Kangaroos skipper Boyd Cordner had praised the successes of the historic rugby league test between Australia and Mate Ma'a Tonga, labelling it as "a great day for rugby league".
Australia had to fend off a second-half resurgence from Tonga to prevail 34-16 in front of 26,214 fans at Mt Smart Stadium in Auckland.
It was the first time the two nations have played each other in a test match.
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The match nearly didn't go ahead due to costs, but the Kangaroos took a 75 percent pay cut, and each player took home $3000 each to ensure the fixture went ahead.
Cordner said the team is delighted they did what was needed, so the test got the green light.
"It was a great experience," said Cordner."I'm glad we could organise to get this game on board because I think it was a great day for rugby league.
"We're not used to this as football players. When you come up against an imposing team and a different crowd, usually its hostile, but you could see how happy they were that they go to play against the Australians - and vice-versa.
"Everyone in the changing room is grateful to have been a part of this."
Roos coach Mal Meninga said other Pacific nations like Fiji, Samoa and Papua New Guinea now need to chance to play the bigger teams to help grow the international game even more.
"We've got to keep going, we can't just rest on our laurels," he said.
"We can't just say 'What a great experience that was' and 'how good was that?' We've got to continually make sure we're playing more games, particularly for us, from the Kangaroos' perspective keep on pushing footy in the Pacific rim.
"Samoan people are just as passionate, Fijian people are just as passionate. You know the Papua New Guineans, we just came back from a trip up there, they're mad, they're fanatical.
"So, on the back of what happened last week, we're kind of hoping the New Zealand people see how passionate their team are and want to follow them.
Tonga is set to be awarded more tests against tier one nations next year, with coach Kristian Woolf confirming there are talks underway for matches against Samoa, Australia and the British Lions, and the New Zealand Kiwis in June.
Newshub.
