Australia will be seeking to right the wrongs of last year’s inaugural Pacific Championships after Mal Meninga’s side were hammered 30-0 by New Zealand in the final.
The Kangaroos cruised through the tournament only to come spectacularly unstuck against the Kiwis in Hamilton.
"The Kangaroos got hammered in the final, and the Jillaroos got beaten by the Kiwi Ferns in their last game as well so … our aim this year is to prove to the world that both Australian teams are the best," Meninga said ahead of this year's tournament.
However, the national side will likely be without one of the game’s best forwards for their shot at redemption.
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Kangaroos suffer major Payne Haas injury blow ahead of Pacific Championships
Brisbane and New South Wales prop Payne Haas isn’t expected to feature in the Pacific Championships after being booked in for surgery on his foot.
This will mean Meninga will be without his two starting props from the side’s most recent Test match with Tino Fa'asuamaleaui sidelined for the majority of the season due to an ACL rupture.
The Broncos star suffered the issue towards the end of the NRL season but returned to the field after just three weeks on the sidelines in an attempt to boost his side’s slim chances of making the finals.
Yet the 24-year-old was unable to lift last year’s beaten grand finalists as they slumped to a horror loss against the Dolphins in the penultimate game of the regular season.
"He will probably be eliminated from the internationals at the end of the year and that is not good for Payne," Brisbane coach Kevin Walters revealed ahead of the club’s clash against Melbourne.
"But I really commend him for his efforts to get back on the field."
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Haas suffered a Lisfranc injury early on against the Gold Coast in Round 22, with initial fears that he would miss the remainder of the campaign.
However, the forward managed to return to action despite clearly still being hampered by the issue during the 40-6 defeat to the Dolphins.
"He showed what a true Bronco is, putting his body on the line for the club," Walters added.
"It just shows the kind of player Payne is and the type of person he is."
The Kangaroos will start their Pacific Championships campaign against Tonga at Suncorp Stadium on Friday, October 18.
