Tonga’s ‘Ikale Tahi and the Manu Samoa meet on Saturday, July 1 at Teufaiva Outdoor Stadium, in what should be a tough match.

Manu Samoa captain David Lemi and ‘Ikale Tahi captain Siale Piutau met up for a photo shoot at the Ha’amonga in Niutoua this morning, June 30.

Lemi told Matangi Tonga that Manu Samoa’s preparations have been good so far.

He said it’s been a while since he played in Tonga, the last time was a test match in 2008. "A lot has changed now, and its good to be in Tonga again," he said.

"It is going to be a tough and good test match for both sides, especially because the Tongan people have waited a long nine-years to have a test match in Tonga again. We are looking forward to it, and it's good for us to come and play the ‘Ikale Tahi in Tonga, their homeland.”

He said this competition is challenging as it is also the qualification for the next World Cup. "I think both teams will want to win so we will give it our best shot tomorrow.” 

Confident

At the same time, 'Ikale Tahi captain Piutau said their preparation this week has been awesome because they have been training hard, and had a week together to prepare.

"There was a lot more time to get things organized and get our systems in place. We are going into this game pretty confident of the work that we have done."

Piutau was also happy they are playing in Tonga after nine-years since there is a lot of excitement and for a lot of the players it comes with the pressure of being at home.

"Hopefully we can turn that around and use that to our advantage tomorrow.”

He said it’s their first time to play in Tonga for a lot of them.

"It’s one of those things that you put down as part of your career goal to obviously play a test here at home. For a lot of us we are going to be able to tick that box," he said.

"We understand the importance of the two games against Samoa and Fiji next week because it is not just for this campaign but also for the future of those obviously coming after us," he said.

“For us boys, we want to leave a legacy and hopefully qualify for that World Cup that will allow the younger generation to come through and if there’s anything that we can leave them with, hopefully it will be that qualification to make it a lot easier for them to be seen on that bigger stage.”

The two teams held their final captain's run today at Teufaiva Stadium, their final work out before Saturday's match.