Local Victorian juniors Young Tonumaipea and Sua Fa’alago have both been named in the Samoa’s squad to take on Australia and New Zealand in the tournament starting later this month.
Tonumaipea returns to the fold for Samoa after previously representing them between 2014-2017, where he made five appearances, which included four games at fullback for the side during their 2017 World Cup campaign.
Having both played for local Melbourne club Northern Thunder, Tonumaipea is joined by the inclusion of Fa’alago who joins the squad for the first time despite only playing the singular NRL game.
The exciting fullback’s selection comes after impressive perfomances for the Sunshine Coast Falcons in the HostPlus Cup this season as well as his memorable two-try performance on debut against the Brisbane Broncos in Round 27.
2023 Pacific Championships Schedule
Week One – October 14-15
Australia v Samoa (men) at Queensland Country Bank Stadium, Townsville
Australia v New Zealand (women) at Queensland Country Bank Stadium Townsville
PNG v Cook Islands (men) at Santos Stadium, Port Moresby
Samoa v Fiji (women) at Santos Stadium, Port Moresby
Week Two – October 21-22
New Zealand v Samoa (men) at Eden Park, Auckland
New Zealand v Tonga (women) at Eden Park, Auckland
Fiji v Cook Islands (men) at Santos Stadium, Port Moresby
PNG v Cook Islands (women) at Santos Stadium, Port Moresby
Week Three – October 28-29
Australia v New Zealand (men) at AAMI Park, Melbourne
Australia v New Zealand (women) at AAMI Park, Melbourne
PNG v Fiji (men) at Santos Stadium, Port Moresby
Week Four – November 4-5
The Final of the men’s Pacific Cup tournament on November 4 in Hamilton, New Zealand
The Final of the men’s Pacific Bowl tournament on November 5 at Santos Stadium, Port Moresby
