Rugby-Fijian Drua fired up for Super Suva homecoming

Fijian Drua's debut Super Rugby season has been a baptism of fire for the expansion side but spirits are high among the playing group ahead of Saturday's emotional homecoming in Suva against the Otago Highlanders. One of two Pasifika teams to join the competition this year, the Mick Byrne-coached Drua were camped on the east coast of Australia for the first part of the season to avoid logistical challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Fijian Drua's debut Super Rugby season has been a baptism of fire for the expansion side but spirits are high among the playing group ahead of Saturday's emotional homecoming in Suva against the Otago Highlanders.

One of two Pasifika teams to join the competition this year, the Mick Byrne-coached Drua were camped on the east coast of Australia for the first part of the season to avoid logistical challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. Barring a joyous 31-26 win over the Melbourne Rebels in round three, they have struggled against experienced Australian and New Zealand opponents.

Their 35-18 loss to the Auckland Blues in Melbourne over the weekend was their eighth defeat from nine games, leaving them second from bottom of the competition, just ahead of the other expansion side Moana Pasifika. However, for a team built from scratch with only a few seasoned professionals, the Drua have far from embarrassed themselves, and the Fijian capital is buzzing ahead of Saturday's clash at the National Stadium, the team's first on home soil.

"It's been awesome, just all of the support the Fijian people have been showing," Drua lock Isoa Nasilasila told Reuters on Wednesday. "It's a pretty crazy experience to be honest, people coming up for photos and autographs all the time. We're expecting all the tickets to be sold out."

Rugby-mad Fiji has long exported its brightest talents, while missing out on the professional pathways that are available in richer, foreign markets. The Drua, who played in Australia's defunct lower-tier National Rugby Championship and won the title in 2018, now offer an incentive for local players to develop their game much closer to home.

The Drua's inclusion in Super Rugby has also hitched a ride on the wave of support generated by Fiji's world class sevens programmes and Olympic success. The Fijian men defended their Olympic sevens gold in Tokyo last year and the women took bronze.

The rapid development of the women's 15's programme has also been a source of pride, with Fijiana Drua claiming Australia's top club championship over the weekend with victory over the Sydney-based New South Wales Waratahs in the Super W final. The team's dominance of Australian opponents bodes well for Fiji's hopes of making an impression at their debut women's Rugby World Cup in New Zealand in October-November.

On the men's side, Fijian Drua's tough introduction to Super Rugby may ultimately add depth to the country's squad for the World Cup in France next year as more players are exposed to elite competition and coaching. Fans will get a sense of Drua's development against the Dunedin-based Highlanders, who also have a 1-8 record and are the worst performing among New Zealand's five established teams.

Win or lose, the home side will rejoice in playing their usual brand of running rugby in front of family and friends. "For some of them, it's been six or seven months since they've seen their wives and children," said Nasilasila of his team mates.

"It'll be a hard, brutal game but we'll be playing our natural game because we know that's what the fans want."