Swire Shipping Fijian Drua head coach Mick Byrne said his side’s physicality was one of the main factors in their 39-3 loss to the Highlanders at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin, New Zealand.
“The Highlanders were more physical than us today, so we learned a lesson there.
“They were also more disciplined than us especially in the ruck area, where they also capitalised on loose carries,” Byrne said.
Despite the temperature being 7 degrees Celsius in Dunedin, Byrne says the weather shouldn’t be an excuse for their loss.
“There’s no weather conditions because we played in a closed stadium but the boys have played in temperatures like this before so it’s not new.”
The Drua remain in eighth place with 21 points and will face seventh-placed Melbourne Rebels in Lautoka this Saturday.
Byrne said his boys were beaten at the ruck, an area the side needed to work on.
“We had plenty possession but we couldn’t just keep and look after the ball. We just need to recover and build up for our next game, and we just need to make sure we look after the ball in our next match against the Rebels.”
He also thanked their fans for coming all the way from Fiji to New Zealand to show their support for the team.
“The fans are awesome you know they dug deep to come here and watch the boys for their game here in New Zealand.
