NRL commentators Greg Alexander and Jimmy Smith have pointed out a potential ‘advantage’ for Australia and New Zealand at the Rugby League World Cup after Tonga’s ‘unfair’ draw raised eyebrows. Kevin Walters’ Kangaroos side will take on New Zealand in the World Cup opener this Thursday with the two host nations the favourites.
However, Tonga, Samoa and England all possess strong teams. Samoa made the last World Cup final, while Tonga’s side is stacked with top quality NRL talent with the likes of Addin Fonua-Blake, Haumole Olakau’atu and Isaiya Katoa leading the side out.
But Penrith Panthers legend Alexander pointed out the teams from Pool B and C have a much harder task of winning the competition due to the structure. And this is especially relevant for Tonga. Australia and New Zealand are in Pool A with the two holding the highest winning percentage of top nations.
The other two teams in this group are Fiji and Cook Islands, which gives the top two nations in the tournament a big chance of progressing to the semis. But the structure of the groups means only two teams will progress from Pool B and C combined.
Addin Fonua-Blake (pictured far left) will lead Tonga in a tough group at the Rugby League World Cup. (Photo by IZHAR KHAN / AFP via Getty Images)
While the teams in Pool A play each other, those in B play against C and vice versa. This is because there are four teams in Pool A but only three in each of B and C.
Fifth-ranked Tonga have to play England in the first pool game, Lebanon second and finish with Samoa at CommBank Stadium. Samoa will play France, PNG and Tonga, but avoid a tough game against England. This means Tonga has the hardest path to the semi-final with the nation likely needing to defeat both England and Samoa to progress.
The system effectively lumps Pool B and C into one six-team pool, but only the top two progress. It means one of Tonga, Samoa or England won’t make it to the final four.
“I was going through the draw…someone has got an advantage, or it’s the disadvantage which is Tonga,” Alexander said on SEN radio on Tuesday. “They play England in the first game, they then play Samoa in their last game.”
Smith admitted it would be a frustrating scenario for Tonga when looking at the draw. “Kristian Woolf wouldn’t be too happy with that,” Smith added.
Alexander said: “That makes England v Tonga crucial. It’s gone from 16 teams to 10…however, I don’t know how you work it. But Tonga have to play Samoa and England.” Smith added: “It’s not fair from that point of view.”
Australia and New Zealand will also play one more ‘minnow’ nation compared to Tonga, which gives both of them an opportunity to rest players if they feel comfortable. And fans were also left surprised at the tournament’s new structure.
Pools for Rugby League World Cup:
Pool A – Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Cook Islands
Pool B – England, Samoa Lebanon
Pool C – Tonga, PNG, France
Tonga ready for the Rugby league World Cup
While Tonga might face the toughest path to the semi-final they aren’t going in down on confidence. Tonga possess one of the best squads at the tournament with many tipping them to cause an upset this year. And Woolf told SEN radio he has an idea of who will make up his 17 in action-packed squad.
“That’s something what gives me real confidence for year. We have so many guys who have played well for their clubs and so many guys who have been involved in, and played really well, in the finals series. If I look at that, compared to previous years, that puts us in a really good position,” he said on SEN.
Tonga will be heading into the Rugby League World Cup as one of the favourites. (Photo by Hannah Peters/Getty Images)