NEW APPROACH
Fiji Airways Drua to face Queensland Country in the NRC semifinal
Expect a revamped Fiji Airways Drua side when they take on Queensland Country in one of Australian National Rugby Championship semifinals.
Speaking after their 36-29 loss to Sydney Rays last Saturday, Drua head coach Senirusi Seruvakula said they are going to put in place a new game plan.
He indicated that this includes taking control of the game right from the first whistle.
“I’ve told the players that we cannot afford to play catch-up rugby,” the no-nonsense coach said.
They were trailing 29-0 against Sydney Rays before the fought back by scoring five tries but fell short in the end. Seruvakula also emphasised that the players should ensure that they have to be consistent with their performance while he works on their game plan.
“We will need to go back as a team and start working on our set-pieces, game plan as a whole to be able to stand a chance of winning the semifinal.”
The Drua missed six of their regular starters Joeli Veitayaki, Ratunaisa Navuma, Mosese Ducivaki, Mosese Voka, Frank Lomani and Alivereti Veitokani who have joined the Fiji Airways Flying Fijian for the Europe tour.
With centre Eroni Vasiteri suspended and prop Kalivati Tawake injured, Seruvakula had to field a new-look front row against Sydney Rays.
“Also, after analysing the game against Sydney Rays I felt the boys will need to pull up their socks and focus on taking each game at a time. “There are a few injuries in the side but we need to step-up and try to maintain consistency and also our discipline as well.
“More than 10 players who started off the season are not here so I believe in these boys to take us through and they need to be consistent.” The other semifinal is between Canberra Vikings and Perth Spirit.
The first NRC semifinal is set for November 4 while the second one is on November 5 with the final to be played on November 11.