Tonga

The series resumes on Saturday after an extended seven week break over the Christmas and New Year period.

Fiji are not taking recent form for granted as they attempt to defend their Hamilton title.

They defeated reigning series champions South Africa and current leaders the United States en-route to the Cape Town title last year, to climb to third in the overall standings.

Despite winning the inaugural Hamilton event last year, coach Gareth Baber says Fiji have no right to be complacent.

New Zealand Rugby Chief Executive Steve Tew revealed details of the additional Test match fixture on the All Blacks' 2019 calendar. The match will be played at FMG Stadium, Waikato, on Saturday 7 September. It will be a hit-out for the Rugby World Cup 2019 squad, and it will be the first All Blacks Test match in Hamilton since 2016.

Mate Ma'a Tonga will go head to head with Australia and New Zealand next year in the competition's top tier, with Samoa, Fiji and Papua New Guinea contesting the other group.

Kristian Woolf said a guaranteed slate of top level test matches gives the Pacific Island teams certainty and something to look forward to.

"The organisation and having something that's planned and something that's to plan for in the future is a real positive," he said.

Mr Samarasinha will also be presenting his credentials to the heads of states in the respective countries.

He said he was grateful for the opportunity to meet Pacific leaders at the Pacific Islands Forum summit in Nauru last month.

He said it was the chance to discuss priorities with the leaders and how the UN can deal with them.

He hopes to take something tangible back to the countries as well as have conversations with as many people as possible including representatives of civil society and the media.

Mate Ma'a Tonga will take on the Kangaroos at Auckland's Mount Smart Stadium on October 20th, almost 11 months after a sold out crowd watched the Kingdom pipped by England at the same venue in the World Cup semifinals.

Tonga coach Kristian Woolf and Australia's Mal Meninga have both been supportive of the fixture but confirmation was delayed after New Zealand Rugby League officials expressed concerns the test could overshadow or affect ticket sales for the Kiwis vs Kangaroos clash at the same venue a week earlier.

It's been four years since the last East Asia Pacific qualifier in the game's shortest format when Papua New Guinea went through undefeated.

Shane Deitz said the Vanuatu squad has been working hard in preparation since returning from World Cricket League Four in May.

Two teams will advance to the East Asia Pacific Regional Final and Deitz expects all four will fancy their chances.

It's been nine months since Mate Ma'a Tonga's memorable run to the World Cup semi finals, which included a famous victory over New Zealand in Hamilton.

The Kingdom's request for a rematch against the Kiwis in October was rejected by New Zealand Rugby League, who also vetoed Tonga's desire to host the Kangaroos in Auckland.

Woolf said despite both sides wanting the match to go ahead roadblocks keep getting in the way.

"Our first option was that we wanted to play against New Zealand but it was very clear early on that that was not going to happen," he said.

Cecchin, who disallowed a try that would have given Tonga an upset win, has told The Sydney Morning Herald he was in an Auckland bar when police rang to tell him they had contacted him and several family members that had been targeted.

He was advised not the leave the hotel and told he would be picked up and taken to the airport.

On his return to Australia, he was picked up by the Australian Federal Police.

He also flicked through his phone to discover more than a thousand "vile" attacks, the likes of which he had never encountered across his entire career.

The success of last year's tournament across Australia, Papua New Guinea and New Zealand has opened the door for international games to be showcased in a similar way to the NRL taking clashes to regional areas in Australia throughout 2018.

The annual mid-season Pacific Tests, which have been played since 2013, have been based in Sydney's west for the last five years – an agreement that will continue next season.

The 23 year old played in Queensland's Game One State of Origin defeat against New South Wales earlier this month but will be unavailable for Game Two on Sunday after opting to represent Samoa.

Milford played in Samoa's Pacific Test defeat by England last May but missed the World Cup due to a shoulder injury.

Manly winger Jorge Taufua is set to make his debut for Samoa, having previously represented Tonga, however four former Toa Samoa internationals have switched allegiance to New Zealand ahead of the Kiwis controversial test against England in Denver this weekend.