Pacific Championships - Week 2 Watchlist

Week 1 of the Pacific Championships produced the goods, highlighted by the 33,196 people who turned up at Suncorp Stadium on Friday night - the largest-ever crowd for a match involving Tonga. A day later, Papua New Guinea v Fiji Bati generated a reach of 839,000 viewers on free-to-air, outperforming the second Bledisloe Cup match.

It further proves the appetite for international rugby league as we introduce the New Zealand Kiwis and Cook Islands Aitu to the mix for Week 2.

Tom Trbojevic roaming

A roaming Tom Trbojevic is nothing new in representative footy, whether it be State of Origin or international rugby league. Earning his place in the team as a fullback but lining up in the centres, he’s often given a license to roam across the field as he sees fit.

He did so a handful of times in Week 1 of the Pacific Championships, but I think we might see more of it against the Kiwis in Week 2.

As cohesion develops, we should see more consistency in the spine. As consistency grows in the spine, Trbojevic can be more confident in moving around the field and anticipating the upcoming action.

If we look back to Week 1, we can get an idea of what Trbojevic is looking for and what needs to happen for him to move out of the right channel.

He pushes up in support down the shortside following Cameron Murray’s half break, but when Mitchell Moses plays to Mitch Barnett - who is able to stand in the tackle and engage three defenders - Trbojevic is on his bike.

An important element to consider is Dylan Edwards. He’s a fairly right-side-heavy player, but his positioning down that side of the field here is key to Trbojevic being able to move. He’s holding numbers down the shortside, which allows Trbojevic to flip and create the extra number on the long side.

With it, he’s able to skip to the outside of the man three-in to put Tabuai-Fidow on the outside of Paul Alamoti two-in.

The Hammer is a freak. He was unlucky not to score another try through pure speed and strength. It’s always “give him early ball” when it comes to demanding centres step up, but late ball with players in motion is the way with Tabuai-Fidow. Create an inch of space, and he will run it a mile.

Trbojevic is a better ball player than Edwards and holds more gravity on a long shift like this one. He puts Alamoti on his heels for just long enough for Tabuai-Fidow to have the upper hand when receiving the ball.

A lot of the Kangaroos’ most dangerous actions came through their centres last week. It’s likely we will see similar in Week 2, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Tabuai-Fidow feature on the right edge once or twice throughout the 80 minutes.

Looking over the Cook Islands Kuki’s team list

21. Alex Glenn

The former Kiwi international and two-game Kuki hasn’t played since Round 25 of the NRL season in 2021 but finds himself on the teamsheet this week as the Cook Islands take on Fiji Bati.

The Kuki’s have had to go searching to fill the team for the Pacific Championships. A Brad Takairangi/Esan Marsters halves pairing is a must-watch. To start with, anyway. Tepai Moeroa, Davvy Moale, Zane Tetevano and Makahesi Makatoa are all names a lot of footy fans will recognise.

As a league freak, I catch a lot of the other grades around the world, so I can offer some insight into a few of the more unknown players named in the 17.

Esom Ioka is a fullback/centre who has spent the last two years in the Queensland Cup with the Western Clydesdales. He’s a livewire with the ball. You might remember him scoring this banger against the Papua New Guinea Hunters last year:

Reubenn Rennie is a powerful centre playing in the RFL Championship for Toulouse Olympique at the moment. He’s strong through the legs for anybody trying to tackle him low and isn’t afraid to put a shot on in defence. He’s a handy replacement for Kayal Iro.

Somebody is going to make the Brandon Smith comparison if Rua Ngaitikaura is presented with one marker inside the opposition 10 metres. He’s scooping the ball and pin-balling his way to the line.

Reuben Porter featured eight times for the Wests Tigers in the NRL this year, so his dangerous offload will be on the Fiji Bati tip sheet. It felt for a long time like Pride Petterson-Robati would find himself in first grade one day, but at 29 years old, that’s not likely to happen. Nonetheless, he’s a reserve grade veteran these days, along with four appearances for the Cook Islands. He topped the tackle count for the Cook Islands in both games last year and will be a crucial figure through the middle on both sides of the ball.

Rhys Dakin is a hard-running middle from the Newtown Jets. He only knows one direction with the ball in his hands. Meanwhile, Malachi Morgan will take a similar approach on the edge as a big body on the wing.

What the Kuki’s lack in bonafide NRL talent, they make up for in heart. They keep coming back despite recent results and will be in search of their first win since beating Wales in the 2021 Rugby League World Cup.

Favourite footy moments brought to life

One more Shaun Johnson Experience

Shaun Johnson can’t improve on his last match in the NRL, can he?

With an unexpected return to international rugby league, Johnson has the chance to go out on another high by leading an under-strength New Zealand Kiwis team to back-to-back Pacific Championships titles.

The last pass of his NRL career is one Warriors fans will never forget.

He touched on it during the post-match press conference before starting to put me out of business by breaking it down on his podcast, Play on Sports Show. He also featured on The Play Fearless Podcast and spoke about the moment again.

A common theme when discussing that game, and the best games he has played in recent years, was flow—getting into a groove. There was no hesitation in that game-winning play at Shark Park. He knew where he wanted to get to on the field and what he was going to do next before getting there.

That flow is going to be massively important for the Kiwis in the next three weeks.

Retired two weeks ago, he’s now the leading man in a spine with a debutant at fullback, a fullback at five-eighth, and a debutant at hooker who spent his last seven games of the NRL season at halfback. When he speaks on the field, they will listen.

Johnson has already given us one fairytale finish this year. Another, in the black jersey he has played so well in before, would be a fitting end to the international rugby league calendar.