Vodafone Flying Fijians captain Akapusi Qera says their match against the Maori All Blacks exposed their strengths and weaknesses.

The match was the first in a series of internationals leading up to the 2015 Rugby World Cup in England.

Though they lost by one point, 27-26, Qera said there were still some positives to take back from the match.

“The one thing that was tested was our defence and we held up well in the first half and we dominated in the first half, which showed that we have good starting.

“It was great to see Benito Masilevu and Ben Volavola make an impressive debut and it was good to see them blending well and finding their place.

“We have a strong side and though we lost, this only means that we still have a lot to improve on and that is what we intend to do.”

Fiji led 26-10 at half time with an explosive start but fell back on momentum in the second half; Qera said they will need to improve on their weaknesses seen in the second half.

“Playing against this experienced side; we need to play the whole 80 minutes and that is something we need to work on,” Qera said.

“It was mainly lack of concentration that affected us in the second half and if we want to do well in our second game against Tonga, we need to seriously work and constantly improve.”

Meanwhile, Highlanders man of the match and Maori All Blacks flanker Elliot Dixon praised the Fijian side and said they would be a force to reckon at the World Cup.

“It was an awesome game today, I think that Fiji had more physicality throughout the whole match and really shocked us in the first 60 minutes,” Dixon said.

“We really didn’t know what to do until the last 20 minutes where we managed to get some good field position.

“This is a really good Fiji side and I think they will come into the World Cup and shock a lot of teams.

“I mean if they are good now, imagine how good they will be in a few months when the World Cup starts. I think they might even get out of their pool and hopefully in the quarterfinals.”

The Vodafone Flying Fijians will now gear up for Tonga on Saturday in the World Rugby Pacific Nations Cup before flying to North America to play Samoa in Sacramento and then Japan in Toronto.

Feedback:  oseab@fijisun.com.fj