Rugby League World Cup: Tonga 32-6 Wales - Tonga cruise to win after early scare

Wales had led done Kyle Evans' effort earlier Tonga turned the tables

Tonga enactment 1 ft successful the Rugby League World Cup quarter-finals but were made to enactment hard by a gutsy Wales side.

But aft Daniel Tupou crossed to get Tonga going, 2 speedy tries conscionable earlier half-time from David Fifita and Keaon Koloamatangi enactment them successful charge.

Tonga clicked into cogwheel aft the break, with Tupou completing his hat-trick amid a Tesi Niu try.

A triumph implicit Cook Islands successful their last excavation crippled adjacent week volition corroborate Tonga arsenic Group D winners and a quarter-final crippled against the Group A runners up - apt to beryllium either Samoa oregon France, with hosts England acceptable to apical the radical if they triumph their last lucifer against bottommost broadside Greece.

Wales' hopes, meanwhile, are hanging by a thread having already mislaid their opener to Cook Islands 5 days agone arsenic they proceed to hunt for a archetypal triumph astatine a World Cup since 2000.

To person immoderate accidental of remaining successful this tournament, John Kear's broadside request Papua New Guinea to bushed Cook Islands time nighttime and past negociate to propulsion disconnected a daze effect against PNG successful their last radical brushwood successful Doncaster connected Halloween.

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Kear freshened up his broadside by bringing Gavin Bennion, Kyle Evans, James Olds and Luke Thomas into his 19-man lucifer squad successful spot of Will Evans, Rhodri Lloyd, Mike Butt and the injured Ben Evans - retired of the contention with a pharynx injury.

Tonga welcomed backmost Konrad Hurrell but were again without the injured Will Hopoate and skipper Jason Taumalolo, who is suspended until the last radical game.

Kristian Woolf's broadside were again playing astatine the Totally Wicked Stadium, his home-from-home since 2020 wherever helium coached St Helens to the club's archetypal Challenge Cup successful 13 years positive 3 successive Grand Final victories.

Wales entered Woolf's den arsenic immense underdogs, with their mostly semi-professional excavation of players fronting up to a Mate Ma'a Tonga outfit packed afloat of NRL and Super League talent.

Kasey Badger took complaint of Tonga v Wales to marque past arsenic the archetypal pistillate to referee a men's Rugby League World Cup game

After Tonga laid down a stirring Sipi Tau, Kasey Badger - making past contiguous by becoming the first pistillate to referee a men's Rugby League World Cup game - blew her whistle to statesman what was a archetypal gathering betwixt the 2 nations astatine immoderate level of rugby league.

Wales started sloppily, putting themselves nether unit with mediocre handling and mediocre discipline, but survived and past clicked to transverse the effort enactment archetypal - lone for Dalton Grant to beryllium held up successful the tackle by Talatau Amone and Niu.

But determination was nary denying Kear's broadside erstwhile helping Evans enactment successful a crunching tackle to sound the shot escaped and past scamper distant to the enactment from Ralph's well-timed pass, with Matty Fozard converting.

Evans is simply a caller person to league from union, with conscionable 3 games for Wakefield Trinity nether his belt, but underlined his imaginable successful the 13-man codification with a high-class show against high-class opposition.

Tonga, stung, soon replied to enactment Daniel Tupou implicit connected the near with a swift transition of passes from a scrum, but Tuimoala Lolohea missed the tricky footwear astatine goal.

Woolf's broadside should person taken the pb erstwhile Sione Katoa broke done connected the right, but the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks helping juggled the walk earlier letting the shot gaffe done his grasp.

Wales enactment their bodies connected the enactment arsenic Tonga upped their intensity, but conceded 2 tries successful the past minutes earlier half-time that turned the lucifer connected its head.

First Fifita worked a mismatch against Ollie Olds to conscionable interruption the whitewash, earlier Koloamatangi seized connected a disjointed antiaircraft enactment to spell over.

Lolohea kicked some goals to springiness Tonga a 16-6 vantage astatine half-time.

Niu showed stepping prowess and powerfulness to interruption Wales' sliding defence for the 2nd half's opening effort and Tonga's 4th of the nighttime - with Lolohea again connected people with the kick.

Joe Burke did brilliantly to get 2 hands nether the shot arsenic Lolohea tried to dot down, but it was lone a impermanent reprieve arsenic Wales ran retired of numbers connected their close to let Tupou successful for his 2nd of the night.

A smudge of sideline whitewash prevented Toluta'u Koula conjuring what would person been a sensational effort for Lolohea, the interchange diving to scoop a footwear backmost into the arms of his waiting half-back - the video referee's no-try determination attracting good-natured boos from the crowd,.

But arsenic Wales tired, pridefulness and bravery were not capable to support Tonga astatine bay and Tupou completed his hat-trick, with Siosifa Talakai taking implicit kicking duties to adhd a further 2 points.

An obstruction denied Tupou a fourth, but the Sydney Roosters winger had already secured his subordinate of the lucifer award.

Wales suffered further disappointment with a enarthrosis wounded to Ollie Olds that could perchance regularisation the stand-off retired of adjacent week's Papua New Guinea showdown.

Tonga: 22. Tesi Niu, 2. Daniel Tupou, 3. Siosifa Talakai, 23. Konrad Hurrell, 5. Sione Katoa, 6. Talatau Amone, 7. Tuimoala Lolohea, 8. Addin Fonua-Blake, 14. Soni Luke, 17. Moeaki Fotuaika, 11. Felise Kaufusi, 12. Keaon Koloamatangi, 10. Sio Siua Taukeiaho (capt).

Interchanges: 16. Tevita Tatola, 18. David Fifita, 20. Toluta'u Koula, 21. Ben Murdoch-Masila.

Wales: 1. Caleb Aekins, 22. Kyle Evans, 5. Dalton Grant, 6. Elliot Kear (capt), 2. Rhys Williams, 14. Ollie Olds, 7. Josh Ralph, 8. Anthony Walker, 9. Matty Fozard, 24. Gavin Bennion, 12. Chester Butler, 17. Bailey Antrobus, 16. Joe Burke.

Interchanges: 10. Dan Fleming, 15. Curtis Davies, 21. Tom Hopkins, 18. Connor Davies.