Pioneering Tonga forward Jason Taumalolo is hoping the strong connections formed by his squad will help them produce another upset when they face Australia in Brisbane.
Part of the team that stunned the rugby league world when they defeated Australia in Auckland in 2019, Taumalolo said while much has changed in the past five years, he believes they have a “special squad” capable of rattling the Roos.
“They have got a great team, but so do we," Taumalolo said.
“We've only been in camp for a couple of days and things are looking good.
“Although we all play for separate NRL clubs, we seem to gel pretty well, so that's a good sign and hopefully just build on that and go take it to Friday night's game.
“I have been in the Tonga team for a while and watching a few of these guys come through as juniors and eventually hitting where they are now.
“Paul Alamoti, he's had a great season.
“He's been up-and-coming and I think this season he's really broken out.
“And Issy [Isaiya] Katoa too, he's been great, he's built on that 2021 World Cup.
“What he's done at the Dolphins has been immense, so hopefully he can bring that to national level and he's got a big pack to lead around. I'm sure he'll do a good job of it.
“But a lot of good memories from that 2019, especially back in Auckland the crowd, the atmosphere, made it a lot more special.
“That was a special team that we had back in 2019.
“We have an even special group here at camp at the moment they can do special things too.
“We know what that 2019 team was capable of and I'm happy to see what the 2024 squad is capable of too.”
While Taumalolo was proud of the development of the players in the Tonga squad, he was also wary of what the Australian side could produce, especially with Cowboys teammates Tom Dearden and Reuben Cotter coming at him.
“I've been at the club for a long time and this will be the first time we get to play against each other," he said.
“So looking forward to seeing how it goes.
“But you can be sure Rubes and Tommy will give there 110 per cent like they always do every game and it makes it a great competition.
“Tommy's always going to give 110 per cent, we can always try and out-compete him, but that's never the case with Tommy, he's a great player and whether he's defending or attacking, he's doing everything full on.
“For us to contain him, we've just got to hope he's not gelled too much with the team and hopefully drops a few balls.
“But it's great to see him debut, he's had a great season.
“He's played really well for Queensland and he deserves to be there in the Australian squad.
“It's not just a given just to be an Australian team, but to perform a State of Origin level and to get that Australian jersey for them, I'm sure they're proud and you know, I'm surely proud as an old fella watching them play too.”
This Friday’s match marks the first time Tonga have had the opportunity to play Australia since that famous day in 2019, with Taumalolo also looking forward to seeing what the atmosphere would be for the men’s tournament opener in Brisbane.
“We haven't played in, in Australia or New Zealand for a very long time for a few years, to be honest and to see the warm welcome that we got on Sunday was always great to see," he said.
“We had fan day on Sunday out at Marsden and it was a great turnout, so we're looking forward to seeing what happens on Friday and hopefully a massive red sea turnout."
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