The Samoan men’s team arrived to huge applause and greetings at Sydney Airport where hundreds of fans had queued for hours to greet them.
Despite having flown into Australia, the crowd and their overwhelming support was so much that one supporter even joked “Welcome to Samoa” as the players disembarked the plane.
The side had made history as they had become the first pacific island nation to make the final of rugby league’s biggest international game.
Unfortunately they went down 30-10 to a dominant Australia side but simply making the final was a massive achievement for the Toa Samoa.
Losing their opener against hosts England 60-6 there were fears that the boys in blue were going to underperform at this tournament but they were simply onto a slow start as the victories started to roll in.
A golden point victory over the hosts sent the fans back in Samoa wild and despite their loss in the final they were still greeted as heroes.
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The achievement to make the final can’t be understated, especially when you consider Samoa has a population of only 200,000.
Support from those fans who had queued from 5:00 am until their heroes’ arrival at 7:30am was justified when players and staff alike greeted them.
“Thanks for your support, we heard you guys all the way in England” star Jarome Luai said as he expressed gratitude to the huge crowds.
A guard of honour was made by some of the fans as well in what were incredible scenes that highlighted the huge passion for rugby league down under.
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