Tonga coach warns Ireland they are 'here to really fire some shots'

Assistant coach Tyler Bleyendaal says Tonga intend to “really fire some shots” at the Rugby World Cup and warned Ireland’s “well-oiled machine” to expect a bruising Pool B encounter in Nantes.

The Pacific islanders, who sit 15th in the Test rankings, launch their campaign at Stade de la Beaujoire on Saturday, having been drawn in arguably the toughest group.

Bleyendaal is familiar with many of Andy Farrell’s squad due to a five-year stint with Munster during his playing days.

“One of the big challenges is how together they are, they’ve played a lot of time together and they’re a pretty well-oiled machine, number one in the world,” said the 33-year-old New Zealander.

“We’re going to have to be quite physical, we’re going to have to win the breakdown battle, the tackle battle and have a really strong set-piece.

“That’s the foundation of our game and that’s what we’re going to have to do on the weekend.”

Tonga also face the might of reigning champions South Africa and Scotland in the coming weeks, in addition to minnows Romania.

“The reality is they’re much better, more complete teams than us because they’re playing at a higher level of competition more often,” continued Bleyendaal.

“That doesn’t change our ambition, our preparation, we’re here to really fire some shots and try and knock over all of the teams in our pool.

“That’s our attitude but we’re not delusional to the challenge we face, that’s for sure. We’re excited for the challenge.”