Bradman to finally don the green and gold in World Cup clash with Fiji

Bradman Best will make his international debut for Australia when the Kangaroos take on Fiji at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane on Sunday night.

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After sitting on the bench during last week's 24-22 win over New Zealand, and going unused as part of the broader national squad in 2024-25, Best finally gets his chance to run out in the green and gold.

Bradman Best training with the Kangaroos last week. Picture Getty Images

He was listed to start in the centres in the side named by Kangaroos coach Kevin Walters on Tuesday.

Latrell Mitchell drops back to the bench in jersey No.19 to make way for Best.

Mitchell, originally from Taree, started against New Zealand in Australia's opening Rugby League World Cup game.

But as one of several changes Walters has made, Best will debut in the 8.05pm match.

It comes after the 25-year-old has played 123 NRL games for the Knights and three Origins for NSW.

A Woy Woy Roosters junior, Best will be the 21st player to represent Australia in the Knights' 38-year history.

Dane Gagai was the most recent in 2017.

Bradman Best training with the Kangaroos last week. Picture AAP

Elsewhere for the Kangaroos, Roosters skipper James Tedesco replaces Reece Walsh at fullback, Sam Walker and Tom Dearden will start at halfback and five-eighth, respectively, and Cronulla's Blayke Brailey will make his debut at hooker.

Central Newcastle junior and Dolphins utility Kurt Donoghoe remains Fiji's five-eighth.

In other games, Knights back-rowers Francis Manuleleua and Jermaine McEwen will again start for Samoa after making their debuts last week.

After belting France 78-4 in Sydney last Friday, Samoa head to Port Moresby to face Papua New Guinea on Saturday afternoon. Fellow Knights prop Pasami Saulo is among Samoa's reserves.

Thornton product and Bulldogs prop Max King has retained his place in England's front row for Saturday's clash with France in Perth. He debuted last week. Knights flyer Dominic Young is on the wing, while Upper Hunter product and Broncos forward Ben Talty is one of three reserves for England.

Outgoing Knight Tyson Frizell has come out of Tonga's side after starting at lock in a 30-12 win over England in Perth on Saturday.

Tonga now meet Lebanon at CommBank Stadium in Parramatta on Friday night.

Knights hooker Olivia Higgins will again wear the No.9 jersey for Australia in their second women's match, taking on England in Perth on Saturday. Fellow Novocastrian Jesse Southwell is a reserve.

Jacob Saifiti is relishing the chance to face Knights teammate Bradman Best this week as the Newcastle centre firms to make his Kangaroos debut.

Australia hosts Fiji in week two of the Rugby League World Cup at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane on Sunday night.

Bradman Best, right, could face Newcastle teammate Jacob Saifiti, top left, when Australia take on Fiji in Brisbane on Sunday. Inset, Knights recruit Marata Niukore, centre, Fiji coach Mick Potter, bottom left. Pictures AAP

But it will also pit the two long-time clubmates and Central Coast products Saifiti and Best against each other for the first time.

Best, despite making the NRL grand final with Newcastle this year and going on tour as part of the Australian squad in 2024-25, was overlooked for a starting spot last week and sat on the bench in Australia's 24-22 win over New Zealand.

Latrell Mitchell and Kotoni Staggs started in the centres.

"I think he should have been there game one, being biased," Saifiti said of Best, 25.

"I read ... he is going to get his shot, so I'm glad, because I think he has had one or two tours before this and he hasn't debuted yet.

"He deserves it. He is a big-game player. We've seen what he can do in the Origin arena ... throughout the finals series he was unbelievable as well.

"I reckon he has the best defensive movements for a centre in the whole comp. I hope he plays."

Asked whether he would go looking for Best in the 8.05pm match, Saifiti joked: "I just hope he doesn't come into the middle, because big bro is going to have to show him a thing or two."

Speaking after Sunday's match, he said Fiji had spoken about contesting bombs ahead of the game and halfback Brandon Wakeham had pushed him to give it a crack.

Jacob Saifiti played for Fiji for the first time since 2017 on Sunday. Picture AAP

"First and last time I go up like that," Saifiti said. "I was on the inside of 'Wakes' and Wakes just said 'Saf, go for it, go for it!'.

"I've seen first-hand through the Knights, through the years we've not competed [for the ball] ... but we talked about this week going up and competing.

"I thought about it, I slowed down and I saw the ball, and I was like ... you know what, I'm going for it."

The play was a far cry from the approach former Knights coach Adam O'Brien opted for a couple of seasons ago, when the players avoided contesting attacking kicks to try and tackle the ball-catcher straight away.

Former Knights coach Adam O'Brien. Picture by Marina Neil

Saifiti can't recall ever catching a high ball, at either end of the pitch, even in juniors.

"Never, I swear to god," he said. "Not in my whole entire life. Maybe a grubber, but gone up and actually contested a kick like that, I've never done it.

"In my head I thought I was jumping so high."

Incoming Knights player Marata Niukore was forced to withdraw from the World Cup due to injury and proved a big loss for Cook Islands.

They struggled to halt Fiji's momentum and trailed 28-0 at half-time. They found some fight after the break and Cook Islands coach Karmichael Hunt singled out Storm prop Davvy Moale for lifting their intensity, but they sure could have done with Niukore's size and experience.

Marata Niukore. Picture AAP

"We were hopeful that he was going to be able to get up, but he has been managing his groin and hip problem that he has had at the back end of the year with the Warriors," Hunt said.

"To not have him available to come into camp, just from a pure presence point of view, it definitely hurt us."

Niukore, 30, will land at the Knights after four seasons with the Warriors, which followed five at the Eels. He has played 166 NRL games, but made only nine appearances in 2026. He also played nine NSW Cup games.

Niukore might be locked in for the next three seasons, but Saifiti is about to enter the final year of his contract at the Knights.

After a self-described "weird" and "whirlwind" year, which included being picked for NSW and going unused on the bench, and then missing a grand final, Saifiti confirmed he would wait until after the World Cup to sort out his future beyond 2027.

Saifiti's future is up in the air beyond 2027. Picture by Marina Neil

Fiji's last pool game is against New Zealand on October 31, which means he will leave camp the next day on November 1, when he can formally start to talk to other clubs.

"I'm definitely going to November 1," he said on Sunday. "I told my manager before the World Cup if we don't get anything done before [it] ... I'll put all my focus on Fiji. It would be a disservice to the jersey if I'm not focusing on Fiji. I've put that on the back-burner."

Fiji might be $34 outsiders to topple Australia but coach Mick Potter believes they can cause an historic upset.

The Bati mentor wasn't too pleased with how his troops let Cook Islands back into the game, but after producing some fine football in the first half, Fiji should head to Brisbane confident of at least matching it with the Kangaroos early on.

"Given it's a two-horse race, as far as I'm concerned, there's a chance to be able to upset them," Potter, a former Knights assistant, said.

Fiji claimed a 28-point win over Cook Islands in Newcastle. Picture by Jonathan Carroll

In seven Tests against Australia since 1995, the closest Fiji has come to victory is a 32-4 loss at the 2013 World Cup in England.

Saifiti said the squad could draw on Newcastle's finals run for inspiration, and also Fiji's 4-2 win over New Zealand in the 2017 World Cup quarter-finals.

"I've seen first-hand what belief can do to a side, every semi-final and the grand final, everyone wrote us off but we kept turning up," Saifiti said.

"One thing with belief or confidence is you can't just manufacture it ... we've got to get our evidence this week at training; train hard, train steely and then turn up to Australia.

"Don't get me wrong, I know we're up against it, but in 2017 we beat New Zealand.

"I've seen more unlikely things happen."

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