Mormons in rugby: Answering the call

A decision made by a 19-year-old Mormon is making headlines in Australia these days.

Will Hopoate, a fullback for the Manly-Warrinagh Sea Eagles, recently announced his decision to leave professional rugby at the end of the season to serve a two-year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In so doing, he is forsaking millions.

“At the end of the day it was all my decision. This is what I want to do,” Hopoate told the media in a press conference.

To be a professional rugby player in Australia would be comparable to playing in the NFL. And like in the NFL, when a rugby player does something — positive or negative — it makes national headlines.

Hopoate’s decision to serve a Mormon mission has been covered extensively in the past week.

His contract with Manly expires at the end of the season (this fall). Many are struggling to understand why Hopoate, a hot commodity in the National Rugby League, is choosing this moment to forgo the wealthy, celebrity life of a pro athlete and serve a mission.

Hopoate's father, John, a former Manly and Test winger, mentioned in the media conference that at least one club had made an offer to his son worth $1.5 million, according to the Sydney Morning Herald’s David Beniuk.

"The money that he's walked away from is massive. It would have done him and the family well," John Hopoate said. "But, in saying that, we're more than happy that he's made this decision because it's such a massive decision for a kid to walk away from that kind of money. … That just goes to show what kind of person this kid is."

Will Hopoate said the decision to go on a mission is something he has always considered. His family supports his choice to serve, he said.

Hopoate is in the process of filling out his mission paperwork. Teammates and Sea Eagles’ management wish Hopoate well and hope the fullback returns to the club following his mission.

Hopoate emphasized to reporters that serving a mission has been 100 percent his decision. It is not something the church forces its young men to do.

“I was brought up in the Mormon faith. This is who I am and what I want to do,” the young rugby star said.