Michael Salafia was a rugby league

Rugby league

Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...

 footballer for the Sydney City Roosters

Sydney Roosters

The Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney. The club competes in the National Rugby League and is one of the oldest and most successful clubs in Australian rugby league history, having won twelve New South Wales Rugby League...

, and Gold Coast Chargers

Gold Coast Chargers

Gold Coast were a professional Rugby league football club which played in the New South Wales Rugby League premiership from 1988 to 1994, the Australian Rugby League premiership from 1995 to 1997, and the National Rugby League premiership in 1998...

 of the Australian Rugby League

Australian Rugby League

The Australian Rugby League is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in Australia. It is made up of state bodies, including the New South Wales Rugby League and the Queensland Rugby League...

. He played at five-eighth

Playing career

Salafia made his debut from the bench for the Sydney City Roosters in round 8 of the 1995 ARL season. The next week he played his first game in the starting line-up, replacing regular five-eighth Andrew Walker. The Roosters won the game, the only victory of Salafia's short career.

In 1996, Salafia joined the Gold Coast Chargers. He was in the starting side for the club's first game under the new moniker, but it was to be the last game he played.

After his retirement from professional football, Salafia went on to represent Italy, and Group 7.