The Melbourne Rebels were blown off the park by the Fijian Drua in Suva.
By the time Kevin Foote's side found their feet, they were out of the game after a stunning first-half onslaught by the Drua, taking the 38-28 win
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The second half will fill them with confidence, however, it was far too late as the Drua record back-to-back home wins for the first time in their club's history
So what did we learn?
1. APRIL FOOLS AMBUSH
The Rebels were left still finding their bearings when the Drua stunned them with a barrage of early points.
Centre Ravouvou led the onslaught, setting up Ilaisa Droasese for the opener inside two minutes.
When Monty Ioane’s loose pass found Selestino Ravutaumada, the Suva crowd could barely contain itself as the hosts took a dream 12-0 lead inside four minutes.
Kevin Foote’s men started to find their feet shortly afterwards but a Fijian side with momentum is always tough to stop, leaving them trudging back to the dressing rooms down 33-7.
They started to gain ascendancy towards the end but ultimately, the game was well and truly out of reach.
2. MORE OF MASI
Whilst all the talk was about Joseph Suaalii this week, it’s another recent convert from the NRL that took this game over.
Sure it was a brief stint with the North Queensland Cowboys for Iosefo Masi but the Drua centre has shown the type of form that guided Fiji to an Olympic gold medal as he terrorises defences.
His combination with Kalaveti Ravouvou is deadly, sprinting through to score the third try of the game.
Masi just has an innate ability to beat a defender, finishing with six tackle busts to go with three offloads.
He has filled the boots of Vinaya Habosi perfectly and is a short-priced favourite for SRP Rookie of the Year in 2023
3. WELCOME BACK
Andrew Kellaway gave Eddie Jones a perfect reminder of his talent 24 hours before he selects his first Wallabies squad.
Kellaway came on after the break and instantly got involved, shrugging off a defender to score in the corner.
He then thumped the ball down the field minutes later for the 50-22, only for the rolling maul to be stopped illegally.
It speaks volumes of his impact when he ends up leading the team for meters (58) from just six carries.
4. PLAYING INTO THEIR HANDS
Kevin Foote preaches a fast and fearless style of play. Unfortunately, that’s the type of patterns and plays that are indoctrinated into Fijians from birth.
The styles of play from the respective sides were always going to lead to plenty of points but there were some necessary passes and poor kicking at times, allowing the Drua to control the game.
It’s a similar problem the Reds found with all their explosive weapons and a great lesson in how to combat the Drua, finding success when they kept it tighter.
5. THE SUVA EFFECT
The Waratahs must be cheering their away game against the Drua was in Melbourne because it’s going to be a seriously hard place to win in 2023.
Every hit, every tackle bust, every offload lights up the crowd, which the Fijians feed off.
The Drua finish the year with four home games out of their last six. Whilst they face the impressive Blues and Hurricanes during this period, don’t rule out Mick Byrne’s side from causing a few upsets and maintaining their spot in the top eight at the end of the year
