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Former Wallaby reinstated on wing for Tonga's All Blacks challenge

Ikale Tahi outside back Cooper Vuna once represented the Wallabies. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

Well-travelled former Wallaby Cooper Vuna has been restored to Tonga’s wing for their final Rugby World Cup warmup Test against the All Blacks in Hamilton.

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Vuna shifts from inside centre to the right wing in one of six personnel or positional changes to the Tongan starting side who lost 29-19 to Fiji in Auckland last week.

The 32-year-old is used to switches, having jumped codes and teams routinely since his professional debut with the Warriors NRL club 15 years ago.

An explosive runner, Vuna scored 36 tries from 59 NRL games for the Warriors and Newcastle Knights, and also represented Tonga at the 2008 Rugby League World Cup.

Continued below…

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His first rugby union contract was for three seasons with the Melbourne Rebels and he played in two victorious Tests for Australia against Wales in 2012.

Club stints in the English top-flight coincided with a return to Tongan Test eligibility three years ago.

Captain Siale Piutau shifts to the No.12 jersey, playing outside five-eighth Kurth Morath, who came off the bench against Fiji.

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England-based Morath, 34, is Tonga’s all-time leading point-scorer with 340 from 36 Tests.

Coach Toutai Kefu, the former Wallabies No.8, has handed a first cap to starting hooker Siua Maile.

Fifteenth-ranked Tonga have had a mixed World Cup building, suffering losses to Samoa, Japan and Fiji but beating Canada and the Western Force.

They are in a treacherous pool that includes England, France and Argentina.

Tonga: David Halaifonua, Cooper Vuna, Malietoa Hingano, Siale Piutau (capt), Viliame Lolohea, Kurt Morath, Sonatane Takalua, Maama Vaipulu, Fotu Lokotui, Sione Kalamafoni, Leva Fifita, Sam Lousi, Siua Halanukonuka, Siua Maile, Siegfried Fisi’ihoi. Res: Sione Anga’aelangi, Vunipola Fifita, Ma’afu Fia, Dan Faleafa, Zane Kapeli, Leon Fukofuka, James Faiva, Atieli Pakalani.

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– AAP

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N
NB 40 minutes ago
'Passionate reunion of France and New Zealand shows Fabien Galthie is wrong to rest his stars'

Nice bit if revisioniusm but that's all it is JW.


For your further education, I found the following breakdown of one prominent club's finances in the Top 14 [Clermont].


For Clermont (budget of €29.5 million for 2021-2022) :

- 20% from ticket sales

- 17% from the LNR (includes TV Rights, compensation from producing french internationals and other minor stuff)

- 5% from public collectivities (so you're looking at funds from the city of Clermont, the department of Puy-De-Dôme and the region Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes)

- 4% from merchandising and events

- 3% from miscellaneous

- 51 % from sponsorships and partnerships. They've got 550 different partners. The main ones are CGI, Groupama, Limagrain/Jacquet, Omerin, Paprec, Renault and of course Michelin (not surprising since they're actually the founders of the club).


As you can see nothing comes from the FFR at all. The LNR is a separate entitiy to FFR and their aims frequently do not accord.


It is also why the European breakaway plotted by LNR and PR back in 2013 had nothing to do with the governing bodies of either England or France - and it most certainly did not have their blessing https://www.espn.co.uk/rugby/story/_/id/15331030/jean-pierre-lux-anglo-french-cup-detrimental-european-rugby


And from the horse's mouth [ex AB skipper Sean Fitapatrick] about the comp between Top 14 and Super Rugby:


"The Top 14 in France is probably the best rugby competition in the world at the moment, purely for the week-in, week-out.”


“I think the quality of players. They are bigger, they are faster, they are stronger. Which then carries on into the international game.”

Take it from someone who knows JW😅

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