Rewa, in the midst of preparing for its Extra Battle of the Giants 2025 semi-final clash against defending champions Lautoka this Saturday, are holding their cards tight in the lead-up to the match.
The Delta Tigers, sponsored by Lincoln Refrigeration, booked their semi-finals ticket after finishing top of Group B last weekend.
Lincoln Rewa secured a 2-0 win over fellow semi-finalist Navua, a 3-0 win over Nadi and solidified their spot for this week with a 2-0 defeat of Suva last Sunday.
For assistant coach Priyant Mannu, he acknowledged the strength prevalent within the Sugar City side.
“Well, Lautoka is a very good side laced with a lot of reps and good training staff also, so I know they will come up with a plan to beat us and we’ll have to look at the previous games between Lautoka and build on what we can do,” Mannu said.
Speaking at his home in Vuci, Nausori, he acknowledged the existence of pressure on the Delta Tigers in aiming to triumph over the defending champions.
“There is pressure always in football, especially in the local stages. The fans expect a lot from us,” he stressed.
“Rewa hasn’t won a tournament in the past four to five years, so this is a huge pressure on us, but we’ll take it game by game and we’ll see what comes up on Saturday.”
With these factors in mind, it also comes with the understanding of how crucial Saturday’s showdown would be.
“As you know, the semi-final is a knockout game. Any team we face will come out prepared, so we’ll have to be on our top performance,” he said.
Rewa will face Lautoka in the first semi-final at 2pm, at Subrail Park in Labasa.