Jarome Luai and Brian To’o will be heroes when they join the Chiefs in 2028, but they broke PNG hearts on Saturday as Samoa scored 50 unanswered points in the second half to set up a blockbuster World Cup showdown next week.
Samoa continued their perfect start with an ominous 64-6 victory in Port Moresby thanks to a couple of tries and two assists to Sua Fa’alogo who is having a mighty start to the tournament.
The diminutive winger scored four tries off the bench last week and took just one minute to open the scoring in this one, with Fa’alogo grabbing the first of the second half as Samoa kicked clear.
The arrival of two new teams means November 1 will see a lot of musical chairs with contracts, and To’o got it going early when he played the piano after he ducked under the defence to score a second-half try.
The winger had earlier gone high to bat back a kick for Stephen Crichton to score, while Chief #001 Luai put up the kick that led to Fa’alogo grabbing his second.
The two key signings have been hugely popular all week in the region and will be integral when the Chiefs enter the competition, but the irony is they played a key role in ending the Kumuls’ semi-final hopes.
They weren’t the chief destroyers with Spencer Leniu changing the game when he entered the fray with a try and another one disallowed, while Francis Manuleleua might be the find of 2026 after another enormous performance.
The rising Knights star nearly scored from the opening play of the contest and eventually got over the line to go with 210 metres.
It sets up a Test for the ages with Samoa and Tonga to rock Sydney’s west next Sunday in what could be one of the biggest games in rugby league history.
CLONE WARS
There’s only one Jarome Luai, but Gairo Voro has been dubbed his clone given the striking similarities with the long hair, headgear and fancy footwork.
The two were adversaries on Saturday and came together a few times, including an explosive incident just before half-time when the PNG playmaker was carried back 15 metres by several defenders, including Luai.
Voro ended up in a dangerous position which saw players from both teams rush in, with the referee calling in the two captains to calm things down.
But Luai was more interested in making sure the youngster was OK after the heavy hit which was a nice touch in such a big game.
PLENTY TO WORK ON
It was a big week for the Chiefs who revealed their logo and inaugural jerseys.
But the good times didn’t lead to success on the field for the Kumuls who were blown off the park in the second half.
PNG’s discipline let them down badly with Robert Derby sent to the sin bin for taking out Fa’alogo, and it took its toll defensively with Samoa racing in four tries in as many minutes with the winger off the field.
Fa’alogo and Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow destroyed them with the numerical advantage, with the unselfish Chanel Harris-Tavita throwing a pass to Ronald Volkman to give him an early Christmas present.
They had some nice moments in the first half with Dudley Dotoi making a huge break, but Derby couldn’t ground a grubber a couple of plays later.
There was a fantastic crowd and a wonderful atmosphere which will only intensify when the Chiefs come in, but the heavy loss shows the local talent is still a couple of steps behind the top players in the NRL.
There is also concern for veteran forward Jack de Belin who suffered a rib injury in the first half.
Originally published as Jarome Luai and Brian To’o break PNG hearts as Samoa’s speedsters run riot in terrifying second half