 In 2015 Matavao was selected for the Samoan Under 20 side for the U20 World Championship in Italy.Otago picked Matavao up in 2018 and he played 7 games in the 2018 Mitre 10 Cup season.Matavao was the only local based Samoan player named in the Samoan 31-man squad for the 2019 Rugby World Cup, making his debut for the Samoan national team in 2017.