Tongan defectors ready for RLWC war against New Zealand side
IT is being talked up as the World Cup’s “War in Waikato” but Tongan coach Kristian Woolf says Jason Taumalolo will do his talking on the field against New Zealand.
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IT is being talked up as the World Cup’s “War in Waikato” but Tongan coach Kristian Woolf says Jason Taumalolo will do his talking on the field against New Zealand this Saturday.
It will be the first time Taumalolo goes head-to-head with the Kiwis since Adam Blair accused the game’s best forward of not being “man enough” to tell coach David Kidwell or the New Zealand players about his plans to switch allegiance.
Taumalolo was one of several players who chose Tonga over New Zealand along with the likes of Manu Ma’u, Sio Siua Taukeiaho and David Fusitu’a, while Andrew Fifita also withdrew from the Australian side.
But heading into the final pool game of the tournament it now sets up what’s sure to be a fiery showdown with the powerhouse Tongans up against a heavyweight Kiwi pack that includes the likes of Blair, Russell Packer, Martin Taupau, Jared Waerea-Hargreaves and Nelson Asofa-Solomona.
Asked how he expected Taumalolo to handle the emotion of the occasion, Woolf reasoned: “Jase handles most things pretty well.
“He doesn’t tend to get drawn into things too much and doesn’t let things affect him so I think he will be fine.”
Blair certainly didn’t hide his feelings pre-tournament when he was scathing of the fact Taumalolo didn’t front teammates or management about his switch.
“You’ve got to be a man and own up to what you want to do,’ Blair said at the time.
“If you were man enough, you’d make the phone call and tell them.”
Blair also accused Taumalolo of influencing Fusitu’a, and admitted that he would find it hard to ever reconcile.
“It is not something we want to get drawn into at all I don’t think,” Woolf said.
“Look, it is going to be a really good challenge for our blokes.
Sell: The team discuss Welsh coach John Kear’s comments that the World Cup is a third tier comp to Aussies and how it can be a flagship event of premium quality.
“The pleasing thing for us so far is that with every game we have played including the trial we have got a little bit better.
“That is both with and without the ball.
“So we are certainly progressing in the right direction.
“But at the end of the day we haven’t played anyone of the class of what New Zealand is, so this will give us a real gauge of where we are at.”
Tonga’s impressive 32-18 in over Samoa last weekend assured them of advancing beyond the group stage for the first time at the World Cup in five attempts, and a win over the Kiwis would create more rugby league history given no tier two nation has ever beaten a tier one nation.
“Obviously it would be outstanding to be the first but at the same time we are not getting ahead of ourselves one bit and thinking that is going to be the case,” Woolf said.
“This is going to be a really good measure of where we actually do sit.
“We just need to be really competitive.”
Woolf described the atmosphere last weekend against Samoa as “Origin”-like and expects this Saturday’s game to be much the same.
“It was certainly something that I had never witnessed before in my time,” Woolf said.
“It just had that feel a bit like an Origin when you could feel the electricity in the air.
“I can only imagine this weekend is going to be similar if not the same.
“The amount of Tongans that got there last week was outstanding.
“It certainly doesn’t get lost on the blokes.
“The impact that all our players have had on Tonga and on Tongan rugby league has been overwhelming.
“It has sort of shown in the support the team has got.
“We have got nothing but big games ahead of us.
“It is all really exciting going forward.”
