50 days to go: Samoa's World Cup campaign a decade in the making

“Whichever anthem you cry for while singing, that's who you play for”.

Junior Paulo still recalls those words from Phil Gould more than a decade after making his international debut for Toa Samoa against Tonga in 2016 at Parramatta.

"I think before the lyrics even began the tears started rolling down my face," the Toa co-captain said. "Just seeing the amount of fans and how much it meant to them, there was a rush of emotions."

Yet only one side of the stadium was open and the teams, while featuring a large representation of NRL players, were nothing like the star-studded line-ups that will feature at Rugby League World Cup 2026.

Fast forward to now, and with 50 days to go until Samoa's opening match on October 16 at CommBank Stadium against France, the Toa are set to play in front of full houses as they aim to lift the Paul Barrière Trophy. 

Samoa's second match against the Kumuls on October 24 is being billed as the biggest game ever staged in PNG after Jarome Luia and Brian To'o's signed with the Chiefs, while the November 1 clash with Tonga at CommBank Stadium is likely to decide a play-off spot.

“I've always believed that we've had potential, but probably not to the extent where we are capable of winning a World Cup, and although it’s in arm's reach, it's still a long way to go for us as well,” Paulo said.

“But just to see how far we've come in those years since I've been playing … seeing the growth of the international scene, and how much of an impact it can make on, not just in the rugby league world, but the world in general, that’s exactly the reason why we all chose to play for Samoa.”

Paulo didn’t know it in 2016 but international rugby league was about to change forever when Jason Taumalolo and Andrew Fifita turned their backs on New Zealand and Australia to represent Tonga at RLWC17.

Tonga’s success - beating New Zealand and only losing to England in the final stages of a gripping semi-final in Auckland - inspired the likes of Stephen Crichton, Jarome Luai and Brian To’o to join Paulo in the Samoa team for the last World Cup England.

Beating Tonga 20-18 in an intense quarter-final battle in Warrington, Samoa then shocked the rugby league world when Crichton kicked an extra-time field goal against England to put the Pacific nation in the final at Old Trafford.

The 27-26 win, which ensured Samoa a place in history as the first Pacific nation to play in a World Cup final, sparked an outpouring of emotion across the world and earned the team a shout out from 'The Rock', Dwayne Johnson.

“We all had little discussions about ‘what if we just gave back to our nation,” Paulo said.

“We'd seen the likes of Tonga do it in the previous World Cup, and seen the impact that they'd been able to have, so it was always a question of why can't we do it. The key was being able to get the players at their peak.

“Looking back at it now, it's probably one of the best decisions I’ve ever made, and I know some of the other boys will say that, as well.

"To represent Samoa and see what impact it's had now in terms of growing the international game, it's exactly where we want it to be.

“A lot of great players in the game have put their hand up to play for Samoa when they could be playing for Australia or New Zealand.

"If we were to play for a tier one nation the financial benefits would probably be a lot more than playing for Samoa or Tonga or Fiji, but the far greater impact for us is seeing our people celebrate, seeing them deck out their cars and flags, and their houses."

Tonga and Samoa attracted a record crowd of 44,682 at Suncorp Stadium when they met during last year's Pacific Championships and there is likely to be a lot more at stake in their World Cup clash on November 1.