Jackson braces for scrum showdown against Hurricanes

Swire Shipping Fijian Drua head coach Glen Jackson expects a tough battle in the scrum against the Hurricanes in tomorrow’s round three of the Shop N Save Super Rugby Pacific competition.

The Drua’s scrum buckled under pressure in their 36-13 loss to the Waratahs in Sydney, Australia, last Friday.

The Drua tight five of Haereiti Hetet, Zuriel Togiatama, Mesake Doge, Isoa Nasilasila and Mesake Vocevoce would have to work overtime to contain their Hurricanes counterpart led by livewire hooker Asafo Aumua.

“There have been plenty of takeaways,” Jackson said.

“The Waratahs got away with their hit and chase and fair play to them. They’ve got a front row that was very smart.

“We’ve talked about making sure we get that right. I know the Hurricanes have a great scrum, so they’ll come hard at us.

“We’ve been top of the competition on our own ball for a long time in terms of scrum percentage. To have a game like that was a bit of a surprise for the boys.

“It’s good because it’s given them a bit of a hurry-up, the big boys. We’re looking forward to a good response this week.”

Jackson said the mood in camp remained positive despite the slow start.

“We want to have two wins on the board. We haven’t. It’s week two. There are three teams still without a win and it’s going to be a good battle,” he said.

“We’re under no illusion about this competition. The quality keeps getting better. But getting back home, we’re look-ing forward to this game.”

He said the Drua must play the full 80 minutes.

“It was a great 15 minutes against a quality side that is well coached. Talking to some of the Waratahs players, they were close to breaking. It’s about experience and leadership. We’ve just got to learn every week that staying in the game for 80 minutes is so important in Super Rugby.”

The match kicks-off at 3.30pm.