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'I've had two contact me overnight': Tongan internationals eye up place in 2022 Moana Pasifika squad
Two Tongan players have already indicated their interest in suiting up for Moana Pasifika just days after it was announced the franchise would be inducted into a new professional competition next year.
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New Zealand Rugby announced on Wednesday that Moana Pasifika and the Fijian Drua had been granted conditional licences to compete in a new professional competition that will feature the 10 New Zealand and Australian Super Rugby franchises from next year onwards.
The final sign-off for both teams’ licences, which is dependent on their final business plans and Rugby Australia’s support, is expected by the end of June.
However, Tonga Rugby Union chief executive Peter Harding has revealed he has already fielded calls from two Tongan internationals who are eager to play for Moana Pasifika in 2022.
“I’ve had two contact me overnight. One through an agent. They’re very interested,” Harding told RNZ from Nuku’alofa.
“Both of the players – I can’t tell you who they are – but they will most likely be in the [World Cup] squad for 2023 and they’re both pretty excited about the fact that playing for a Polynesian team is something they aspire to.”
Harding’s revelations come a day after the Fiji Rugby Union [FRU] confirmed to RNZ that a number of Fijian players who have represented other countries have expressed interest in playing for the Fijian Drua.
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FRU chief executive John O’Connor also said a number of the country’s top sevens players have opted against pursuing professional contracts abroad in the hope of playing for the Suva-based franchise.
“They’ve indicated now that they would like to play for sevens and then switch over [to the Fijian Drua], so it’s already starting. Players we would have lost after the Olympics now have the opportunity to stay back and switch to fifteens,” O’Connor said.
He added: “We’ve already identified talents that we will sign locally and most of them are already Flying Fijians and playing domestically, locally. Now we will engage other players.
“Our early discussions they were all around having about 16 overseas based players and 16 local based players.”
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FRU high-performance manager and former Flying Fijians captain Simon Raiwalu said the 37-man Fijian Drua squad will be announced in June.
With Crusaders star Jack Goodhue ruled out for the rest of the year due to a knee injury, here's what the All Blacks midfield may look like. #AllBlacks #SuperRugbyAotearoa https://t.co/TNyM3NTL1j
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) April 16, 2021
Harding and O’Connor both shared their excitement around the prospect of a professional pathway for homegrown players who can now become professionals without having to leave the Pacific Islands.
“It’s about time we actually got opportunities for Tongans and Samoans, Polynesian players, to play for a team that represents what they represent as well,” Harding told RNZ.
“We’re very very enthusiastic about it and we’re looking forward to the team and the club, or the franchise, contributing to our pathway anyway it can.”
O’Connor said: “Every kid now who wakes up tomorrow has a new dream: to be part of the Fijian Drua and to play professional rugby at home and not leave their families and go to a different environment.
“It’s not only a dream for our players, it’s a dream for the match officials, coaches and so-forth – it’s a total pathway for us which has been missing for long.”
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Comments on RugbyPass
🤦♂️🤣 who cares who’s the best . All I know is the All Blacks have the star coach but have few star players now …
27 Go to commentsJe suis sûr que Farrell est impatient de jouer avec Lopez et Machenaud et d’être entraîné par Collazo… 🤭
1 Go to commentsAn on field red (aka a full red) in SRP must surely carry a bigger suspension than a red card given by the bunker as that carries a 20 minute team punishment. Had Damon Murphy abdicated his responsibility as a ref and issued both Drua players a yellow, which would have been upgraded to a 20 minute red by the bunker, that would have killed Australia and New Zealand’s push for the 20 minute red to be trialled globally from July this year.
11 Go to commentsEver so often you all post a Danny Care story that isn’t the announcement that he has finally re-signed for one more, victory tour season at Quins and I’m just like, “well you fooled me again!” My absolute favorite player ever, we need to make his final year at the Stoop (and Twickers) official already. I know he supposedly snubbed France but I won’t feel better until he signs.
1 Go to commentslate hit what late hit it wasn’t at all late and can clearly see he was committed before the tackle
1 Go to commentsChristian Lio -Willies 2 try perfomance was a standout. As was captain Scott Barrett. Up front was where the boys won it.They are a great team and players. Fantastic Crusades , you can keep going.
1 Go to commentsI don't know how the locals feel about that? I guess if you call yourselves the Worcester Wasps that might be appease. But really we need more teams in the Premiership in my view so they are not padding it out as they are at the moment. It might curtail so many players going abroad as well
5 Go to commentsNZ 😭😭😭is certainly rivaling England for best whingers cup!😭😭😭 !!!
27 Go to commentsYup. New Zealand won 3 out of 10 world cups played. SA 4 out of 8 attempts 30 Vs 50 per cent.🤔🤔
27 Go to commentsShould've done this years ago. Change Saturday kick off times to around 11am. Up and off and back home before 3pm, limit travel time too. Allows players to actually do something else with their Saturday that's family oriented or being rugby fans they could ‘watch’ pro rugby. Increases crowds etc. How can anyone that enjoys grassroots and pro rugby have to choose between the two on Saturdays?
9 Go to commentsI bet he inspired those supporters just as much.
1 Go to commentsBen Smith Springboks living rent free in his head 😊😂
67 Go to commentsGood to hear he would like to play the game at the highest level, I hadn’t been to sure how much of a motivator that was before now. Sadly he’s probably chosen the rugby club to go to. Try not to worry about all the input about how you should play rugby Joey and just try to emulate what you do on the league field and have fun. You’ll limit your game too much (well not really because he’s a standard athlete like SBW and he’ll still have enough) if you’re trying to make sure you can recycle the ball back etc. On the other hard, you can totally just try and recycle by looking to offload any and everywhere if you’re going to ground 😋
1 Go to commentsThis just proves that theres always a stat and a metric to use to justify your abilities and your success. Ben did it last week by creating an imaginary competition and now you did the same to counter his argument and espouse a new yardstick for success. Why not just use the current one and lets say the Boks have won 4 world cups making them the most successful world cup team. Outside of the world cup the All Blacks are the most successful team winning countless rugby championships and dominating the rankings with high win percentages. Over the last 4 years statistically the Irish are the best having the highest win rate and also having positive records against every tier 1 side. The most successful Northern team in the game has been England with a world cup title and the most six nations titles in history. The AB’s are the most dominant team in history with the highest win rate and 3 world cups. Lets not try to reinvent the wheel. Just be honest about the actual stats and what each team has been good at doing and that will be enough to define their level of success.
27 Go to commentsHow is 7’s played there? I’m surprised 10 or 11 man rugby hasn’t taken off. 7 just doesn’t fit the 15s dynamics (rules n field etc) but these other versions do.
9 Go to commentsPick Swinton at your peril A liability just like JWH from the Roosters Skelton ??? went missing at RWC
14 Go to commentsLike tennis, who have a ranking system, and I believe rugby too, just measure over each period preceding a world cup event who was the longest number one and that would be it. In tennis the number one player frequently is not the grand slam winner. I love and adore the All Blacks since the days of Ian Kirkpatrick when I was a kid in SA. And still do because they are the masters of running rugby and are gentleman on and off the field - in general. And in my opinion they have been the majority of the time the best rugby team in the world.
27 Go to commentsHaving overseas possessions in 2024 is absurd. These Frenchies should have to give the New Caledonians their freedom.
21 Go to commentsBell injured his foot didn’t he? Bring Tupou in he’ll deliver when it counts. Agree mostly but I would switch in the Reds number 8 Harry Wilson for Swinton and move Rob Valentini to 6 instead. Wilson is a clever player who reads the play, you can’t outmuscle the AB’s and Springboks, if you have any chance it’s by playing clever. Same goes for Paisami, he’s a little guy who doesn’t really trouble the likes of De Allende and Jordie Barrett. I’d rather play Carter Gordon at 12 and put Michael Lynagh’s boy at 10. That way you get a BMT type goalkicker at 10 and a playmaker at 12. Anyways, just my two cents as a Bok supporter.
14 Go to commentsThanks Brett, love your articles which are alway pertinent. It’s a difficult topic trying to have a panel adjudicating consistently penalties for red card issues. Many of the mitigating reasons raised are judged subjectively, hence the different outcomes. How to take away subjective opinions?
11 Go to comments