The wrap: Pacific Championships week two

New Kiwis coach Stacey Jones was proud of his players' performance against the Kangaroos but told them the effort will count for nothing unless the Pacific Cup holders beat Tonga.

Mal Meninga’s Australian team booked their place in the Pacific Cup final at CommBank Stadium on November 10 with a 22-10 defeat of New Zealand in Christchurch and the Kangaroos will now wait to see who they play.

With Tonga losing 18-0 to Australia a week earlier, Saturday's Test against the Kiwis at Go Media Stadium has become a play-off to play the Kangaroos in the final.

The loser will face the winner of the Pacific Bowl in a promotion-relegation clash for the top tier of next year’s tournament.

 “There were some really good performances, we were just clunky in areas, missed tackles that led to tries and we our attack probably will be much better next week for the run.

“We have got to win next week if we want to play in the final,” Jones said after his first Test as New Zealand coach.

“It’s a tough competition, if we win tonight there is no guarantee we are in the final. We have got to win next week, it’s as simple as that and we know that.”

Jones believes the Kiwis will be better for the run, with halves Shaun Johnson and Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad among the players playing their first match in seven weeks.

New Zealand teams have a reputation for building as a tournament goes on and last year bounced back from a 36-18 loss to Australia in Melbourne to deliver a record 30-0 defeat of the Kangaroos in the final a week later.

However, Jones said the Kiwis will need to play near their best to beat Tonga next week or face a relegation battle with Papua New Guinea, Fiji or the Cook Islands.

“It’s a not given what’s going to happen next week because of what we did tonight,” he said “I was proud of the players, but we have got to get ready for next week now.

“Tonga are a very good team, they are a physical team and they have got smart footy players. We know we have got to get better, and we will work on that this week. We look forward to getting to Auckland and playing in front of a big crowd.”

The Kumuls can secure a shot at promotion by beating Cook Islands in Port Moresby next Sunday, but if the Karmichael Hunt-coached Aitu spring an upset Fiji will play-off against the third-placed Pacific Cup nation.

The Bati bounced back from last weekend's 22-10 loss to Papua New Guinea to beat Cook Islands 56-6 in Suva and must now await Sunday's result to know if their Pacific Championships campaign is over or they play in Sydney. 

In the women's tournament, Australia has also locked in a place in the Pacific Cup final and will meet the winner of next Sunday’s Orchids-Kiwi Ferns match at Santos Stadium.

The loser will face the winner of Saturday’s Samoa-Fiji match at Go Media Stadium, which doubles as a World Cup qualifier with the victor also becoming the seventh women’s team confirmed for RLWC2026.

Fiji secured their place in the World Cup qualifier by beating Cook Islands 18-6 in Suva on Saturday night and are now guaranteed a second shot if they lose to Fetu Samoa as the loser will play in the 2025 World Series for the final RLWC2026 berth.

Snapshot

Pacific Cup (men)

• Australia has secured a place in the final on November 10 at CommBank Stadium, avoiding the possibility of relegation.
• Tonga and New Zealand will battle it out at Auckland's Go Media Stadium next Saturday for the other finals berth against the Kangaroos.
• The loser will face the Pacific Bowl winner at CommBank Stadium on November 10 in a promotion-relegation play-off for a place in next year's Pacific Cup.

Pacific Bowl (men)

• The Kumuls can secure a shot at promotion to the 2025 Pacific Cup if they beat Cook Islands in Port Moresby next Sunday.
• If Cook Islands win, Fiji is almost certain to advance to the promotion-relegation play-off against the third placed Pacific Cup team at CommBank Stadium on November 10.
• Cook Islands can still win the Pacific Bowl and a shot at promotion, but the Aitu must defeat the Kumuls by 77 points to overcome the Bati's for-and-against of +38 points.

Pacific Cup (women)

• The Jillaroos have secured a place in the final at CommBank Stadium on November 10 with their win over New Zealand.
• The winner of next Sunday's match between the Orchids and Kiwi Ferns in Port Moresby will play Australia in the final.
• The loser faces the winner of next Saturday's World Cup qualifying final between Fiji and Samoa in a promotion-relegation play-off at CommBank Stadium on November 10 to retain their place in next year's Pacific Cup.

Pacific Bowl (women)

• Fetu Samoa and Fiji play off for a 2026 World Cup berth next Saturday at Go Media Stadium.
• The winner will also travel to Sydney to meet the third-placed Pacific Cup team on November 10 for a place in next year's top tier.
• The loser in Auckland will become the Pacific representative in the 2025 World Series to determine the eighth and final women's RLWC2026 berth against Ireland (Europe), Nigeria (Africa) and the winner of November's Americas qualifying tournament between Canada, Jamaica and USA.
• Cook Islands and Tonga have been eliminated from World Cup qualifying and the Pacific Bowl after respective losses to Fiji and Samoa.