IT’S another week and another opportunity for the Fijian Drua to redeem themselves after a very disappointing result against the Waratahs in Suva last Saturday. But it won’t be easy in Perth tonight.
Mathematically, the Drua can still make the top six playoffs, but they’ll need to win their last two games on the road, preferably with bonus points, and hope the Reds, Waratahs and Highlanders don’t win another game.
It’s obviously not an ideal situation, and history is stacked against them as they’ve never won in Perth or Brisbane.
But if head coach Glen Jackson is looking for motivation there’s no shortage of it again this week. More boxes can be ticked.
Super Rugby Pacific is a tough tournament, and you really need to win all, or most of your home games.
The Drua finished with four wins and three losses in Fiji. When I look back, there are three halves of rugby that cost them dearly.
First half last week in Suva. The Waratahs raced to a 19-0 lead and eventually led by 29 points at the break, scoring six tries to one.
It was deeply disappointing for the fans who waited 14 weeks to see the Drua in the Capital. The Drua won the second half 28-14 but had to settle for a 15-point loss.
Second half in week nine in Lautoka. It was 7-6 to the Reds at half time but the Drua couldn’t score any second half points.
The Reds went on to win 21-6, scoring three tries to none. Lautoka was no longer the fortress it used to be.
First half in week one at Churchill Park. The Drua had a terrible start against Moana Pasifika and were down 21-0.
They trailed by 16 points at the break and even though they won the second half narrowly, they had to settle for a 14-point loss. The run of nine consecutive wins in Lautoka came to an end.
So, if they won just two more home games, they’d be in 6th spot and in with a realistic chance of making the play-offs.
Coach Jackson said he’d take all responsibility for last week’s first half meltdown in Suva, but the players need to take ownership.
The feeling was that the players needed to have a full week away from home base in the bye week as it had been a tough eight-week stretch, and the Coaches wanted to really freshen them up.
In hindsight it might have been better to get them back into training a few days earlier.
Maybe the bye week wasn’t a good thing anyway.
The momentum from the gutsy win over the Highlanders in Ba was lost in the first half in front of a good Suva crowd.
I hope fans keep the faith and turn out again next season when there should be more than one game in the Capital.
There were positives in the second half as the Drua outscored the Waratahs by four tries to two.
But overall, the mistake rate was too high and many scoring opportunities were squandered because 50-50 passes went to ground and crucial lineouts were lost.
So, this week it’s the toughest road trip for the Drua: Fiji to Perth, a city where the Drua have never tasted success.
In fact, they’ve lost their four games in WA by an average margin of 24 points. To make matters worse, the Force are in good form.
They’ve won three of the past four games and are chasing a third straight victory in Perth.
They sit two points ahead of the Drua and they play their last two games at home: the Drua tonight, and the Waratahs next week. They believe they are still in the playoff race.
Head Coach Simon Cron has extended his contract for another season and he’s named an unchanged forward pack.
There’s just one change in the starting backline with George Bridge ruled out and replaced by Bayley Kuenzle.
If Kurtley Beale comes off the bench he’ll go past Aaron Smith into third place on the all-time Super Rugby appearance list.
Beale will move to 186 caps, with just leader James Slipper and second placed Wyatt Crockett ahead of him.
Meanwhile it’s a new look Drua side with five changes in the starting pack, three in the backs and four new ‘finishers’ come into the match day 23.
It seems that Coach Jackson is giving some squad members a chance to gain some valuable game time before the new Coach takes over.
I mentioned earlier that there are some boxes still to be ticked.
The Drua have the chance to beat the Force for the first time in WA, just as they defeated the Brumbies in Canberra for the first time on their last outing in Australia five weeks ago.
A win tonight would deliver back-to-back victories in Australia for the first time in the club’s history.
The Drua have won only two games outside Fiji since Round 1 in 2023, and while it is difficult to see them causing an upset tonight, I hope they start well and give themselves every chance of staying in the contest.
I also hope they can help star back-rower Kitione Salawa celebrate his 50th appearance with a victory.
He’s been the Drua’s most consistent forward this season and deserves to become just the fifth player to reach 50 caps for the club.
Elia Canakaivata is on the bench tonight and has two games left to equal or surpass Iosefo Masi’s club record of 17 tries. Elia is currently on 15 and will be greatly missed when he heads to the UK next season.
Toso Drua Toso.
