Heavy rain ruined rugby paddock recovery in Apia Park

Heavy rain ruined the recovery of the rugby paddock at Apia Park before the opening Pacific Nations test match between Manu Samoa and the Ikale Tahi of Tonga, last Saturday.

This happened right after the prolonged spell of sun following the closing of the Pacific Games which helped in drying out the ground.

Samoa Sports Facilities Authority CEO, Moefa’auo Salale Moananu says most of their ground staff worked tirelessly to prepare the rugby paddock and repair any damages from the games.

 “The staff took advantage of the sun to repeatedly roll the ground and add sand and dirt as it started to dry up,” Moefa’auo said.

Moefa’auo adds the World Rugby had inspected the grounds on Thursday and had approved the venue for the games before the weather changed again.

“The rain, however, returned on Thursday night and by Friday morning the skies opened up all day to soak up the ground.”

“Drenching rainfall continued into Saturday that by the time the kick off whistle went, the water had seeped into the ground and were pooling on parts of the field.”

Moefa’auo complimented his ground staff for all the hard work they had put in.

Cyclone-like weather conditions and a mud cake ground brought complaints from both sides despite allowing the game to continue to full time.

 “"Michael Groom from World Rugby just came up to me and said if we abandon the game it will be a draw, if we abandon the game in the first half due to the conditions, or if we abandon the game in the second half the team that's leading will win the game, so we were really clear from World Rugby what was going to happen in any instance," Manu Samoa coach Steve Jackson was reported in the media as saying.

Jackson went on to reflect positively on the decision for the game to go ahead with his Manu Samoa coached side coming from 7 points down in the first half to overtake the Ikale Tahi 25-17 at full time.

“Probably the right decision was made in the end to continue the game," he said. "I don't think any team would have wanted the game to be abandoned - I think it just means that hopefully Apia Park gets an upgrade," he said.

 “While the conditions in Apia were not ideal owing to adverse weather in recent days, the pitch was deemed playable before the match via the usual match official inspection process and both teams wanted to play the game,” said World Rugby in a statement.

World Rugby came under criticism from several of Tongan players who went on social media to vent their disapproval.

The current weather patterns are similar to the cyclone season for Samoa that runs from November to April over the following year.