Discipline will be the immediate priority for the Marist Brothers High School (MBHS) U16 rugby team after they received eight yellow cards in their 29-16 Southern Zone quarter-final victory against Dudley High School (DHS) at Ground One of the Suva Grammar School grounds in Nasese yesterday.
While their opponents also picked up several yellow cards, MBHS U16 captain Able Epeli highlighted the team’s alarming number of penalties as an urgent area for improvement ahead of the semi-finals.
“We really need to work on our discipline after the eight yellow cards that were issued to us today (yesterday). We need to really improve on that before the semi-finals,” he said.
“We also need to work on our communication, our tackling, and our passing, and that’s something we will discuss when we regroup next week.”
The victory came at a cost, with several players sustaining injuries during the fiercely contested match.
Epeli acknowledged the challenge posed by DHS, who left everything on the field, demonstrating the pride and passion both teams have in representing their schools.
“I just want to thank DHS for the great game they gave us. They never backed down and showed us where we need to improve during the semi-finals,” he said.
The utility back understands what’s at stake next week and described yesterday’s match as a humbling lesson for him and the team.
“It was a great humbling lesson for me and the team,” he added, gearing up for the crucial semi-final showdown.
