Rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 11 ...

is a popular

team sport A team sport includes any sport where individuals are organized into opposing teams which compete to win or cooperate to entertain their audience. Team members act together towards a shared objective. This can be done in a number of ways s ...

played in

Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...

History

The Tongan national team was formed to enter the 1986

Pacific Cup The Pacific Cup was a rugby league football competition for national teams from the Pacific region. History The Pacific Cup was started in 1975 by Keith Gittoes of the New South Wales Rugby League.Super League war The Super League war was a commercial competition between the Australian Rugby League (ARL) and the Australian Super League to establish pre-eminence in professional rugby league competition in Australia and New Zealand in the mid-1990s. Super ...

, Tonga joined the News Corp-backed Super League in June 1995.

Competitions

The Tongan Rugby League competition comprises 12 teams in the first division, and 7 in the second. Following the

2017 Rugby League World Cup The 2017 Rugby League World Cup was the fifteenth staging of the Rugby League World Cup tournament and took place in Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea between 27 October and 2 December 2017. The tournament featured the national teams ...

, the competition was renamed the

Jason Taumalolo Vaai "Jason" Taumalolo (born 31 May 1993) is a professional rugby league footballer who captains and plays as a or forward for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL. He has played for Tonga and New Zealand at international level. Taumalol ...

Cup. Age-restricted competitions were also named for

Manu Vatuvei Manu Mapuhola Mafi-Vatuvei (born 4 March 1986), also known by the nickname "The Beast", is a New Zealand former professional rugby league footballer and convicted methamphetamine importer who was both a Tonga and New Zealand international repres ...

Solomone Kata Solomone Kata (born 3 December 1994) is a Tongan professional dual-code rugby player who plays as a wing for Gallagher Premiership club Leicester Tigers and the Tonga national team. Prior to rugby union, Kata played rugby league for the Ne ...

Konrad Hurrell Konileti "Konrad" Hurrell (born 5 August 1991) is a Tongan professional rugby league footballer who plays as a for St Helens in the Super League and Tonga at international level. He previously played for the New Zealand Warriors and the G ...

and

Tuimoala Lolohea Tuimoala Lolohea (born 23 January 1995) is a professional rugby league footballer who plays as a or for the Huddersfield Giants in the Betfred Super League. He has played for both New Zealand and Tonga at international level. Lolohea previou ...

. The 12 teams in the first division are: *Capital Warriors *Fuekafa Rabbitohs *Ha'akame Broncos *Ha'ateiho Spartans *Halaloto Green Barbarians *Havelu Bulldogs *Kolomotu'a Eagles *Lapaha Knights *Lavengamalie Hurricanes *Mu'a Saints *Nakolo Raiders *Silapeluua Crusaders *Vaini Doves A The 7 teams in the second division are: *Ha'ateiho Crusaders *Hihifo Rovers *Houma Tigers *Kolomu'a Warriors *Puke-Hofa Turtles *Silapeluua Crusaders *Vaini Doves B

Participation

First and Second Division

There are 10 first division sides in the Global Insurance Cup and there are 9 in the second division. Only Kolomu'a Warriors (One of two Nuku'alofa Clubs) and the Vaini Doves have first and second division sides. The First Division sides have been, to a greater extent, regular participants in the competition since the inception of League in 1988. Those sides are Kolomu'a, Vaini, Mu'a Saints, Silapeluua (Ha'ateiho) Crusaders, Lapaha Knights, Ha'akame Broncos, Hihifo Rovers, Havelu Bulldogs, Halaloto Barbarians and Nakolo Raiders. The Second Division consists of a number of clubs that have participated infrequently over a number of years. However, regulars in the Second Division are Fatumu, Ha'ateiho Spartans and Ngalukilo Stormers. The most recent competition (2013) was won by the Kolomua Warriors who defeated the Ha'akame Broncos in the grand final at Teufaiva Stadium in front of approximately 2 000 spectators.

School Competition

Secondary Schools Competition started in 2007 with 5 teams in the under 18s competition and 8 teams in the Under 16s. Takuilau High School won the Under 18s competition and Liahona High School won the Under 16s competition. It is the largest number of teams and players participating in rugby league in Tongan history, with the National Schools Committee starting the Under 12s, Under 14s and Under 15s in 2008. In 2013 the Secondary Schools Competition featured 8 schools with teams competing in Under 13s, Under 15s, Under 17's and Open's competitions. Tupou High School finished open age champions with Tonga College winning the U17's and Tupou College winning the Under 15's and U13's competition. Primary school rugby league was also introduced with Maufanga/Fanga and ACTS Community School winning the inaugural tournaments. TNRL estimate that there are roughly 1,500 players playing rugby league in Tonga for 2007.TNRL.com
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National teams

The men's national team was formed in 1986 to enter the 1986

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The Great Hanshin earthquake str ...

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from S ...

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...

, and

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...

). They achieved their best result as semi-finalists in 2017. The women's national team was formed in 2003 for the 2003 Women's Rugby League World Cup. They competed at their second World Cup in

References

External links

* {{Rugby League Playing Nations links