Rugby-Depleted Tonga ready to bring A-game for World Cup playoff: Kefu

But the Tongans will give Hong Kong plenty of respect as they look to shrug off the loss of key international recruits Israel Folau, Malakai Fekitoa and Charles Piutau. The backline trio were meant to transform Tonga's attack at the Pacific Nations Cup but former Australia fullback Folau and New Zealand centre Fekitoa were injured in the opening 36-0 thrashing by Fiji, while Piutau committed to only two games.

A new-look Tonga came crashing back to earth with injuries and a winless Pacific Nations Cup but coach Toutai Kefu is backing the Pacific islanders to lift for the do-or-die World Cup playoff against Hong Kong on Saturday.

Tonga failed to qualify for only one World Cup in 1991 and Hong Kong is unlikely to stop them when they clash on Australia's Sunshine Coast. But the Tongans will give Hong Kong plenty of respect as they look to shrug off the loss of key international recruits Israel Folau, Malakai Fekitoa, and Charles Piutau.

The backline trio was meant to transform Tonga's attack at the Pacific Nations Cup but former Australia fullback Folau and New Zealand center Fekitoa was injured in the opening 36-0 thrashing by Fiji, while Piutau committed to only two games. Tonga was hit by another blow on Thursday with number eight Lopeti Timani, who won 12 caps for the Wallabies, ruled out of the Hong Kong match with a calf injury.

"It hasn't helped," Kefu told Reuters on Thursday of the injury toll. "But the good thing with our guys is that they don't moan -- they just get on with it.

"I'm buoyed by the fact that the more time we spend together the better we're getting .... So, I have no doubt we're about to put our best performance on the field." Kefu's optimism is not without basis, given Tonga was more competitive in the defeats to Samoa and an Australia 'A' side in Fiji.

But the flat start to the season has put the former Wallabies number eight under pressure. Some Tongan fans have called on Kefu to step down, and defeat to Hong Kong would almost certainly mark the end of his six-year tenure.

"I want to win and I feel their frustration. From a results point of view it's been disappointing," Kefu said. "I expected before the tournament with the squad that we've got we could probably get one or two wins.

"But definitely, I'm like a player who doesn't play well. We all feel the pressure." Kefu said injuries were not the only stroke of misfortune to hit Tonga at the Pacific Nations Cup. Match officials canceled five Tongan tries in the Fiji opener where there was no television official to check replays.

Kefu said referee Ben O'Keeffe had later apologized to him in an email, saying three of the tries should have been awarded. "So that changes the game a little bit," he said.

Overall, though, Kefu conceded Tonga had let themselves down in Fiji with poor execution, simple errors, and silly penalties. "In saying that, the boys' attitude and application have been really good since," he added.

"But we've got to play with a bit of confidence on Saturday, be brave, and believe in what we're trying to do in terms of the game-plan."