The Swire Shipping Fijian Drua are gearing up for their upcoming clash on Saturday against the Blues in the Shop N Save Super Rugby Pacific, and coach Mick Bryne is optimistic about their chances.
Bryne acknowledges that the Blues are a top team and play an exciting style of rugby, as seen in their recent match against the Waratahs. However, he believes that the Fijian Drua can match the Blues’ physicality.
“Our belief is a big key,” Bryne said. “We’ve got to believe. We talked about being in our second year, earning the right to be in this competition and I think we’ve shown people at times that we can compete at this level. What we need to do is show 80 minutes of consistency. We’ve got 80 minutes of fitness. We know that because we’ve shown that over the last few weeks against the top sides, we can come back in that last minute and play well. It’s just probably staying in the game, having that urgency at the start of the game, and that comes with confidence. The confidence to go out and take on the side. If we can start our home game this Saturday like we did against the Rebels, and it’ll be a pleasing way to start the game.”
Bryne also called attention to the importance of the upcoming game in their campaign to secure a spot in the top eight, as they face teams that are fighting for the same spot on the ladder.
The games against the Hurricanes and Blues at home, present a great opportunity for the Fijian Drua to continue their strong home performance and secure wins.
“We’ve got two games against top teams, Hurricanes, and Blues, and then we’ve got two away games and two home games with teams that are all fighting around the same spot we are,” Bryne said.
“The last four games are against teams that are either sitting around about us on the ladder or below us on the ladder. So, we’ve got to take great competence into those games. If we want to be in the finals, we have to beat those teams because they’re the teams we’re fighting for that eighth spot. The next two weeks are a great opportunity for us at home to continue our performance at home and grab a couple of wins there, that will be a great way to set off the last four games of the year. So, right now we’re just looking at what we need to do against Blues.”
The game will kick off at 2.05pm at Churchill Park in Lautoka.
The Drua’s forthcoming games:
R11 vs Hurricanes (Saturday 6 May, Suva)
R12 vs Force (Friday 12 May, Away)
R13 vs Tahs (Saturday 20 May, Away)
R14 vs Moana (Saturday 27 May, Lautoka)
R15 vs Reds (Saturday 3 June, Suva)
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Photo: File
