The Kangaroos and Tonga bring the curtain down on the 2024 season with a mouth-watering showdown for the Pacific Cup title at CommBank Stadium on Sunday.
After a shock 30-0 loss to the Kiwis in last year’s final, the Kangaroos get a shot at redemption, but they will have to get past a Tonga outfit full of confidence after a stunning 25-24 win over New Zealand on Saturday.
With Addin Fonua-Blake and Jason Taumalolo combining for 422 run metres and young gun Isaiya Katoa showing maturity beyond his years to ice the win, Tonga earned themselves a shot at history with their memorable triumph over the defending Cup champions.
Tonga have given themselves an opportunity to become the first Pacific nation to win the final of a major tournament and they can count on vocal and passionate support from the red army at CommBank Stadium.
Mal Meninga’s Australians will need to match Tonga’s intensity in the early forward battles and then look to finish over the top of their rivals in the closing 20 minutes.
Tonga and Australia have met just three times previously, with Tonga winning in 2019 when Taumalolo led his team to a 16-12 triumph at Eden Park, while the green and gold got the job done at Mt Smart Stadium in 2018 and again in the opening week of this year’s Pacific Championships in Brisbane.
Team News
Kangaroos: Canberra’s Hudson Young moves into the starting side in place of the injured Cameron Murray (wrist) while Panthers premiership winner Lindsay Smith joins the bench for his Test debut. Ben Hunt is again the 18th man.
Tonga XIII: Coach Kristian Woolf has named the same 17 that pulled off a stunning upset over New Zealand to advance to the Cup final. Edge forward Keaon Koloamatangi remains with his partner as they await the birth of their child but could be a late inclusion closer to game day.
Stat Attack
- The Kangaroos have not been beaten on home soil since 2015.
- Tonga are aiming for back-to-back Test wins for the first time since World Cup 2021.
- The Kangaroos have outscored their Pacific Cup opposition 40-10 in 2024.
- Tonga have won three of their last four Tests in Australia.
- Kangaroos centre Tom Trbojevic has scored four tries in six Test appearances,
Source: NRL