Rebels maintain their winning streak in Moana Pasifika victory.
Andrew Kellaway, who performed admirably after switching from fullback to wing, sealed the victory two minutes from time by throwing Glen Vaihu through to score. Skipper Rob Leota, who left the field early due to a leg injury, described the victory as a step forward for a team that has won consecutive games for the first time since April 2022.
“This week, our goal was to win on the road and back-to-back. “We haven’t liked doing that in a long time,” he remarked. “We’re happy to have won on the road against a great team like Moana.”
“It was big for us just sticking in, we know how physical Moana can be, and we knew we had to be up for the challenge. “It’s a large forward pack, so I’m simply proud of the players who stayed in there and trusted the process.
After last weekend’s 48-34 victory against the Western Force, the Rebels’ uncompetitive first-up performance against the ACT is a distant memory as they surged up the table in the early rounds.
Melbourne, fresh from their second-half surge against the Force, appeared to be on pace for a comfortable win when they raced out to an early 19-3 lead. Kellaway scored in just five minutes, with his forwards assisting Ryan Louwrens and Vaiolini Ekuasi.
However, as the game progressed, the Pasifika team found their footing, with renowned All Black Julian Savea playing a key role in everything that went their way. He forced his way near the line for lock Allan Craig to score Moana’s first try, then crossed himself to set the Super Rugby Pacific record for most tries.
After being released by the Hurricanes, Savea, who has 61 career tries, joined Moana this offseason. Moana played the final 15 minutes with one player down, with Craig and Jacob Norris serving time in the sin bin. However, Savea blamed his team’s loss on their stunning start.
“We didn’t turn up, and it took a while, and against a good team like the Rebels, you can’t start like that,” he told reporters. “Physically, they beat us up early on, we just showed our talent too late.”Leota maintained there was still plenty of room for growth despite Melbourne’s 2-1 season record.
“We still feel like we’ve got so much growth in our squad, and we realise the depth we’ve got,” he told reporters. “We’re mixing those combinations, but coming into the season, getting more games together, I think we’re going to be a lot better as the season goes on.”