1News sports reporter Patrick McKendry bought a ticket and watched Moana play the Drua at North Harbour Stadium. He got value for money.
Super Rugby’s battle for the Pacific took place in fading light yesterday afternoon at North Harbour Stadium on the edge of the large shopping precinct in Albany – two teams trading on hope and goodwill playing next to a sprawling magnet of capitalism.
Was it such an obvious clash of cultures? No. Some of the players and coaches involved yesterday are earning a lot of money playing and talking about a game they love, and, besides which, the game was broadcast around the world on subscription television, so plenty are clipping the proverbial ticket.
But if there is ever going to be a game that elevates concepts like belonging and finding your place in the world then it’s this one between Moana Pasifika and the Fijian Drua, the two competition newcomers, and all for a relatively cheap $30 for an adult and $10 for a child (plus the service fee of $6.35, of course).
The rain stayed away and so the people came in their thousands – both Moana and Drua flags were handed out and some families waved both – and, once the Anzac formalities and on-field challenges were complete the two teams went at it with intensity, occasional ferocity and no little skill.
I said “battle” at the start, but this was of course nothing of the sort.
It was a celebration more than anything and here in the unlikely confines of what still appears to be an unfinished stadium, albeit one not without a certain charm when the weather is right and the company is good, two teams and several nationalities came together in a triumph of ambition and resilience.
Moana, who were initially based at Mt Smart Stadium when they joined Super Rugby in 2022, played only one match at North Harbour last season.
They played home games in Pukekohe, Hamilton and Whangārei – and even Eden Park against the Blues – but appear to have found a niche on the North Shore which, against the odds perhaps, just works.
Last year they owned their demanding schedule as being consistent with their nomadic Pasifika DNA but it was unsustainable on several fronts.
We’ll get to another reason why the future appears far brighter for Moana now but in the meantime credit should go to those responsible for adding these two Pacific teams to the competition which is now far more representative of the area in which it is played.
Moana Pasifika’s Sir Bryan Williams and Sir Michael Jones yesterday literally opened the doors to allow the two teams to run on to the pitch together and the two former All Black greats have been instrumental to the development of the nascent franchise in terms of their vision and perseverance.
The Drua, too, have not been without their teething troubles, although they had six wins last year and made the quarter-finals when finishing seventh of 12 teams – better than the defending champion Crusaders who won only four and finished ninth. Moana finished 11th.
'Vibes'
The Drua are also succeeding in different ways. They are unbeaten in seven matches in Lautoka but are struggling on the road and yesterday their struggles continued against a side in the ascendant (we’ll describe last weekend’s dispiriting 24-0 defeat to the Brumbies in Pukekohe as a blip).
The support appeared even for the two teams – and perhaps a little more vocal for the Drua.
For Moana the vibes were high, as you can imagine, as Julian Savea led them out in celebration of his 300th first class match, followed by brother and skipper Ardie – the first time the pair have played together for the team.
It’s important to describe the atmosphere because, having been present for dozens and dozens of games at Eden Park, the vibes were very different.
From what I could see from our seats in the stand near the halfway line, no one was obviously intoxicated, there was a wide range of ages, and the general feeling was one of excited anticipation rather than heavy expectation – reminiscent, actually, of the Black Ferns Tests at Eden Park during the World Cup in 2021.
The cultural performance by the Samoan Dance Group from Avondale College was also one of the better halftime diversions I have seen for its mix of humour and timing.
There was good-natured laughter at the players’ mistakes as both teams showed an eagerness and impatience in the first quarter that was perhaps understandable but did little to help their flow.
Indeed, the players even occasionally smiled at other when the ball was in play – like Drua fullback Vuate Karawalevu as he went to tackle Ardie Savea.
Danny Toala and Lalomilo Lalomilo were hard workers in the midfield for the home side, with William Havili brave and inventive at the back and halfback Jonathan Taumateine a player in perpetual motion.
English lock Tom Savage was a true physical presence for 80 minutes, while the imposing loose forward trio Miracle Fai’ilagi, who scored two tries, Semisi Tupou Ta’eiloa, who carried from the proverbial back fence in one collision for the ages, and Ardie must be considered one of the better combinations in the competition.
Ardie is without compare and his “try” when he kicked ahead after being put in a difficult position while being edged towards the touchline by the defence and then caught the ball on the bounce to go over was spectacular, only for the match officials to find an apparent knock-on in the build-up which ruled it out.
Truly, this was the only joyless incident of the afternoon and how officials can find a reason to rule out scores such as these and yet be powerless to alert a referee to an obvious mistake during a game defies belief.
On the bright side, it underlined once again Ardie’s talent. It’s why many in the crowd came along and why so many players who aspire to be as good will feel that Moana is the place for them too.
It brought to mind a quote Sir Michael Jones gave to RNZ in February about Savea’s signing from the Hurricanes.
"It further legitimises and validates everything we've dreamed of and worked for,” he said.
Sir Michael was also right when he told RNZ in February: "It's about time for us to grow up, I think expectations of not only our own fans, but the general rugby public is that Moana need to prove that we're a legitimate contender. For our stakeholders that are believing in us, we really have to get there this year."
Moana’s six-tries-to-two bonus-point 34-15 victory over the Drua put them up to eighth place and on 20 competition points.
The top six make the playoffs and they are only two competition points believe the fifth-placed Hurricanes (with the same number of wins).
This year, with the right support and a bit of luck, they might be contenders.
Afterwards, I asked the 14-year-old if he enjoyed it. “Yeah,” he said.
Why?
He replied: “The atmosphere.”
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