Tonga Rugby World Cup 2011 Odds

Tonga are another of the powerful Pacific Nations and they will once again head to a Rugby World Cup full of hope and aiming to upset a couple of the bigger nations, they are not one of the top teams in rugby but on their day can run even the best nations close. They have been drawn in Pool A alongside New Zealand and France so do face an uphill task to qualify for the knock-out stages of the tournament, they will be more than competitive though and the two group favourites will need to be wary of a potential banana skin.

Latest Tonga Rugby World Cup 2011 Odds

Tonga face the same problems as all the other small Pacific Islands and that is that they tend to lose their best players to New Zealand, often players are born in Tonga but after growing up in New Zealand they end up plying their trade for the mighty All Blacks. The most famous of these players is of course Jonah Lomu is a legend of the game and from Tongan descent.

Tonga do have one or two notable players in their ranks and they will be hoping to play a big part for the Island in New Zealand, the key for the side is to get as many players as possible playing in New Zealand or in Europe as they look to bolster the quality of the National team. Joshua Afu is one that plays in England with the Newcastle Falcons while in France we see Manu Ahotaeiloa take to the field for top side Toulouse. They amongst others will be key to their chances of being competitive as they simply do not have the strength in depth needed to compete at the very highest level.

Tonga will fancy their chances of beating both Canada and Japan in Pool A at the World Cup but if they are to qualify for the last eight they will need to somehow win a match against either New Zealand or France. That is likely to prove too much for them but they deserve their place in the tournament and will be hoping to cause a big stir once again on the International stage.

Tonga Rugby World Cup 2011 Squad

As and when the final Tonga squad for the Rugby World Cup is announced it will be made available for fans and punters,