Tonga talent Rob Toia is daring to dream of a perfect finish to his season which would see his tiny nation hold aloft this year’s IRL World Cup trophy.
After starring in Tonga’s pulsating 20-18 win over Samoa, Toia was soaking in the feeling of beating their island rivals for the first time since 2018 and knew he had made the right call to stay with the red army.
Rob Toia named player of the match against Samoa
Coming off a premiership season with the Roosters, Toia – who is also eligible for New Zealand and Australia – was in hot demand for the international tournament.
“To be honest, it wasn't as easy as I wanted it to be, but in the end, I was so happy with my decision and moments like these, it's a no-brainer,” said Toia, who made his Test debut with Tonga in the 2025 Pacific Championships.
“(We know) how much it means to those people and it's so crazy how much they go above and beyond just to watch us and support us.
“That's probably up there with one of my most cherished wins.
Toia is special on both sides of the ball
“It's so crazy to get that win and especially after last year's campaign and them beating us and the way they did it to us as well...
“We kind of had a point to prove, so that was a special win.
“Woolfy touched on that... and he wants us to celebrate these wins because we hadn't beaten them since 2018.
“We have to celebrate these wins, this is like an Origin feeling for us."
Now preparing for their semi-final against New Zealand, Toia said he was motivated to put right Tonga’s poor international campaign last year.
“Last year, I think we learnt our lesson in preparation,” Toia said.
“I feel like this year, the boys are really switched on in our preparation and how we train, where last year I feel like we – because we knew we had a good team last year – we kind of just used the team list to our advantage and we just kind of relaxed a bit.
“Whereas this year, I feel like we've really stepped in that that direction where, even though we're a good team (on paper), we start by preparing well and then showcase it on game day.
“The belief within the group's so high, so we feel like we can win the competition.
“Within us, the belief's an all-time high, so I think that's all that matters.”
To finish the year by becoming the first Tier 2 nation to win the tournament was another motivating factor that would cap an incredible season for the Dally M Centre of the Year.
“For it to be the last thing to tick off this year as well, that would be so much special,” Toia said.
“I feel like it's a pretty hard thing to do considering the year, it's a long year with Origin and then with club footy as well, so to do this at the end of the year, this would mean so much.”
Match: New Zealand v Tonga
Semi Final -
home Team
New Zealand
2nd Position
away Team
Tonga
Venue: McDonald Jones Stadium, Newcastle
- Tickets are currently on sale for both IRL Rugby League World Cup semi-finals via rlwc2026.com.
