Tonga go down to the Kangaroos 34-16, The All Blacks touch down in Tokyo ahead of their northern tour and we catch up with Skateboarding sensation Lenard Tajeda who has one eye on the 2020 Tokyo Olympics
Amazing crowd but sorry, that game was a dud.
The scenes at Mt Smart Stadium on Saturday night will live with me forever. The game won't.
Thanks for the amazing experience Tonga, but you were set up to fail on the field and sadly couldn't rise above the hurdles.
Anyonewho knows league history can only fear that the Tongan revolution will end up as a fizzer in the face of Australia's iron grip.
I desperately hope not, but this big loss in the first ever Tonga-Australia test won't help their cause in winning credibility with the self-centred NRL.
Tonga crashed on first half errors. A final 34 - 16 scoreline would have been okay if it had been a close contest for most of the time. But the game was over with the anthem tears barely dry on captain Sika Manu's face. That's not a great sports experience.
General view of Mt Smart. Tonga v Australia. International Rugby League test match. Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland, New Zealand. Photo www.Photosport.nz
What I'll remember most is the sea of red at Mt Smart, emotional build-up and amazing crowd singing during the third quarter which coincided with Tonga's best period on the field. That, and the unusual business of keeping an eye out for eye welfare with flag sticks being poked in all directions.
As a country, we have a reputation for not enjoying ourselves enough at big sporting occasions but that's a bit of a stereotype. We've had many wildly vibrant crowd situations in league, football and cricket. The mystery is why our big rugby union crowds are so buttoned down.
The Tongan supporters don't do buttoned down, but their team couldn't respond against the clinical Aussies, whose fullback James Tedesco in particular was outstanding.
Tonga have terrific forwards, and the Broncos' Tevita Pangai Junior is a superstar in the making. And for all of his power running, the way big Jason Taumalolo stooped to collect a dangerous grubber kick near his posts was a reminder of what tremendous athletes play the game these days.
Taumalolo's amazing recovery of the ball was a match highlight, but Tonga needed a few more of them.
Their backs were outgunned and couldn't hold formations on defence,and little wonder considering the respective build-ups.
Tonga were set up to fail, being thrown together against an Aussie side which honed its game against the Kiwis seven days earlier.
Tom Trbojevic from Australia scores, Tonga v Australia. International Rugby League test match. Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland, New Zealand. Photo / Photosport.co.nz
A Tongan victory would have opened up a Pandora's box for the Aussies, who are obsessed with State of Origin and the NRL competition at everything else's expense.
The Kangaroos' comprehensive win allows Australia to shove some tricky questions back in the container, making them better able to resume normal service.
To put it another way, if Australia decide they want Pangai Junior down the line, will he be able to resist, will he be able to keep the Taumalolo-inspired Tongan revolution going?
The 22-year-old Pangai Junior made a big call at a young age, committing to Tonga and thus missing potential State of Origin and Kangaroos selection. But he's already described State of O as the pinnacle of league.
Fans showing support during the International Test match between Tonga and Australia at Mount Smart Stadium on October 20, 2018 in Auckland, New Zealand. Photo / Getty Images.
The safe bet is that the New South Wales-born giant will end up in green and gold.
And there-in lies the true state of international rugby league, a whirlpool of pragmatism and split loyalties run by a desperate and duplicitous superpower.
Even the extraordinary Tongan support will be powerless against that.
