SWIRE Shipping Fijian Drua head coach Mick Byrne says players are in a far better shape this time around in comparison to last year heading into the 2023 Shop N Save Super Rugby Pacific tournament.
The Drua will kick off their Super Rugby campaign Against Moana Pasifika at Mt Smart Stadium in Auckland, New Zealand, on February 25.
This week, Byrne announced his 38-member squad at the team’s Home Base in Nadi with Olympic gold medalist Iosefo Masi headlining the new inclusions in the squad.
The team has been in camp the past few weeks and are holding nothing back after getting a taste of the top level competition last season “We have improved a lot from last season and we are ready for the upcoming season,” Byrne said.
“Last year, we came in as a brand new team and we were not happy with a lot of things.
“We did not quite get our games right at times.
“We made a few errors and all the teething problems of being a first-year Super Rugby team.”
Byrne said their opponents would be wary of the danger the Fijian Drua would pose.
“Players like Vinaya Habosi, Super Rugby teams did not know much about him last year including couple of our big boys representing the Flying Fijians,” he said.
“We have caught the eyes of Super Rugby coaches and there is a lot more information around our team now than last year, which is a challenge but it is also a challenge for us to make all those players better.”
The Drua will play six home games with the two finalists from last year — the Crusaders and the Blues — to show up at Churchill Park in Lautoka.
The Drua will host the Crusaders in Lautoka on March 11, the Blues on April 29 and Moana Pasifika on May 27.
At the HFC Bank Stadium, the side will be up against the Reds on March 19, the Hurricanes on May 6 and the Rebels on April 1.
