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Tonga booked their place at Rugby World Cup 2023 as Asia / Pacific 1. The Pacific Island country overcame Hong Kong, winning the deciding Rugby World Cup 2023 qualifier 44-22. The outcome is that Tonga will play in Pool B at RWC 2023 while Hong Kong now have the fourth, and final, place in the Repechage.
Pool B of RWC 2023 will contain five competitors from three continents. Tonga will face Romania, Scotland, Ireland and RWC 2019 champions South Africa. The matches will be played from September 16 until October 08.
The Ikale Tahi open their campaign on Saturday, September 16. They will do so in Nantes against Ireland. The match is to be just the second occasion wherein Tonga and Ireland have played each other at a Rugby World Cup. The prior match between them was at the inaugural Rugby World Cup in 1987. Ireland were 29-7 winners in Brisbane, Australia.
Tonga will travel to Nice for their second pool match. It is to be against another member of the British & Irish Lions. Scotland vs Tonga will take place on Sunday, September 24 in Nice. The match has also only taken place at one previous Rugby World Cup. Scotland won 41-5 against Tonga in Pretoria, South Africa at RWC 1995.
Game three for Tonga will be one week later. It is to be a daunting assignment; the Ikale Tahi take on three-time champions, and 2019 winners, South Africa in Marseille. The match is a repeat of the RWC 2007 fixture. South Africa edged Tonga 30-25 in a highly competitive match on that day.
While the first three matches are all repeat fixtures from prior Rugby World Cups, the final match is a new one. Tonga will face Romania for the first time in a Rugby World Cup. The match will be on Sunday, October 8 in Lille.
RWC 2023 FIXTURES – TONGA
Sat, September 16 – Tonga vs Ireland (Nantes)
Sun, September 24 – Tonga vs Scotland (Nice)
Sun, October 01 – Tonga vs South Africa (Marseille)
Wed, October 08 – Tonga vs Romania (Lille)
