Tonga took out New Zealand on their way to the Pacific Championship final and despite their eventual loss to Australia, they will be aiming to go one better by the next World Cup.
AUSTRALIA may have, predictably, taken the 2024 Pacific Cup, but the sea of red that washed over Auckland and Parramatta was the true victory.
And riding the wave of momentum generated by the hordes of supporters packing ‘away’ grounds with red Tongan flags, Kristian Woolf’s men gave the top two teams in international rugby league an almighty scare.
Eight days after sinking the Kiwis by a point to book their place in the Cup decider, Mate Ma’a Tonga nearly ran down the Kangaroos on their own turf to steal a breathtaking upset.
While the miracle didn’t eventuate, the vast majority of the 28,728 crowd that packed CommBank Stadium went home full of optimism for the 2026 World Cup … and that’s because they support Tonga.
Ever since Auckland-born then-Kiwi representative Jason Taumalolo chose to represent the nation of his parents’ birth at the 2017 World Cup, Tonga’s emergence has been the biggest story in international rugby league.
Seven years after that landmark decision, the momentum shows no signs of dissipating.
In fact, the 2024 Pacific Championships suggests it’s as strong as ever.
Need evidence? Sydney hadn’t sold out a Test match in 30 years, until Tonga and their legion of fans came to town.
While the Tongan supporters bring the heat in the stands, their players are delivering on the park.
Bouncing back from a disappointing quarter-final exit at the 2022 World Cup then a three-nil shut-out at the hands of England on their return to the UK last autumn, the 2024 Pacific Championships represents a return to form.
Woolf’s charges fell 18-0 in a tight tournament opener to Australia in Brisbane, then won that exhilarating contest in Auckland 25-24 — a needlessly tight result having shot to a 24-0 lead in the first half.
Then the 20-14 thriller in the final against the Aussies reminded everyone what the Pacific Islanders are capable of when they return for the 2026 World Cup.
The key, of course, is access to elite talent — a trail that Taumalolo blazed in 2017.
The North Queensland Cowboys wrecking ball was joined in that World Cup squad by plenty of others who swapped allegiance, including ex-Kangaroos Andrew Fifita and Daniel Tupou and former Kiwis Manu Vatuvei and Sam Moa.
It signalled a shift, whereby elite NRL talent now proudly elects to represent their nation of heritage — chiefly Tonga and Samoa — rather than their nation of birth or residence.
Compare the big men that started the Pacific Cup Final. You could mount an argument that Addin Fonua-Blake, Felise Kaufusi, Humble Olakau’atu, Eliesa Katoa and Taumalolo outmuscle Patrick Carrigan, Lindsay Collins, Angus Crichton, Hudson Young and Isaah Yeo.
Fonua-Blake and Katoa earned a spot in the Dally M Team of the Year, after all.
Woolf’s weapons are a little thinner in the spine. Tui Lolohea and Silvia Havili are old hands, while Lehi Hopoate and Isaiya Katoa are rookies with miles of upside.
Give that pair — the former aged 19, the latter 20 — two more years of first grade before the 2026 World Cup, and the whole side is a different proposition.
While international rugby league is often criticised for a paucity of truly top-tier teams, Tonga is now clearly worthy of discussion alongside Australia, New Zealand and England.
And they can draw inspiration from a string of high-profile upsets, including plenty of their own in the post-Taumalolo era. Think the Kiwis in 2017, Kangaroos in 2019 and the New Zealanders again this season.
Samoa qualified for the 2022 World Cup final, beating England in the semi-final. Fiji upset New Zealand in the 2017 World Cup quarter-final. Both those boil-overs came on enemy soil.
It no longer feels like the fourth semi-final berth at a World Cup is a runner-up medal behind the big three … especially if the Tongan machine rumbles in there.
At the 2017 World Cup, buoyed by the Taumalolo defection, all of Tonga’s games (besides their opener against Scotland in faraway Cairns) came in New Zealand.
In 2026, Australia’s Tongan diaspora will get their chance to roar on their burgeoning side.
If administrators are smart, they’ll ensure more matches are played in Sydney’s west, so we get an atmosphere like the Pacific Cup Final clash at Parramatta.
And when they click through the turnstiles, those Tongan fans will carry a genuine belief that their team can become the first nation outside Australia, New Zealand and Great Britain to hoist international rugby league’s greatest prize.
First published in Rugby League World magazine, Issue 503 (December 2024)
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