Tonga - Ikale Tahi

Team Preview

Coach:
Kutusi Fielea

Previous World Cups:
1987, 1995, 1999, 2003

Best Performance:
Pool Stage 1987, 1995, 1999, 2003

Played:
13 - 2 wins, 11 losses

World Ranking:
No.14

Fixtures:
v USA, Montpellier, September 12
v Samoa, Montpellier, September 16
v South Africa, Lens, September 22
v England, Paris, September 28

Facts:
1. The team is nicknamed 'Ikale Tahi' (Sea Eagles).
2. Tonga was the opponent in one of the competition's lowest moments in 1995 when Ivory Coast winger Max Brito sustained an injury which left him in a wheelchair.
3. Tonga starts matches with a war dance called Kailao or the 'Sipi Tau'.
4. The IRB made Tonga one of nine 'invited' nations in the inaugural tournament.
5. The Pacific Islanders won their first international match, beating Fiji 9-6, in 1924.

Key Players:

If Tonga is going to make any impression at this year's rugby World Cup then it is going to need all of its top players performing at the highest level - and captain Nili Latu is no exception.

'The Tongan Torpedo', as he is known, has an amazing record for his national side and has more than fulfilled the faith shown in him by boss Quddus Fielea.

Latu, a dynamic openside flanker, was handed his international debut against Japan a mere 12 months ago, but in only his third Test was made captain by Fielea for Tonga's clash against the Junior All Blacks.

At 25 he now looks like captaining his country in what will be his first World Cup when Tonga kicks off its campaign against the USA in Montpellier on September 12.

Latu is well known for his ball-scavenging qualities but it is his hunger for hard work which really sets him apart from the pack and highlights his qualities as captain.

Nevertheless, he so nearly fell victim to one of Tonga's main casualties - player export.

Latu was born in Tongatapu, but like so many island players such as the legendary Jonah Lomu, opted to play for the mighty New Zealand.

As a youngster he was a NZ secondary schools player before even going on to represent the All Blacks at Under-19 level.

In 2002 Latu signed for Air New Zealand Cup team Bay of Plenty and soon started to impress with a series of fearless displays which complimented the team's determined play.

And three years later he announced himself on a bigger stage after being drafted by Super 14 giants the Chiefs.

By now Latu was plying his trade in the largest rugby union championship in the southern hemisphere and earning rave reviews back home, enough to earn him his first international call-up for Tonga and opt not to represent the All Blacks at senior level.

The gutsy forward was enjoying immense success on the field and in 2006 made the Super 14 switch to Wellington-based side the Hurricanes.

After leaving Bay of Plenty in the same year, Steamers captain Ben Castle was full of praise for Latu's achievements at the club, he saying: "Nili is an outstanding footballer who can turn nothing into something and the something he creates might be a big tackle, a turnover or a break through the middle. He's an awesome team man and an awesome player."

However, since the move to the Westpac Stadium, opportunities have been limited and Latu is mostly used in a substitute's role.

Nevertheless, in November last year he was selected to play for the Pacific Islanders, an elite team consisting purely of players from Fiji, Samoa and Tonga, on their tour of Great Britain and Ireland.

But with the Tongan national sport in crisis in Latu's homeland, he turned his attention to May's IRB Pacific Nations Cup and the opportunity to help Tonga prepare for the World Cup in France.

The Pacific competition was seen by Latu as a 'building stage towards our preparations for the World Cup'.

However, after a disappointing campaign which included an embarrassing 20-17 defeat at the hands of Japan, the nation's preparations are in disarray.

Only a 21-15 win over Fiji, its first victory of 2007, has given realists any hope of the Tongan side posing any threat in Pool A.

Despite the troubles, Latu is not the only shining light in a squad capable of causing upsets and providing brief respite to the problems dividing the country's national sport.

Aleki Lutui, a hard-hitting hooker, and Tevita Taumoepeau, a powerful prop, both ply their trade in the Guinness Premiership for Worcester Warriors and are experienced internationals with around 50 caps between them.

Soane Tonga'uiha (prop for Northampton Saints), Tonga Lea'aetoa (prop for London Irish), Chris Hala'ufia (back row for Harlequins) and Josh Taumalolo (centre for Bristol) are a select few also likely to make the Ikale Tahi (Sea Eagles) squad.

Taufa'ao Filise (prop) and Maama Molitika (back row, both for Cardiff Blues) and Viliami Vaki (flanker for Perpignan) will also be well-known to fans of European rugby and all possess a wealth of Heineken Cup experience.

If Tonga is to prove itself as a top-10 rugby playing nation then Latu will have to lead his team from the front at the World Cup.

The team captain will only too readily admit his side has come in for its fair share of criticism having only registered one victory so far this year.

But what better way to silence those critics than to spring a surprise against Pool A opponents and world champion England, world No.3 South Africa or arch-rival Samoa?

Only then will the buzz return to a sport that has lost its way in one of the world's most treasured rugby nations.