THE clock is ticking to a new season of competition for the Swire Shipping Fijian Drua, and once it hits game day there will be no looking back for head coach Glen Jackson and his team once the Drua sets sail.
Part of ensuring all systems are in place before the start of the Shop N Save Super Rugby Pacific competition is their pre-season trial match against the Chiefs tomorrow.
The Drua will face the Chiefs at Blake Park in Mt Maunganui, New Zealand at 2pm Fiji time.
From Fiji to New Zealand
It will also be the first glimpse fans and supporters will have of what the team can offer this season and its hopes of breaking their away-game losing jinx.
The team flew to New Zealand on Monday, with spirits high among the Frank Lomani and Temo Mayanavanua co-captained side, as they ventured into Chiefs country.
Both sides have a varied history of clashes that has always weighed heavily and in favour of the home team.
This time around, the team will also give fans a chance to witness new signings such as Mayanavanua, Issak Fines-Leleiwasa, Manasa Mataele, Angelo Smith, Joji Nasova and Iosefo Namoce who will be given the opportunity to showcase their potential and prowess.
In Mt Maunganui, the team had the opportunity to undergo training sessions and to visit the community there.
Aftermath arrival
Set on a peninsula, the Fijian Drua arrive there following a concerning time for its residents who are slowly picking up the pieces following a landslide last Thursday due to a sustained period of heavy rain.
It had slipped down into the Mt Maunganui Beachside Holiday Park, resulting in the loss of six lives.
The Fijian Drua and the Chiefs gathered on the beach to pay their respects to them and sang the iTaukei hymn Au rai vei kemuni in paying their respects.
The mission ahead
During the team’s Media Content Day at its homebase in Nadi earlier this month, head coach Glen Jackson emphasised how tough competition would become once the season kicked off and with it, the start of the 30th edition of the Super Rugby Pacific competition.
And with the teams who have been in the mix since it began in 1996 when it was once known as the Super 12, Jackson understands his team would be punching above its weight to charge through the established forces against them.
“It’s a massive difference between 30 and five (years) so we’re always learning as a club, as a country, as an organisation,” Jackson said.
Other pre-season fixture:
Friday, January 30:
-Blues v Hurricanes, Sacred Heart College, Auckland, New Zealand at 12.30pm;
-Crusaders v Highlanders, Fraser Park, Timaru, New Zealand, 2.30pm;
-Western Force v ACT Brumbies, Scotch College, Perth, Australia, 8.35pm.
Saturday, January 31:
-Queensland Reds v NSW Waratahs, Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane, Australia, 3pm.
Thursday, February 5:
-ACT Brumbies v NSW Waratahs – Marist College Rugby Grounds, Canberra, Australia, 2.30pm.
Friday, February 6:
-Highlanders v Moana Pasifika – Queenstown Events Centre, Queenstown, New Zealand; 1.30pm.
-Blues v Crusaders: Onewa Domain, Auckland, New Zealand, 2pm.
-Fijian Drua v Skipper Select XV, Churchill Park, Lautoka, 4pm.
The Fijian Drua will open their 2026 Super Rugby Pacific season against Moana Pasifika at Churchill Park in Lautoka on Saturday, February 14.
