King of Tonga makes request to NRL for international Test to go ahead

The King of Tonga has made a request to NRL chief executive Todd Greenberg for the end-of-season Test against Australia to happen.

A representative of the King of Tonga, Tupou VI, contacted Greenberg last week when the Test’s future was up in the air due to financial worries surrounding the event.

But in a sign of just how much the Test match means to the people of Tonga, Greenberg was contacted by the King’s representatives to emphasis just how important it is that the game goes ahead.

NRL.com report that Greenberg has met the New Zealand Rugby League board to discuss the possibility of New Zealand Warriors’ Mt Smart Stadium hosting the international, where 30,000 are expected to attend, if it is given the go ahead.

But the Test relies on the Australian players agreeing to a one-off reduction in their $20,000 match fee they are entitled to for representing the Kangaroos.

King Tupou VI was in attendance for last year’s World Cup semi-final which saw Tonga fall short to England. He later invited the Tonga players back to his palace to provide them with an award of the Royal Orders.