2025 Pacific Championships preview
Sadly, domestic rugby league is finished for 2025 in both hemispheres, and for those of us in the UK it’s even worse now that we’re hurtling head first into winter.
However, fear not, as there’s still plenty of RL to enjoy before the year’s out, starting this weekend in the Pacific Championships.
Four weekends of international matches from the other side of the world is enough to keep me out of hibernation for now, and with an Ashes series between England and Australia to come here as well, it’s not looking too bad at all.
So without further ado, let’s take a look at the six teams fighting for supremacy.
What are the Pacific Championships?
Six nations playing in four countries across four consecutive weekends. In a nutshell, the Pacific Championships should be explosive. There are two tournaments – the Pacific Cup and the Pacific Bowl – with both competitions running simultaneously.
New Zealand and Tonga will be competing in the Pacific Cup once again, while Samoa have taken Australia’s place in 2025.
Meanwhile Fiji, Papua New Guinea and Cook Islands will compete in the Pacific Bowl for a second-straight year.
The three teams in each competition will play each other once over the next three weekends. Then, in the fourth week, the top two in the Pacific Cup will face off in a final to determine the champions.
The team which finishes top of the Pacific Bowl table after week three will be crowned the winner.
Fixtures
| Date | Fixture | Location | Competition |
| 18/10/2025 | Fiji vs Cook Islands | Santos National Football Stadium, Port Moresby | Pacific Bowl |
| 19/10/2025 | New Zealand vs Samoa | Go Media Stadium, Auckland | Pacific Cup |
| 25/10/2025 | Papua New Guinea vs Cook Islands | Santos National Football Stadium, Port Moresby | Pacific Bowl |
| 26/10/2025 | Samoa vs Tonga | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane | Pacific Cup |
| 01/11/2025 | Papua New Guinea vs Fiji | Santos National Football Stadium, Port Moresby | Pacific Bowl |
| 02/11/2025 | New Zealand vs Tonga | Eden Park, Auckland | Pacific Cup |
| 09/11/2025 | 1st placed Pacific Cup team vs 2nd placed Pacific Cup team | CommBank Stadium, Parramatta | Pacific Cup |
Pacific Cup squads
New Zealand
The Kiwis have named an experienced squad, with Nelson Asofa-Solomona, Dylan Brown, Kieran Foran, Moses Leota , and Ronaldo Mulitalo and Briton Nikora all available after missing the 2024 edition.
Kieran Foran will make his final professional appearances too, following his retirement from the NRL. At the opposite end of the scale, Broncos forward Xavier Willison is called up for the first time.
Samoa
Samoa have been hit by a late injury to Taylan May, which will rule him out of the tournament.
Josh Papalii is back in the squad for his first appearances since the World Cup Final in 2022, and he’s one of nine State of Origin rep players in the squad. Brian To’o, Murray Taulagi, Jarome Luai, Payne Haas, Jeremiah Nanai, Jaydn Su’A, Junior Paulo and Francis Molo are the others.
Tonga
Robert Toia, Stefano Utoikamanu, Leka Halasima and Demetric Vaimauga are all set to make their Tonga debuts after being named in the 21-man squad. Jason Taumalolo and Addin Fonua-Blake will be the co-captains.
Pacific Bowl squads
Fiji
Bulldogs winger Jethro Rinakama will make his Fiji debut at the tournament, while a number of current and former Super League players have also been named. Taane Milne heads up the list along with new Castleford winger Semi Valemei.
Papua New Guinea
PNG haven’t named their squad yet, but expect it top be largely similar to the side that faced the Australia PM XIII last weekend.
Nene McDonald captained the side at fullback, while youngster Cooper Bai came off the bench fo his Kumuls debut.
Cook Islands
Broncos backrower Brendan Piakura, Sharks centre KL Iro and Warriors hardman Marata Niukore are the big names heading up the Cook Islands squad. Veteran Brad Takairangi will lead the side.
