The 2023 Tonga rugby league tour of England was a three-match tour by the Tonga national rugby league team to England in October and November 2023.[1][2]
| 2023 Tonga rugby league tour of England | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | 22 October – 4 November 2023 | ||||
| Coach(es) | Kristian Woolf | ||||
| Tour captain(s) | Addin Fonua-Blake | ||||
| Top point scorer(s) | Toluta'u Koula (8) | ||||
| Top try scorer(s) | Toluta'u Koula (2) | ||||
| Summary |
| ||||
| Total |
| ||||
| Opponent |
| ||||
 England |
| ||||
| Tour chronology | |||||
| Previous tour | 2022 | ||||
| Next tour | 2024 | ||||
Background
edit| Official rankings ahead of the tour[3] | |||
| Rank | Change | Team | Pts % |
| 4 |  |
England |
80.00 |
| 5 | |
 Tonga |
56.00 |
The tour was the first by a Pacific island nation to England and the first test match series between the two countries.[4] England and Tonga had only played each other three times previously, twice during the 2006 Federation Shield and during the 2017 Rugby League World Cup Semi Final. All three games were won by England. Tonga however, beat Great Britain during the 2019 Lions tour of New Zealand and Papua New Guinea.[5]
Venues
edit| St Helens | Huddersfield | Leeds |
|---|---|---|
| Totally Wicked Stadium | Kirklees Stadium | Headingley |
| Capacity: 18,000 | Capacity: 24,121 | Capacity: 21,500 |
|
|
|
Squads
editEngland
editThe England squad was announced on 17 October 2023.[6] Morgan Smithies and Josh Thewlis were added on 31 October.[7]
Tonga
editSquad announced on 4 October 2023.[8]
Matches
editFirst test
edit| England
|
22–18 | Tonga
|
|---|---|---|
| Tries: King, Lewis, Johnstone (2) Goals: Lewis (1/1), Smith (2/3) |
1st: 12–12 2nd: 10–6 Report |
Tries: To'a, Frizell, Koula Goals: Katoa (3/4) |
Totally Wicked Stadium, St Helens
Attendance: 12,898[9] Referee: Liam Moore (England) Touch judges: Jonnie Roberts (England), Jack Smith (England) Player of the Match: Mikey Lewis (England) |
| England | Position | Tonga | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Number | Number | Name | |
| Jack Welsby | 1 | FB | 1 | Will Hopoate |
| Tommy Makinson | 2 | WG | 2 | Starford To'a |
| Harry Newman | 3 | CE | 3 | Will Penisini |
| Toby King | 4 | CE | 4 | Moses Suli |
| Tom Johnstone | 5 | WG | 5 | Toluta'u Koula |
| Mikey Lewis | 6 | SO/FE | 6 | Tui Lolohea |
| Harry Smith | 7 | SH/HB | 7 | Isaiya Katoa |
| Tom Burgess | 8 | PR | 8 | Addin Fonua-Blake |
| Daryl Clark | 9 | HK | 9 | Siliva Havili |
| Mike McMeeken | 10 | PF | 10 | Moeaki Fotuaika |
| John Bateman | 11 | SR | 11 | Tyson Frizell |
| Elliott Whitehead | 12 | SR | 12 | Keaon Koloamatangi |
| Victor Radley | 13 | LF/LK | 13 | Felise Kaufusi |
| Danny Walker | 14 | IN | 14 | Dion Teaupa |
| Morgan Knowles | 15 | IN | 15 | Tevita Tatola |
| Matty Lees | 16 | IN | 16 | Haumole Olakau'atu |
| Chris Hill | 17 | IN | 17 | Hame Sele |
| Liam Farrell | 18 | CS | 18 | Eliesa Katoa |
| Shaun Wane | Coach | Kristian Woolf | ||
Second test
edit| England
|
14–4 | Tonga
|
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Ashton (2) Goals: Smith (3/4) |
1st: 12–0 2nd: 2–4 Report |
Tries: Koula |
Kirklees Stadium, Huddersfield
Attendance: 11,210[10] Referee: Jack Smith (England) Touch judges: Chris Kendall (England), Rich Thompson (England) |
| England | Position | Tonga | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Number | Number | Name | |
| Jack Welsby | 1 | FB | 1 | Will Hopoate |
| Matty Ashton | 2 | WG | 2 | Junior Tupou |
| Harry Newman | 3 | CE | 3 | Will Penisini |
| Toby King | 4 | CE | 4 | Moses Suli |
| Tom Johnstone | 5 | WG | 5 | Toluta'u Koula |
| Mikey Lewis | 6 | SO/FE | 6 | Tui Lolohea |
| Harry Smith | 7 | SH/HB | 7 | Isaiya Katoa |
| Tom Burgess | 8 | PR | 8 | Addin Fonua-Blake |
| Daryl Clark | 9 | HK | 9 | Siliva Havili |
| Matty Lees | 10 | PF | 10 | Tevita Tatola |
| John Bateman | 11 | SR | 11 | Tyson Frizell |
| Elliott Whitehead | 12 | SR | 12 | Haumole Olakau'atu |
| Victor Radley | 13 | LF/LK | 13 | Felise Kaufusi |
| Danny Walker | 14 | IN | 14 | Dion Teaupa |
| Liam Farrell | 15 | IN | 15 | Moeaki Fotuaika |
| Chris Hill | 16 | IN | 16 | Keaon Koloamatangi |
| Mike McMeeken | 17 | IN | 17 | Eliesa Katoa |
| Ben Currie | 18 | CS | 18 | Hame Sele |
| Shaun Wane | Coach | Kristian Woolf | ||
Third test
editThe third test match of the series was played at Headingley Stadium as a double header with an England vs Wales women's international test match being played before the men's fixture.[11]
| England
|
26–4 | Tonga
|
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Currie, Ashton, Whitehead, Newman Goals: Smith (5/5) |
1st: 14–0 2nd: 12–4 Report |
Tries: E. Katoa (68') |
Headingley Stadium, Leeds
Attendance: 15,477[12] Referee: Chris Kendall (England) Touch judges: Liam Rush (England), Warren Turley (England) |
| England | Position | Tonga | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Number | Number | Name | |
| Jack Welsby | 1 | FB | 1 | Will Hopoate |
| Tom Johnstone | 2 | WG | 2 | Will Penisini |
| Harry Newman | 3 | CE | 3 | Konrad Hurrell |
| Ben Currie | 4 | CE | 4 | Moses Suli |
| Matty Ashton | 5 | WG | 5 | Toluta'u Koula |
| George Williams | 6 | SO/FE | 6 | Tuimoala Lolohea |
| Harry Smith | 7 | SH/HB | 7 | Isaiya Katoa |
| Tom Burgess | 8 | PR | 8 | Hame Sele |
| Daryl Clark | 9 | HK | 9 | Siliva Havili |
| Matty Lees | 10 | PF | 10 | Felise Kaufusi |
| John Bateman | 11 | SR | 11 | Tyson Frizell |
| Elliot Whitehead | 12 | SR | 12 | Haumole Olakau’atu |
| Robbie Mulhern | 13 | LF/LK | 13 | Keaon Koloamatangi |
| Danny Walker | 14 | IN | 14 | Latu Fainu |
| Tyler Dupree | 15 | IN | 15 | Moeaki Fotuaika |
| Chris Hill | 16 | IN | 16 | Eliesa Katoa |
| Mike McMeeken | 17 | IN | 17 | Siua Wong |
| Shaun Wane | Coach | Kristian Woolf | ||
Broadcasting
editAll three matches of the tour were broadcast live on BBC One, except in Wales where the first two matches of the test series were shown on BBC Two Wales.[13][14]
See also
editNotes
editReferences
edit- ^ "England to host Tonga in maiden Test series". BBC Sport. 28 April 2023. Retrieved 28 April 2023.
- ^ "England to host Tonga in three-match Test series". National Rugby League. 28 April 2023. Retrieved 28 April 2023.
- ^ "SERBIA, PHILIPPINES, WALES BIG MOVERS IN IRL WORLD RANKINGS". 27 July 2023.
- ^ "England to host Tonga in three-game Test series". National Rugby League. April 28, 2023.
- ^ "Great Britain beaten on Test return" – via www.bbc.co.uk.
- ^ "England vs Tonga: Wigan Warriors captain Liam Farrell returns for Test series as Shaun Wane names squad". Sky Sports. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
- ^ "England v Tonga: Hosts 'obsessed' with series clean sweep says head coach Shaun Wane". BBC Sport. 31 October 2023. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
- ^ "Three Super League players named in Tonga squad for England series but big names missing". Yorkshire Post. 4 October 2023. Retrieved 9 October 2023.
- ^ Walker, Callum (22 October 2023). "Attendance revealed for England's Test match against Tonga at St Helens". Total Rugby League.
- ^ Walker, Callum (29 October 2023). "Attendance revealed at England-Tonga clash as rugby league fans call for switch in venue". Total Rugby League.
- ^ "Women's home nations clash confirmed: England to take on Wales at Headingley". www.rugby-league.com. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
- ^ "Men's international: England v Tonga". BBC Sport.
- ^ "England rugby league: BBC TV to show five international matches this autumn". BBC Sport. 8 September 2023. Retrieved 9 September 2023.
- ^ "BBC Sport to broadcast five England international fixtures, including end-of-year Tonga series". LoveRugbyLeague. 8 September 2023. Retrieved 8 September 2023.