Tonga rugby league pioneers and former internationals are preparing to celebrate 40 years of Mate Ma‘a Tonga with a special All-Star match in Auckland, but the current national team is not expected to take part amid the continuing dispute over the famous team name.
ABC Pacific reported that the celebration is being organised ahead of the Rugby League World Cup in October and will reunite a number of players involved in the early years of Tonga’s national rugby league team.
The former players are also expected to receive heritage numbers formally recognising their place in the history of the national side.
However, the current Tonga team is not involved in the planned celebration.
According to ABC Pacific, Tonga rugby league pioneer and main event organiser Willie Wolfgramm said Prime Minister Lord Fakafānua, who is in charge of the national side, had not responded to an invitation concerning the event.
The apparent lack of response also comes as the long-running dispute over the rights to the Mate Ma‘a Tonga name remains unresolved.
As a result, Tonga’s current international rugby league team remains unable to display the Mate Ma‘a Tonga name on its badge.
The dispute dates back several years and involves control of the name following major divisions within Tonga rugby league administration.
ABC previously reported that Tonga National Rugby League (TNRL) retained the rights to the Mate Ma‘a Tonga name despite being expelled by the International Rugby League.
In November 2024, TNRL chairman George Koloamatangi told ABC Pacific his organisation was willing to negotiate with the group managing Tonga’s international teams over restoring the name to the national jerseys. He said he was even prepared to seek the intervention of King Tupou VI if the dispute could not be resolved.
Wolfgramm was also involved in that campaign, arguing for the restoration of the name bestowed on the national team by the King in 1986.
The latest impasse means that, four decades after Mate Ma‘a Tonga first took to the field, many of its pioneering players are preparing to celebrate that history while the present national side remains separated from the name under which its predecessors became internationally recognised.
The 40th anniversary celebration and All-Star match are planned for Auckland ahead of Tonga’s Rugby League World Cup campaign in October.
Source: ABC Pacific
