Super Rugby

The first cohort of Moana Pasifika players and staff emerged from their Queenstown hotel yesterday after nearly 10 days of isolation following positive Covid-19 cases in the group.

The Super Rugby Pacific medical advisory group recommended that the match should be postponed as there was not sufficient time for the squad, specifically those who are recovering from Covid-19, to adequately prepare for their first match on Sunday.

The announced changes do not affect the draw for any round two matches played in Australia.

Moana Pasifika's first-round match against the Blues was postponed when the squad was forced into isolation at their Queenstown hotel on February 9 after members of their group tested positive for COVID-19.

The first cohort of Moana Pasifika players and management were approved by New Zealand Public Health to leave isolation today and resume training.

The tiny smattering of applause that greeted them heralded the start of the New Zealand rugby season, so for all of Queenstown's picturesque beauty, the cameras couldn't for one second hide the fact that Super Rugby Pacific was being held at a ground usually used by teams made up of local farmhands and tradesmen (especially since they set a couple up in the miniscule changing rooms).

Super Rugby has not been the same since COVID-19 tore it apart two years ago, but Australia and New Zealand will hope two new Pasifika teams will give the southern hemisphere competition a new lease of life this season.

Moana Pasifika are in a Queenstown bubble, while Fijian Drua will be camped on the east coast of Australia for Super Rugby Pacific's inaugural season due to logistical challenges brought by the pandemic.

Timani was unable to qualify for a medical exemption and his reluctance to have the vaccine meant he couldn't participate in the upcoming Super Rugby Pacific season.

"I would like to thank the Western Force, my teammates and Rugby Australia for their support and understanding in what has been a difficult decision," Timani said.

"With the help of the Force, I am still consulting specialists but unfortunately with the season about to start I understand the position it puts both the Western Force and Rugby Australia in.

The playmaker, and fellow All Black Ethan Blackadder, remained in Christchurch and are set to miss the first three weeks of Super Rugby Pacific.

Mo’unga, who is utilising a clause in his contract to take an extended break, and Blackadder (hamstring) will miss games against the Hurricanes, Highlanders and Moana Pasifika.

As long as the Queenstown bubble isn’t extended beyond round three, the Crusaders will return to Christchurch after their game against the competition newbies in Dunedin on March 4.

FRU chief executive officer John O'Connor said the whole of Fiji is looking forward to the Drua's inaugural Super Rugby match against the New South Wales Waratahs next Friday.

O'Connor said having a team participate in one of the best rugby competitions in the world was the missing link in their player pathway program.

"The boys have been in camp from November. They have been away from families and I think they are quite eager to jump onto the field," he said.

The six New Zealand-based teams in the competition will spend the first few weeks of the season in a hub over coronavirus fears in the remote southern city of Queenstown, while attendance at matches will be capped at 100, in line with the government's attempt to minimise coronavirus infections.

"We're in no-man's land about where things go. Then you've got these draconian close contact rules that make, for most businesses in this country looking through an economic lens, everything unworkable and seemingly very disorganised," said Hore.

By drawing from already existing pūrākau (Māori narratives), the team's identity and connection to both the Hurricanes region and their people (past and present), happened naturally.

The name Poua derives from the pūrākau of Ranginui (sky father) and Papatūānuku (earthmother).

It was just their second-ever fixture after their one-off defeat to the Maori All Blacks in December 2020.

Lotu Inisi scored Moana's only try which was converted by Christian Lealiifano.

Head coach Aaron Mauger was putting on a brave face following the loss, but emphasised that many inexperienced players in the squad have now had a taste of what Super Rugby is all about.