Jason Taumalolo

The North Queensland captain told News Corp this week he has “the green light to play in Round 1 and that’s all that matters”.

But it’s unclear exactly what that means, as anyone entering a major sporting stadium in Queensland must be vaccinated, and Queensland Health says he has not sought an exemption.

The North Queensland captain told News Corp this week he has “the green light to play in Round 1 and that’s all that matters”.

But it’s unclear exactly what that means, as anyone entering a major sporting stadium in Queensland must be vaccinated, and Queensland Health says he has not sought an exemption.

The Sydney Morning Herald reports that promoter Paul Langi Kinikini wants to cough up the cash to bring the two mega stars to Utah.

The city has a large Tonga population and if it gets approved by international chiefs would be played in Salt Lake City.

League authorities would be wise to examine the fallout from the Kiwis vs England Test in Denver in 2018, which saw both the New Zealand and English federations out of pocket following Jason Moore’s failed event.

But Kinikini told The Sydney Morning Herald he didn’t have an issue with paying the cash up front.

Taumalolo says it is always overwhelming to see such support and they are looking forward to seeing the same turn out as the last one.

“It’s obviously hard to put in words. I guess the feeling does not become overwhelming until you take the field. So to be there alongside a crowd wearing red all around and singing the national anthem that’s when it really hits,” he said in an interview with NRL.com

Taumalolo said whenever fans sing a hymn or cheer that gives the boys a lift.

The $10 million man had a previous best game of 283 running metres, set in Round 15 of the 2017 season against Melbourne.

On a rainy Saturday night in front of a home crowd, he smashed his own record, steamrolling St George Illawarra for a total 301 metres according to Fox Sports Lab.

Taumalolo surpassed his own 283-metre record with 12 minutes still to play in the game. It took him 20 carries to do it, which took him to 287 metres for the night. He then had one more to crack the triple century.

Cowboys skipper Michael Morgan put it simply.

The 24-year-old giant is on a quest to improve each season and started cutting down on eating meat last year.

Taumalolo told NRL.com his vegetarian lead-in to games had helped him keep his weight down and increased his energy on the field.

"A lot of players tend to eat a lot of meat and I have cut that down by having three vegetarian meals a week leading into games," he said.

"That has helped me feel better and play better and I am going to stick with it.

The 24-year-old Cowboys powerhouse has told NRL.com that he has the support and encouragement of star halfback Johnathan Thurston to increase his offloads this season and create more second phase play for the side's attacking stars.

"Most people when they watch me play always see the destructive side, and think that all I can do is break tackles or run over someone," Taumalolo told NRL.com.

"Trying to find a pass would be nice and trying to play a bit of second phase also, so it would be great if I could develop that part of my game.

Days out from the Kiwis' squad being named for the tournament, Taumalolo made the shock decision to pledge allegiance to Tonga rather than his country of birth, neglecting to inform New Zealand officials along the way, leading to accusations of cowardice from both Kidwell and Kiwis captain Adam Blair.

But following Saturday's historic 28-22 victory over New Zealand, Taumalolo revealed regret at the way the situation played out.

"I definitely could have handled it a lot better to be honest, that was probably the biggest [regret]," Taumalolo said.

The team that was the talk of the World Cup prior to the tournament kicked off due to the high-profile inclusions of Jason Taumalolo and Andrew Fifita wasted no time to show that what is on paper will transfer to the field, Michael Jennings scoring the opening four-pointer of his first half hat-trick inside the first three minutes.

Kiwis coach David Kidwell has accused Jason Taumalolo of a lack of respect after his controversial decision to switch allegiance to Tonga.

Taumalolo - rated the best forward in world rugby league - opted to play for Tonga at the Rugby League World Cup after 10 caps for the Kiwis.

Kidwell told the Brisbane Courier Mail newspaper that Taumalolo's actions still rankled and he said there were no guarantees the North Queensland Cowboys star would play for the Kiwis again.