The Fijian Drua produced a stunning second-half comeback to defeat the Hurricanes 25-20 in deplorable conditions at Churchill Park on Saturday afternoon, ending a two-match winless start to their Super Rugby Pacific campaign and extending their remarkable home winning streak to 10 consecutive matches.
Key moments
6 mins – PENALTY DRUA: Isaiah Armstrong-Ravula opens the scoring with a penalty from 42m after the Hurricanes are penalised for going off their feet at the breakdown. (Drua 3–0 Hurricanes)
12 mins – TRY HURRICANES: Fehi Fineanganofo opens the visitors’ account. The Hurricanes play on quickly with a quick tap as Josh Moorby zips towards the posts and offloads. They recycle and spread it wide left to Fineanganofo, who cruises over in the corner. Jordie Barrett pushes his conversion wide. (Drua 3–5 Hurricanes)
17 mins – DRUA DENIED: Tuidraki Samusamuvodre loses it forward reaching for the line after a crisp offload finds him in space. A coast-to-coast counter-attack comes to nothing and the Hurricanes clear to halfway.
25 mins – TRY HURRICANES: Peter Lakai burrows over from the driving maul. Warner Dearns takes the lineout as the Hurricanes’ pack powers towards the line, with Lakai at the back latching on to score the visitors’ second. Barrett’s conversion drifts wide again. (Drua 3–10 Hurricanes)
30 mins – TRY DRUA: Motikiai Murray powers over to level proceedings. Barrett’s deep kick is fielded by Ilaisa Droasese, who sends a high ball back that Callum Harkin spills backwards. The Drua scramble onto the loose ball 6m out, swing it to Mesake Vocevoce for a direct carry, and Murray slips through one tackle before willing himself over under the posts. Armstrong-Ravula converts. (Drua 10–10 Hurricanes)
33 mins – TRY HURRICANES: Billy Proctor restores the visitors’ lead on the stroke of half-time. The Hurricanes maul it forward towards the goal line after winning a lineout 5m out. Cam Roigard has a crack but is denied from close range. After another pick and go, Barrett floats a cutout pass to Proctor, who dives over untouched under the posts. Barrett converts. (Drua 10–17 Hurricanes)
39 mins – PENALTY DRUA: Armstrong-Ravula lands a penalty from 25m after Brayden Iose is penalised for a tackle off the ball. (Drua 13–17 Hurricanes)
Half-time: Drua 13–17 Hurricanes. The visitors have been clinical in converting their maul opportunities, scoring twice from close range through Lakai and Proctor. Murray’s try keeps the Drua in touch, but they’ve been guilty of costly errors in promising positions – none more so than Samusamuvodre’s fumble reaching for the line.
49 mins – PENALTY HURRICANES: Jordie Barrett drills a monster 52m penalty goal to extend the visitors’ lead to seven points after Droasese is penalised for tackling Fineanganofo in the air. (Drua 13–20 Hurricanes)
50 mins – TRY DRUA: Tuidraki Samusamuvodre atones for his earlier error with an intercept try! Barrett kicks deep to Droasese who runs it back and sends a high kick to Moorby. The fullback then throws a dicey pass to his left that Samusamuvodre reads perfectly, racing up to intercept and streaking away on a 30m run to score untouched under the posts. Armstrong-Ravula converts and the scores are level. (Drua 20–20 Hurricanes)
61 mins – HURRICANES DENIED: Roigard throws a dummy down the short side and spills it into touch with the visitors pressing deep inside the Drua 22. A let-off for the home side.
67 mins – TRY DRUA: Etonia Waqa puts the Drua in front with a brilliant team try! Fiji claim the lineout against the throw as Kitione Salawa takes it up in the middle and bursts through. The Hurricanes attempt to counter-ruck but Isaia Walker-Leawere is penalised for taking out the halfback. The Drua play on under advantage as Armstrong-Ravula fires a crisp long pass to Peni Ravai, who dishes a brilliant offload to Waqa, who streaks 20m down the touchline to score in the left corner. Armstrong-Ravula’s conversion drifts wide from the sideline. (Drua 25–20 Hurricanes)
80+1 mins – HURRICANES SPILL IT: The Hurricanes shift it through the hands to the left where Proctor gets on the outside near the touchline but spills it forward. Time is up on the clock and that will be full-time!
Full-time: Fijian Drua 25–20 Hurricanes
The Fijian Drua’s fortress remains intact. In torrential conditions that left Lautoka waterlogged and covered in mud, Glen Jackson’s side produced the composure and clinical finishing that had deserted them in their opening two defeats to claim a famous victory over the competition’s form side.
The Hurricanes arrived in Lautoka having dismantled Moana Pasifika 52-10 in their season opener and with a six-match regular-season winning streak to protect. Head coach Clark Laidlaw knew what awaited. “We know what we’re walking into with their home record,” he had warned pre-match. His fears proved well-founded.
Yet for much of the first half, the visitors appeared to have heeded that warning. The Hurricanes were unfazed early on, turning down an easy three points for a quick tap that allowed new fly-half Callum Harkin to get in the game early. His perfect cutout pass found Fehi Fineanganofo, who cruised over in the corner for the opening try.
The Hurricanes’ powerful forward pack, featuring All Blacks hooker Asafo Aumua and halfback Cam Roigard, then established dominance through their driving maul. When Peter Lakai burrowed over in the 25th minute – the back-row latching onto the back of a rumbling lineout drive – it felt like the blueprint for victory was being executed to perfection.
But this Drua side refuses to yield on home soil. Motikiai Murray was the catalyst, producing several strong carries that kept the Hurricanes’ defence honest throughout the first half. His try in the 30th minute was born of opportunism – Callum Harkin spilling a high ball, the Drua scrambling onto the loose ball, Mesake Vocevoce carrying hard, and Murray willing himself over through one last tackle. It was messy, relentless, and utterly effective. Hooker Zuriel Togiatama had some nice moments in the loose too, while in the midfield Tuidraki Samusamuvodre was solid throughout.
Billy Proctor’s try on the stroke of half-time restored the Hurricanes’ advantage. Jordie Barrett, standing in as playmaker with the starting fly-half shifted to fullback, produced a beautiful cutout pass that put Proctor over untouched. At 17-13, the visitors would have been confident of closing out the win.
What followed in the second half will haunt Barrett and his teammates. His 52m penalty in the 49th minute appeared to have put the game beyond the Drua. Seven points clear, the Hurricanes simply needed to manage the conditions and the clock. Instead, they gifted the home side a lifeline.
Moorby’s pass was optimistic at best. Attempting to shift the ball left deep inside his own half, the fullback threw a floating pass that Samusamuvodre read perfectly. The centre had been denied a try in the first half when he fumbled reaching for the line, but there would be no mistake this time. He intercepted cleanly and sprinted 30m to score under the posts. Armstrong-Ravula’s conversion levelled the scores at 20-20 and suddenly Churchill Park was alive.
The Drua pressed for the winner. Both teams looked for a pivotal try as the rain dissipated, but the Hurricanes were unable to make good use of several entries inside the Drua 22. Roigard’s error in the 61st minute, spilling a dummy pass into touch with the try-line beckoning, was symptomatic of the visitors’ struggles. The Drua eventually worked their way into the Hurricanes’ half and the decisive moment came six minutes later.
The Drua won a lineout against the throw as replacement Kitione Salawa took a direct carry and burst through the attempted tackle. Walker-Leawere, attempting to counter-ruck, was penalised for taking out the halfback. Playing under advantage, Armstrong-Ravula fired a crisp cutout pass to replacement prop Peni Ravai, who proved the most unlikely of playmakers. The tighthead showed deft hands to offload onto Waqa. The blindside flanker still had work to do, but he showed electric pace to sprint 20m down the touchline and dive over in the corner.
Armstrong-Ravula’s conversion drifted wide, but the five-point lead would prove enough. The Hurricanes had their chances in the closing minutes, but their poor handling prevented them from building any concerted pressure on a committed Fijian defensive line. Their best chance came with six minutes to go with a lineout 15 metres out, but some thumping defence forced the ball loose. They had one last chance with seconds to go after a Drua knock-on, needing to go 70 metres for the win, but when Proctor lost the ball into touch, Churchill Park erupted.
For the Drua, it was validation of their approach under Jackson. Co-captain Frank Lomani had set the tone before kick-off: “Hail, rain or shine, we will still turn up. This is rugby, this is us.” His side delivered.
The conditions were deplorable throughout – heavy rain making handling treacherous and turning the surface slick – but the Drua adapted better than their more fancied opponents. Their willingness to play through the hands, to back their instincts, proved the difference when the pressure was at its most intense.
For the Hurricanes, it is a harsh lesson in the challenge of travelling to Fiji. Despite their pre-season preparations for the conditions, Laidlaw’s side made too many crucial errors when it mattered most. Moorby’s intercept pass was the most costly, but Roigard’s spill and Proctor’s final fumble all contributed to a defeat that will sting.
“The toughest thing was, for obvious reasons, holding the ball,” captain Jordie Barrett told Sky Sport. “We actually played a lot of the second half in the right end of the park but it was extremely hard to hold the ball. The Drua were very disciplined on defence and didn’t allow us too many entries into the corner.”
Barrett refused to use the conditions as an excuse, instead crediting the Drua’s performance. “It was two teams playing on the same field. They took a couple of their opportunities and we had multiple entries in the second half and couldn’t capitalise. That was the game in the end. The Drua are a good side. They’ve got a number of international players and their season was on the line today. They were the better side, unfortunately for us.”
The result extends the Drua’s remarkable home record to 10 consecutive wins at Churchill Park – a fortress that shows no signs of crumbling. Just as they did in their 27-24 win over the Hurricanes in Suva in 2023, the Drua again found a way to upset their Wellington counterparts. For the Hurricanes, there is little time to dwell. They travel to Sydney next week to face the NSW Waratahs on a six-day turnaround, their unbeaten start to the season now in tatters.
The Drua face the ACT Brumbies at home in Suva in Round 4, with their confidence restored and their belief in what they can achieve on home soil stronger than ever.
What’s next
The Fijian Drua head into the bye on a high note before hosting the ACT Brumbies at HFC Bank Stadium in Suva in Round 4, while the Hurricanes face a short turnaround against the NSW Waratahs at Allianz Stadium in Sydney on Friday night.
Teams
Fijian Drua: 15 Ilaisa Droasese, 14 Joji Nasova, 13 Tuidraki Samusamuvodre, 12 Isikeli Rabitu, 11 Epeli Momo, 10 Isaiah Armstrong-Ravula, 9 Frank Lomani (c), 8 Elia Canakaivata, 7 Motikiai Murray, 6 Etonia Waqa, 5 Isoa Nasilasila, 4 Mesake Vocevoce, 3 Mesake Doge, 2 Zuriel Togiatama, 1 Haereiti Hetet.
Replacements: 16 Kavaia Tagivetaua, 17 Emosi Tuqiri, 18 Peni Ravai, 19 Vilive Miramira, 20 Kitione Salawa, 21 Isoa Tuwai, 22 Issak Fines-Leleiwasa, 23 Inia Tabuavou.
Hurricanes: 15 Josh Moorby, 14 Bailyn Sullivan, 13 Billy Proctor, 12 Jordie Barrett (c), 11 Fehi Fineanganofo, 10 Callum Harkin, 9 Cam Roigard, 8 Brayden Iose, 7 Peter Lakai, 6 Devan Flanders, 5 Warner Dearns, 4 Hugo Plummer, 3 Tevita Mafileo, 2 Asafo Aumua, 1 Pouri Rakete-Stones.
Replacements: 16 Jacob Devery, 17 Xavier Numia, 18 Siale Lauaki, 19 Isaia Walker-Leawere, 20 Brad Shields, 21 Ereatara Enari, 22 Lucas Cashmore, 23 Ngane Punivai.
Match details
Fijian Drua 25 (Tries: Motikiai Murray, Tuidraki Samusamuvodre, Etonia Waqa; Conversions: Isaiah Armstrong-Ravula 2/3; Penalties: Isaiah Armstrong-Ravula 2/2)
Hurricanes 20 (Tries: Fehi Fineanganofo, Peter Lakai, Billy Proctor; Conversions: Jordie Barrett 1/3; Penalties: Jordie Barrett 1/1)
Half-time: 13–17
Venue: Churchill Park, Lautoka
Referee: Ben O’Keeffe (New Zealand)
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