Tonga, Fiji and PNG had their places in the draw confirmed initially,[2] with the Cook Islands defeating Samoa in a Pacific Cup qualifier in Cairns on 17 October 2009 to decide which team took the final place in the tournament.[2]
The four Pacific Cup matches were played at Lloyd Robson Oval on 24–25 October and 31 October.[2] The Pacific Cup final was played on 1 November 2009 between Papua New Guinea and the Cook Islands.[2] By winning the 2009 Pacific Cup, Papua New Guinea won the right to compete in the 2010 Four Nations tournament.
FM100 radio broadcast to Papua New Guinea and the Pacific.
In Papua New Guinea EM TV broadcast terrestrially to more than half of the population.
Fiji TV broadcast the games in Fiji on its free to air service Fiji One and on its Sky Pacific platform to the rest of the Pacific Region.
Squads
Mate Ma'a Tonga
Tonga played a Pacific Cup warm up match against New Zealand. New Zealand defeated Tonga 40–24 in what was a strong performance by the Tongans as they prepared for their Pacific Cup opener against Papua New Guinea.[4]