Fijian Drua and Moana Pasifica will square off in Super Rugby’s “Super Weekend”
Round one results for the Fijian Drua against the Auckland-based Blues and Moana Pasifika against the Dunedin-based Highlanders dashed hopes for a more daring start to the new season. However, both teams displayed potential that they intend to build upon as the season goes on. They will have an opportunity to do so on Saturday during Super Rugby’s “Super Weekend,” which will see all of the games played in Melbourne.
In their first-round encounter played under cover in Dunedin, Moana Pasifika led the Highlanders 18–14 at halftime before falling 35–21. Under new head coach Tana Umaga, the Auckland-based club performed well in the first half but faltered in the second, and Umaga admitted that his team has a propensity to lose interest in games toward the end.
Umaga stated, “It’s clearly an area that we saw last year that we knew we had to correct.” “You cannot compete for thirty to forty minutes at this level of play. At the end, we most likely still plunged off a cliff. We can improve in that area. As the season progresses, Moana Pasifika’s debut performance might seem more appropriate. As the season progresses, the Highlanders have the ability to challenge some of the stronger clubs in the competition.
Regarding the Drua, the same is true. The Blues weren’t playing at their best the previous weekend, but when they are and have access to the entire All Black roster, they could be the club to beat this year. Umaga thinks his team’s performance will seem better in retrospect and will set them up nicely for their third Super Rugby Pacific season.
He declared, “We’re proud of the effort.” “Going into the game, I doubt anyone would have predicted that the halftime score would have been as high as it was. All we need to do is accumulate more time and moments spent together.”
Mick Byrne, the coach of Drua, thinks his squad can learn from their defeat to the Blues as well. The Fijian team had a strong start, but they were severely penalized for indiscretions early in the game and were unable to recover from a halftime disadvantage.
“Review the first twenty-five minutes.” We need to address it because after making 23 phases to open the game and dropping the ball, we gave up penalties in the following 25 minutes. Byrne
“We played with good energy and momentum from the start of the match. We also need to consider the fact that it would have been good to cross the line there and begin the game that way. self-control. In the first twenty-five, we gave up eight penalties. From there, it’s a hard kick.
One of the attractions of the Super Weekend, which will take place in a city where rugby is barely surviving, is the match between Moana Pasifika and the Drua. When the Rebels play the Western Force on Friday, the home team has an opportunity to uplift the spirits of their supporters.
In their opening-round games, both teams were soundly defeated: the Rebels lost to the ACT Brumbies, while the Perth team lost to the Hurricanes in Wellington.The Highlanders and Blues, winners of the first round, play first on the weekend. In a rematch of last year’s championship game, the Christchurch-based Crusaders lost their opening game to the Hamilton-based Chiefs. They now play the New South Wales Waratahs in the second encounter of the season between Australian and New Zealand sides.
The Queensland Reds, who will now play the Hurricanes, defeated the Waratahs to begin the season. On Sunday, the Chiefs play the Brumbies in what may be the game of the weekend.