Thousands turn out to welcome Mate Ma'a Tonga in Auckland Photo: @CoconetTV
Thousands of fans have packed out the Vodafone Events centre to welcome the Mate Ma'a Tongan team.
They will meet Australia for the first time on 20 October, in Auckland.
Photo: © Photosport Ltd 2018 www.photosport.nz
The Australian players agreed for their $AU20,000 match fee to be slashed to less than $AU5000 for the game to help get the game over the line.
Mate Ma'a Tonga coach Kristian Woolf said the match between the tier one and two nations is a step forward for rugby league.