Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
AAP
AAP
Sport
Darren Walton and Scott Bailey

'A privilege': NRL stars embrace their island heritage

Stacey Jones believes next year's World Cup could be turned on its head with the latest switches. (Andrew Cornaga/AAP PHOTOS)

Stacey Jones has hailed the new-found strength of the island nations as the third edition of the Pacific Championships shapes as a fascinating forerunner to next year's Rugby League World Cup in Australia and Papua New Guinea.

With Australia not featuring for the first time, New Zealand, Samoa and Tonga will slug it out for the Pacific Cup with PNG, Fiji and the Cook Islands to fight for the second-tier Pacific Bowl silverware.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.