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Kia ora, good afternoon and welcome to Newshub's live coverage of the Moana Pasifika v Highlanders Super Rugby Pacific clash at Nuku'alofa.
The competition's first visit to Tonga sees two teams directly competing for the final playoff spots go head to head.
The southerners edged Western Force last week to keep their post-season hopes alive, leapfrogging Moana Pasifika, who fell to Pacific rivals Fijian Drua.
Moana Pasifika rarely get to play on true home soil, hosting most of their fixtures at Auckland's Go Media Stadium, and they will want to make those rare visits count, with conditions and home crowd in their favour.
Join us at 2pm for kickoff.
TAB Odds: Moana Pasifika $1.65, Highlanders $2.15
'Trying not to get emotional': Highlanders' Tongan stars brace for historic return to Nuku'alofa
Highlanders Folau Fakatava and Saula Ma'u have already had a taste of the challenge ahead, as they brace for a historic return to the country of birth this week.
The southerners will travel to Nuku'alofa to face Moana Pasifika on Saturday in the first-ever Super Rugby Pacific fixture to be played in Tonga.
While the Highlanders are keenly aware of the how difficult their counterparts have found Pacific road games - Fijian Drua have made Lautoka's Churchill Park a veritable fortress - the trip presents an even more daunting proposition for the players most accustomed to their strange surroundings.
"Going home and making history in front of family and fans means a lot for both of us," said Fakatava, 24, who was born at Nukualofa, before moving to New Zealand to attend Hastings Boys' High School.
"My family are really excited, they have already asked for about 20 tickets and hopefully we get that, but they understand we're going there to do a job and not a holiday.
"Tongans have grown up with rugby, they love rugby and the first time in Tonga will be massive. It will be a packed stadium and the king will be there."
Ma'u, 24, attended Auckland Grammar, before embarking on his professional journey.
"My family has been calling me every day," he said. "They're just so excited for us to come back home.
"Going back and playing in front of those kids, inspiring the youth back home that you can achieve anything if you work hard for it.
"Same as me and Lau. We came to New Zealand when we were young, and to go back home, playing at this sort of level will inspire the kids back home."
That pressure hasn't just come from their birth families, with the Highlanders resting heavily on their Tongan contingent - including franchise legend Nasi Manu - to help prepare for the foreign environment.
"We've been celebrating the Tongan culture this week around what to expect and protocols, and how things are in Tonga," said coach Clarke Dermody. "Nasi Manu has been doing a great job for us, and Saula and Folau as well, so it's been a great start to the week."
One obvious adjustment will be climate, with Nuku'alofa and Dunedin offering vastly contrasting weather conditions at this time of year. One is hot and humid, the other not so much.
"It was probably perfect for us, because it was wet for us today at training, which puts a bit more emphasis on it," said Dermody. "What we can't replicate is the heat, so that's something we've discussed as a group.
"We've got a choice when we get there, whether it affects us or not, so mentally we've been preparing for that."
Folau Fakatava in action for the Highlanders. Photo credit: Getty Images
The Highlanders expect temperatures between 25-30 degrees Celsius, about double the maximum in Dunedin this week.
"I've been asking my family what's the weather like and they say it's hot," said Ma'u. "We grew up there and were used to the weather, but we've probably stayed in Dunedin too long, so hopefully, we're still used to the hot weather back home."
Two-test All Black Fakatava will take his teammates to visit his old high school, which also produced NZ internationals Shannon Frizell and Ofa Tu'ungafasi.
"I never thought this would happen, having this rugby game in Tonga," said Ma'u. "It was always my dream to make it in rugby, make my family proud and inspire the little kids back home.
"I'm trying not to get too emotional, when we get back home. We're trying to focus on the game and gameplan, and the boys will back us."
