[4] Paea made his debut for Tasman in Round 3 of the 2019 Mitre 10 Cup against Manawatu coming off the bench in a 64-3 win for the Mako.

He played 9 games for the Mako in 2019, 8 off the bench as the side went unbeaten to claim their first Mitre 10 Cup title.

Following his impressive impact from the bench for Tasman Paea was named in the Crusaders squad for the 2020 Super Rugby season.

Paea was named in the Moana Pasifika squad to play the Maori All Blacks in late 2020, starting in the number 13 jersey in a 28-21 loss.

In Round 2 of the 2021 Bunnings NPC Paea suffered another injury while playing for Tasman against Auckland, ruling him out for the rest of the competition.