​15th May 2020
Board nominations complete ahead of General Meeting
Nominations have been completed for members of the new Tonga Ma’a Tonga Rugby League (TMTRL) board, which will now be elected by the members in general meeting.
Representatives from the rugby league clubs have ensured compliance with governance recommendations approved by the clubs following a broad consultation with Tongan rugby league instigated by the sport’s governing body, International Rugby League.
The meeting will confirm the adoption of a new TMTRL constitution, elect an independent chair and finance director, as well as the election of two player directors (already confirmed as Sika Manu and Will Hopoate) and five club directors, one of whom will serve as deputy chair.
Once the board has been ratified, it is expected to apply for membership of IRL.
Current TMTRL President, Mr Saia Penitani, said: “We at TMTRL look forward to our AGM on Friday where we will elect and appoint our new board of directors and implement a new governance structure for our organisation. 
“We are grateful to the Implementation Committee for their support and assistance throughout this process. We congratulate the four nominated candidates for the two independent Director positions and thank them for their willingness to be a part of our organisation.
“We, the club membership in Tonga, have nominated from amongst ourselves individuals who we think would serve the whole of Tongan rugby league best on the board. All our nominees have been long standing supporters of rugby league in Tonga. 
“We thank Kristian Woolf and his team for their support of this process and we look forward to fielding a strong and experienced team at international level should TMTRL be granted membership of IRL. We are excited as we see this process as a leap forward for rugby league in Tonga and for renewed relations based on unity between everyone involved with Tongan rugby league.”
Further, media reports in Tonga on Wednesday 13 May suggested that the IRL has been issued an injunction by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) following an appeal lodged with CAS by Tonga National Rugby League (TNRL), the former governing body of rugby league in Tonga, which was expelled from IRL in March 2020.
IRL has confirmed these reports are categorically untrue. It has also confirmed that TNRL’s appeal, which IRL will contest at CAS, is against the international federation alone.

International Rugby League (IRL) continues to monitor events in Tonga and expects to receive an application for membership from a new organisation imminently.

IRL Global Operations Manager Danny Kazandjian said:
“We understand that the active Tongan rugby league community has been working closely with one another to create an organisation that will best represent it, at home and internationally. The nomination of Sika Manu and Will Hopoate last week was a good sign of that cooperation, and it’s pleasing to see further signs of collaboration from the dozens of clubs in the kingdom.
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“An Implementation Committee has worked to bring together the various elements of the Tongan rugby league community and will help facilitate an application by an organisation for IRL membership in due course. The IRL will then assess any application against our membership rules and will make the decision on whether to admit a Tongan member to our register. We appreciate the supportive correspondence from the Tongan government, which has committed to working closely with the IRL to restore Tonga to the international rugby league community.”

Implementation Committee member Ikani Taliai will attend a meeting on Friday where the clubs will consider the results of the process to recruit two independent directors. The candidates for chair are Semisi Sika, a current MP and former Acting Prime Minister of Tonga, and Lord Fakafanua who is currently the Speaker of Parliament. The candidates for the finance director are John Paul Chapman and Ipolito Lasalo, both successful businessmen who have held prominent directorships in the public and private sector.

Konrad Hurrell, one of the four members of the IC, welcomed the latest developments:
“It is so encouraging to see the quality and the experience of the candidates for the new Board. This process has been a fantastic opportunity for the whole Tongan rugby league community to have their say, elect a new and really talented board who will lead the whole of a united Tongan rugby league forward.”