Why I joined the Drua, winger tells

Fijian Drua veteran winger Manasa Mataele commended his troops for their historic away win after 34 Shop N Save Super Rugby Pacific matches.

Drua upset the highly fancied ACT Brumbies 33-28 at the GIO Stadium in Canberra, Australia, last Saturday night.

Speaking during an interview, Mataele said the win meant so much to the team.

“As we expected, a good side like the Brumbies, we knew what was coming and it is something we have been working on,” he said.

Mataele added that it was the topic among the players throughout the week on trying to break the away game losing jinx.

“This is the national team, and our away record hasn’t been great. It’s something we’ve talked about—our away form has been inconsistent,” the 29-year-old said.

Mataele finished off a Drua attack in the 14th minute, following a good combination between Isikeli Basiyalo and Sikeli Rabitu that took play into the Brumbies 22-metre zone.

He then scored this second try in the 28th minute, after he intercepted a Brumbies passing movement, with Isaiah Armstrong- Ravula’s conversion sending the Drua to a 15-7 lead.

“One of the reasons why I wanted to join the Drua is for moments like this.

“Credit to the boys for the hard work and getting the win just not for us but for everyone back home,” he said.

Brumbies captain Ryan Lonergan said his side put themselves under pressure, allowing a fired-up Drua to take control.

“Very disappointing,” he said.

“The Drua applied a lot of pressure and scored some great tries. We dug ourselves into a hole at times.”

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