Speaking to media after a monumental 102-0 loss to the All Blacks, Tonga coach Toutai Kefu touched on the struggles his camp has had to go through in the preparations for last night's match at Mt Smart.
Even at the best of times, securing top tier players has been the biggest hurdle for the Tongan side, however Kefu says this year, Covid-19 has amplified their struggles.
“For us in any climate it’s a challenge, and when you add the Covid on top of that it becomes more of a challenge. In all the campaigns I’ve gone through our boys don’t complain or moan, they just get on with it."
Kefu says that quarantining and the potential costs for players has acted as a deterrent to Tongan players currently in Europe who are elligible to play for the Ikale Tahi.
“Covid is a layer of difficulty,” he said.
“You’ve got the French championship and English premiership pretty much aligned with this window, so you’ve got to hope some of those players don’t make it. This time round it’s been mainly because of Covid, players not coming back due to quarantine costs.
“They usually get one month off and then they’re back in training. They’re probably not going to spend all of that in quarantine.”
The 60-cap Wallaby also said that elligibility rules further compound their personnel woes.
”There’s a few players ready to be capped, it’s just all about timing. I believe there should be a stand-down period, but that extra hoop they have to jump through in playing sevens, it’s a layer of complication we don’t need.”
"I'm happy with just a three or four year stand-down, it'll suit us."
"If that's possible, our team transforms."
Tonga will return to Mt Smart Stadium next week as they go on to face Manu Samoa in two World Cup qualifier matches.
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