By Josh Graham at Halliwell Jones Stadium

Kristian Woolf admitted Tonga have underachieved at the World Cup after missing out on a semi-final rematch with England thanks to an agonising last-eight defeat to Samoa.

Former St Helens coach Woolf led his side all the way to the last four in 2017 and almost made the final only for a late comeback to end just short in a 20-18 defeat to this year's hosts Down Under.

And it was by the same scoreline that Tonga went crashing out of this World Cup at the hands of Matt Parish’s men, failing to meet their pre-tournament expectations of another last four finish.

Woolf said: “It was always going to be physical and close, it’s two good teams. We got exactly what we expected but we are obviously disappointed.

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“We know we weren’t quite at our best today and it’s a bit of a missed opportunity for us and that’s what is disappointing.

“I’m not quite sure why, whether the occasion got to us a little bit at the start. I thought Samoa beat us to the punch a little bit.

“They defended with a little bit more speed and certainly periods where they ran harder and got themselves on the front foot and we complicated that with errors that we don’t normally make or you just can’t make in those games.

READ MORE: Match Report: Tonga 18-20 Samoa

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“It meant we were on the back foot for a fair bit of the game. I thought we showed our class and our ability and kept ourselves in the game through that but to win that game and go further in that competition we needed to be better than what we were today.

“I feel like we underachieved a little bit. We expected from ourselves that we would be playing in the semi-finals and we’ve come up a little bit short there. We wanted the opportunities of the big games, we got that today but we wanted more of that.”

Tonga went in 12-10 down at half-time and the sides traded penalties after the break before Brian To’o extended Samoa’s lead only for Sione Katoa’s breakaway score to make it a two-point game and tee up a nervy finish.

However, Samoa held on to claim their first win in three against their Polynesian neighbours, securing a first-ever Rugby League World Cup semi-final and sending their fellow Pacific Islanders home empty handed.

Try stop Suaali'i!

Joseph Suaali'i with an incredible run to put Samoa in great position, before Brian To'o touches down to extend Samoa's lead.

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A packed-out crowd of 12,674 were treated to an absolute classic at Halliwell Jones Stadium and Woolf could not praise both sets of fans highly enough as they proved there is substantial appetite for top-level international rugby league.

He explained: “The passion is great, our fans are outstanding and people have travelled from all over the place to come and support the team. I’m disappointed we couldn’t get the result for them today.

“It’s also important to thank the English fans that turned up, and it’s great they’ve made the effort to come down and support a World Cup game.”

Woolf does not know what the future looks like but after nine years in the role is keen to bring back international windows and treat his fans to a special homecoming after the pandemic curtailed the action.

“We are not quite sure what is next. We know there are plans for international footy and windows but what I do know is the future is bright,” he added.

“I would love at some stage to take Tonga back to Tonga and play Samoa there, I think that would be outstanding and I’m sure Samoa would like us to go there as well at some stage."

The Rugby League World Cup promises to be the biggest, best and most inclusive event in the sport’s 127-year history with men’s, women’s and wheelchair teams competing in 61 games across 21 venues throughout England. Tickets are available via rlwc2021.com/tickets