Tongan Rugby Fans

I love this.

It started in 2011. The Samoan and Tongan communities in New Zealand went all-in on supporting their national sides at the Rugby World Cup.

On game days there were huge processions of vehicles festooned with flags and national colours. One day in particular.

October 1st, 2011 at Wellington. Eventual finalist France lead Tonga, a minnow, 14-13 with half an hour to play. France aren't worried. Eventually the big Tongan boys will tire as they always do and the French will run away with it.

The Tongan lads dig. France is struggling to deal with them flooding the breakdowns and give away two penalties. Kurt Morath steps up and lands both of them.

Seven minutes to play. France are pressing. Down 14-19 a try will level the score and the conversion will earn them a win. The Tongan lads are out on their feet and 50,000 people in the stadium are bellowing "HEAVE! HEAVE HEAVE!" encouraging Tonga to hold them out.

They do. Winning the greatest World Cup upset until Japan beat the Springboks at Brighton in 2019.

Tongan people everywhere were beyond ecstatic. Some of the greatest ever rugby players are people of Tongan extraction but playing for other countries. For the national side of their small country to overcome the odds against one of the glamour teams is a huge accomplishment. Here in Auckland Tongan people party for two straight days. Convoys kilometres long festooned in Tongan flags beeping their horns.

Day and night, around the clock. Honk. Honk. Honk.

Great days. A performance for the ages and an epic win. And thirteen years later there's a Tongan van driver in the CBD still smiling about it. I smiled too, as I reminisced and snapped this photograph.

-SRA. Auckland, 8/xi 2024.