Tonga sent the clearest early message of the Rugby League World Cup on Thursday night, crushing England and changing the shape of the tournament before Week One was even over. Samoa were untouchable as well, and the opening round has already turned the Tonga Vs Samoa Rugby meeting into one of the matches everyone wants to see.
Reece Walsh was one of the nights that reminded everyone why this stage matters, with his world class try and an all time one-on-one try saving tackle standing out in a tournament that has started at full speed. But the biggest shock came from Tonga's performance against England, because it left England's qualification hopes hanging on another result and on the fine print of the group rules.
The numbers tell the story. England needed Tonga to beat Samoa to keep any chance of qualifying alive. If Samoa beat Tonga, Samoa would go through with three wins. If Tonga beat Samoa, England would still need a better differential to stay in the hunt. That is what one heavy loss can do in this format: it turns a team from contender to calculator.
That pressure is why the next Tonga and Samoa clash has taken on such weight. The group format and head-to-head rule mean the result does not just decide pride, it can decide who moves on. Tonga and Samoa have been framed as major draws for the tournament from the start, and the expectation of 60,000 plus if the match is moved to Accor Stadium underlines how quickly the opening weekend has lifted their status.
The appeal is not hard to see. Commbank would be absolutely heaving on Sunday week for Tonga vs Samoa, and the fixture now feels like the kind of game that can define Rugby League World Cup Week One. England have been left looking dire and so far off the pace in a must win game, while Tonga and Samoa have made the kind of statement that carries beyond one result.
Kevin Walters also leaned into the strength of the opening round by naming four players in his starting 13 who played finals footy, with Jack Bostock, Latrell Mitchell, Liam Martin and Isaah Yeo the only starters in that category. The Kiwis, by contrast, had 11 players in the starting 13 who played finals footy and were described as the much, much better side on Thursday evening, even though the Kangaroos outlasted them. Week One has already shown how little room there is for error, and England now have to wait on Tonga and Samoa to find out whether the tournament still has a door open for them.
