WOOLF HOWLS FOR ANNUAL TONGA V NZ BATTLE
TONGA coach Kristian Woolf has urged rugby league powerbrokers to pencil in an annual game against New Zealand to give the World Cup resurgence of second- tier nations longterm momentum.
And the Townsville Blackhawks mentor has praised the willingness of Kangaroos stars to take pay cuts to help bankroll their smaller rivals.
Tonga and Fiji have been the fairytale stories of the World Cup after qualifying for the semi- finals, but receive a pittance for their efforts while heavyweights Australia, New Zealand and England are paid handsomely.
Australia players, including skipper Cameron Smith, have thrown their support behind a fairer financial model.
“If we want to continue to help tier- two nations to get stronger, there needs to be flexibility in making it easier for guys to play for those nations,” Woolf said.
Tonga’s 28- 22 upset of New Zealand was arguably the match of the tournament, and sparked calls for Pacific nations to be given more opportunities to represent their heritage. Woolf said a yearly clash against New Zealand was an obvious way of doing so.
“What I’d love to see going forward is our game against New Zealand become an annual, one- off Test to begin with,” Woolf said. “The atmos- phere and support that game we had, if you played it at Mt Smart Stadium ( in Auckland) you’d get an even bigger crowd and atmosphere and I think it’s a real way forward.
“The way we’re going to get stronger is playing those type of games on a consistent basis.”
The Mate Ma’a will take on England in Auckland today for a spot in the World Cup final.
Tonga survived a quarterfinal scare against Lebanon before holding on for a two- point win.
Woolf said they would need to play even better than they did against New Zealand to shock the Poms. “It’s a great opportunity for our blokes and they understand that’s ahead of them,” Woolf said.
“They also understand it’s a challenge and while we were able to get a win against New Zealand and play really well, we’ll certainly have to find a bit more this week if we’re going to get a win over England.
“They’re a much more experienced side, have spent more time together as a team and are very well coached.
“I thought we took a bit of a step back last week.”