High-intensity clash for Drua
SWIRE Shipping Fijian Drua head coach Mick Byrne anticipates a high-intensity clash in their upcoming quarter-Ɲnal against the Auckland Blues at Eden Park on Saturday night.
Recognising the challenge of facing the second-ranked team while Ɲnishing eighth themselves, Byrne stresses the importance of learning from past experiences, such as their quarter-Ɲnal loss to the Crusaders last year.
“Its a big challenge for us in this quarter-Ɲnal, last year we beat the Crusaders during the year, and they beat us on their home ground in the quarter-Ɲnal.
“We know it will be quarter-Ɲnal intensity. We learnt from last year and the team is aware and will step up on their preparation and performance so its a big challenge.
“When you Ɲnish in seventh or eighth place in the competition you play the top two teams, you are playing against the favourites that’s the challenge itself,” Byrne explained.
The Drua team aims to stick to their distinctive style of rugby for the match, focusing on their physicality.
“When you get into the Ɲnals, its added pressure we just play our brand of football, and we look forward to put on our physicality this weekend.”
As Byrne prepares for his Ɲnal quarter-Ɲnal with the team, he eagerly anticipates observing the players’ growth over the coming years.
Byrne expresses conƝdence in the team’s ability to overcome the Blues on Saturday and stresses their commitment to rigorous training in the week ahead.
“This week the focus around the team is to get ready for the quarter-Ɲnals, there are those moments when you look at those years.
“It’s very comforting to look at how players adapted to the environment and look forward to see how they have progressed in the next few years we will get through Saturday and have another good week of training,” Byrne stressed.