Fiji's preparations for the 2026 Rugby League World Cup to be held in Australia have been rocked, with the news the Fainu brothers will be unable to participate.
The trio were working towards having the appropriate eligibility documents sorted out by now, but despite an extension of the deadline, they have been unable to confirm their grandmother was born in Fiji.
The IRL have not totally shut the door on them playing for Fiji, with a further extension to the timeline, but a lack of recorded documentation will likely prevent them from playing for the island nation.
That leaves the IRL with no choice but to rule the trio as ineligible to compete for Fiji, per a News Corp report.
“All three are eligible for Tonga and NZ but believe they have Fijian heritage that they wish to honour,” IRL chairman Tony Grant told the publication.
“Unfortunately they've been unable to establish with accredited records from Fiji.
“IRL have no issues with their application or desire to represent Fiji, as it's evident they have a genuine desire to play for Fiji and, during heritage round, recently flew both the Tongan and Fijian fags. The IRL has rigid eligibility criteria and have given them more time to provide credible documents to support their application.”
It's understood a lack of accurate record-keeping has led to the decision, with the brothers now unable to line up for Fiji, who have already named a 40-man provisional training squad that also features Sydney Roosters flyer Mark Nawaqanitawase.
He was also linked with playing for Australia, but it's likely he will start his second stint in rugby union as soon as the NRL season is over, and won't play at the 13-man World Cup for any country.
The Fainu brothers are eligible for Tonga and New Zealand, and could wind up representing different nations if they declare for New Zealand in the first instance, given it's unclear which would be selected as part of Stacey Jones' squad.
Fiji are in the tricky Group A, where two teams will qualify for the semi-finals, with Australia, New Zealand and the Cook Islands the other sides, while Tonga sit in Group C alongside Papua New Guinea and France, with one of those teams to qualify for the semi-finals after their three games come against the teams in Group B, being England, Lebanon and Samoa.
