you have visited and why: I’ve been to a few countries and I like them all but one that stood out was probably Florida. It was the first time I’d been to America and everything was cheap there, I couldn’t go wrong.
Chocolate or vanilla: Half-half, I like both.
Fruit or vegetables: Probably fruit but I’d eat both.
iPhone or Android: iPhone
Summer or winter: Summer. I like getting a tan.
When the season is over, which food to you go for first: KFC. It’s a Kiwi thing I think, got to have KFC!
What are your goals for 2014: To do everything right and get to where I want to be physically. I want to be enthusiastic, play the best I can and learn fast.
