Reece Walsh says "the body's a bit sore" after his first game back for Australia from a long layoff. Kevin Walters checked his ankle and promised him a chance once it was right. Walsh doesn't know his role against Fiji but will play wherever Walters needs him.
James Tedesco will play for Australia against Fiji and "make a headache" for Kevin Walters, Reece Walsh thinks. Walsh says Walters isn't "sold on anyone's position" and offered him hooker; he declined, saying Blayke Brailey "is good to get a game there".
Changes to England's 17 for France after the Tonga loss? "It's never a no," Brian McDermott said. "I didn't wake up thinking that team needs to change." He will look at it over the next 72 hours, and expects a "stronger" France after their loss to Samoa.
Jacob Saifiti is back with Fiji after years away, his four-week suspension served. Mick Potter didn't see it coming: "It was fantastic. It was unexpected, but yeah, he's a great acquisition."
Valentine Holmes, who missed the Cook Islands' loss to Fiji coming back from a syndesmosis injury, has been cleared by the Dragons, Karmichael Hunt said: "he'll be on the plane with us to Christchurch and he'll be able to be selected." Next up: New Zealand.
Marata Niukore, the Cook Islands co-captain, missed the loss to Fiji with the groin and hip problem he has been managing. Karmichael Hunt said: "to not have him available to come into camp, just from a pure presence point of view, it definitely hurt us."
Esan Marsters came into the Cook Islands camp with a partially ruptured Achilles, Karmichael Hunt said, and is still a few games from his best. Taking him off around the 55th minute against Fiji "was really just about getting some fresher legs on there." New Zealand is next.
Tonga lost Latu Fainu early against England, forcing a bench rethink. Kristian Woolf: "I'm not sure how bad that is just yet." Demitric Vaimauga passed his HIA but stayed off with a split. Woolf will "see how we go"; recovery comes first on the short turnaround to Lebanon.
England have no injuries from the loss to Tonga, "none as of yet," Brian McDermott said, and the game plan isn't changing: "We just got to be more patient and not cough the ball up as much as we did." With two pool games left, "We've got to win the next 2 games."
Lebanon lost Charbel Tasipale "very late in the warm-up" against Papua New Guinea; Michael Cheika gave no detail on why or for how long. Winger Abbas Miski moved to the edge of the back row, covering with Mikael Ibrahim. No other injuries, Cheika said: "we seem pretty good."
Deine Mariner came off as a precaution and will have a scan on 17 October to "see how bad it is and move forward from there," Samoa coach Ben Gardiner said. He said the early stage of the tournament and Samoa's early lead made it safer to take him off.
Francis moved off the edge and played 80 minutes in the middle. Samoa coach Ben Gardiner said the switch was agreed in Newcastle about two and a half months ago and never trialled: "We'd made that decision a long time ago that he was going to play there."
France lost winger Leo Darrelatour to a failed HIA against Samoa, Laurent Frayssinous said, after losing Julian Bousquet and Alrix Da Costa in the buildup: "the preparation has been a bit disrupted. That's not an excuse." Halfback Cesar Rouge had 15 minutes off before returning.
"Super League is better every year, but maybe not that fast as the NRL." Laurent Frayssinous said the gap is widening, and France hadn't been together since playing Jamaica last October: "That's a big gap when you play Samoa." He wouldn't commit to changes for England.
Kodi Nikorima and Jahrome Hughes are New Zealand's halves. Stacey Jones said Hughes has long been in the squad but injuries kept him out the last couple of years. On Nikorima, after a fantastic year for the Dolphins: "I just think his footy is too good to keep him out."
Mitchell Moses has scans on 16 October on a leg injury Australia coach Kevin Walters said is "not so much his calf, it's more the side of his leg." If Moses is ruled out of the tournament, shadow player Ethan Strange can come in, but Walters didn't commit either way.
Sam Walker will play Australia's next Test with Tom Dearden moved to five-eighth, a halves pairing never used together as 6 and 7. "We'll put Tom at 5/8," Kevin Walters said, though he isn't yet sure how they go injury-wise. James Tedesco will be fullback.
Reece Walsh played Australia's win over New Zealand after eight weeks out and was "cramping and vomiting and all sorts of things," Kevin Walters said, too spent to take the goal-kicking. Isaah Yeo called it "a massive effort to not play for 8 weeks."
Erin Clark is at the centre of New Zealand's halves work in camp, with the playmakers building their combinations around him at lock. From New Zealand's media availability: "I think it's just more combination stuff... he's just been a great lock for the last couple years."
Dane Gagai has played for Australia, Queensland, the Māori All-Stars and the Indigenous All-Stars, and says New Zealand is "the last thing for me to do." He is yet to take the field for them: "I'll be doing everything I can to hopefully get a spot on that team."
Kalyn Ponga on choosing New Zealand: "Connecting to my culture is a journey for me. I've been in Australia for a while, but who I am is back home." Dane Gagai on fullback: "There's a lot of talent within that number 1 position. We've got Kalyn, Keano" – Ponga and Keano Kini.
Jahrome Hughes says the niggle he came off with in his last game of the season was minor: "It was just a precautionary one... trained really well." From New Zealand's media availability: Hughes was a little sick recently, the only reason he has a room to himself in camp.
Junior Paulo's knee hasn't come up, Samoa coach Ben Gardiner said on 6 October: "He's ready to go, he's been training." Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow, injured for last year's Pacific tournament, is "raring to go". Terrell ruled himself out weeks before the tournament.
Jarome Luai is expected to play halfback for Samoa, coach Ben Gardiner calling the co-captain "our most experienced player in that area." The brief for him at 7: "he's best when he does run the ball. So we'll be encouraging him to do that first and foremost."