When the Swire Shipping Fijian Drua clash with the Chiefs at Blake Park in Mount Maunganui, New Zealand today, it’s the first point of observation for the team in seeing what to brush up on and what their strengths are before the Super Rugby Pacific competition begins.
And for Tuidraki Samusamuvodre, he says it’s an ideal opportunity for him and his teammates to test out new combinations and structures.
“Well, this is something new for us, playing, first time for us to have a friendly game, warm up game against one of the New Zealand teams,” the utility backline player said.
“I think it’s a good start for us, a good foundation. We’ll try and build in the new combination with the new players and new moves that we planned in the pre-season and I think it will be a good test for us.”
The team has been putting in the hard yards in training at Blake Park, and the team is billeted at the Ngamuwahine Lodge outside Tauranga.
And with the pre-season trial match being a ground of observation, he shared how the fixture provided a key opportunity for the team to gauge their level of training in the pre-season especially with the variation in players in camp.
“Working with the new players and experienced players that just came in, for example Manasa and then the inclusion of Virimi (Vakatawa) has made a big difference in preparing for this year,” he said.
The Fijian Drua face the Chiefs at 2pm today.
