A Tongan Advisory Council member has hit out at the organisers of the 2017 Rugby League World Cup, after clashes between fans has marred the build-up to the Tonga vs Toa Samoa match in Hamilton tomorrow night.
Melino Maka told 1 NEWS the violent scenes could have been avoided if the organisation of the tournament had been better.
"I think that this tournament was poorly organised, if you look at the 2011 tournament it was 18 months out and the organisers engaged the community groups and we sat down and planned activities for our respective teams and each community focused on that.
"But this year nothing, they scrambled around trying to do something and hopefully they will learn from this. New Zealand is quite diverse and we need that space to organise ourselves so we can enjoy the tournament," Mr Maka said.
He believes if there were more opportunities for fans to show their support at controlled organised events then we wouldn't be witnessing the potentially dangerous scenes that have played out in south Auckland this week.
"We are witnessing the results of this now, I think the organisers should stand up and say we can do better and try and remedy it for the future in this tournament.
"If you don't have activities that engage the whole community you will run into issues like this," he said.
Yesterday Samoan-Kiwi heavyweight boxing legend David Tua and even Government Ministers were drafted in to address the situation.
The former heavyweight boxer is urging calm between fans ahead of tomorrow's World Cup clash in Hamilton.
"If you believe that you have what it takes to be a fighter, please call me I'm very easy to find I'm in Onehunga, get in the ring and make something beautiful of yourself," Tua challenged the fans.
Samoa play Tonga in the 2017 Rugby League World Cup at Waikato Stadium in Hamilton at 7:30pm tomorrow.
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