It's been hailed as the return of international rugby league and for players, fans and administrators, it's a clash of the titans that can't come soon enough.
New Zealand Rugby League has confirmed the Kiwis will finally take to the field on June 25 to do battle with pacific neighbors Mate Ma'a Tonga at Mt Smart Stadium.
The fixture will be part of a double header with their women's counterparts, and it’s hoped the Kiwi Ferns match against their Tongan rivals will bring in the biggest crowd ever for a female international fixture.
The teams last met in June 2019 when the Kiwis ran out 34-14 winners, while New Zealand haven’t played a test match since November 2019,
The international game has well and truly been a background figure since the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, but the fixture signals things finally getting back to normal.
"It's massive," chief executive Greg Peters told Newshub. "It's the return of international rugby league. First time in two and a half years.
"It's also the return of a rivalry that's captured the imagination of fans around the world."
"It's really important for us, both from a high performance perspective with the Kiwis leading into a world cup at the end of the year, and Kiwi Ferns as well... but also just from a fan perspective, commercial perspective."
Peters admits watching the likes of the All Blacks, Silver Ferns and Blackcaps play throughout the Pandemic while they've been stuck on the sidelines has been tough.
"We've seen other codes be able to play, and world cups and other events to be able to happen, but they've been under crowd restrictions or quarantine requirements to get into the country," said Peters. "That's what we needed lifted."
Players, who are always so proud to represent the iconic Kiwi jersey, have been craving international outings too.
"It's been a long time," Kiwis star Jesse Bromwich said. "It's really hurt the international game, the COVID situation, but I'm really excited to get it back underway again. It's a huge year this year."
The cancellation of the world cup in England last year was a major setback for the game. But, it’s currently full steam ahead for the tournament in October and November this year
Bromwich, who has played 29 tests for the Kiwis, agrees the international game has been left behind because of the pandemic.
"I think it has, but that’'s through no one's fault. The world's been put on hold for two years.
"I'm really looking forward to the international game catching up. I feel the Kiwis were heading in the right direction before everything stopped.
"We had a couple of good wins over Australia and Tonga. I think a lot of the boys too have really improved their games.
"It's really exciting times for NZ Rugby League."
