Former Flying Fijians winger Manasa Mataele is back to bolster defending champions, the Crusaders in the 2024 Super Rugby Pacific season.
Crusaders while announcing their 29 strong man squad in New Zealand confirmed that Mataele is back in the team after spending the last two seasons with the Western Force.
He’s a consistent starter for Canterbury in the NPC and has fronted for Fiji on four occasions, most recently in the 2022 Pacific Nations Cup.
Fiji-born Jone Rova has played in rep teams for years in and around the Crusaders, this year getting the nod to join the full squad.
The midfielder played in the Crusaders Development XV at the start of the year and played a role in the NZ U20s taking out Oceania Under 20 Champs in Australia in July 2022.
He was named with the Crusaders in the Farmlands Cup in February this year.
Meanwhile, injured winger Sevu Reece has also been named in the squad after missing out on New Zealand’s remarkable campaign at the recent Rugby World Cup in France due to injury.
Scott Barrett will once again captain the side while Codie Taylor is taking a non-playing sabbatical for the majority of the 2024 Super Rugby season.
Crusaders will assemble at Rugby Park within weeks to prepare for the inaugural Crusaders Northern Tour in early February – two fixtures in the UK versus Munster and the Bristol Bears.
They will then play the opening match against the Chiefs on 23 February in Hamilton.
Crusaders: Codie Taylor, Brodie McAlister, George Bell, Ioane Moananu, Joe Moody, Finlay Brewis, George Bower, Tamaiti Williams, Fletcher Newell, Scott Barrett (capt), Quinten Strange, Tahlor Cahill, Zach Gallagher, Jamie Hannah, Ethan Blackadder, Cullen Grace, Tom Christie, Christian Lio-Willie, Corey Kellow, Dominic Gardiner, Noah Hotham, Mitchell Drummond, Willi Heinz, Fergus Burke, Taha Kemara, Rivez Reihana, David Havili, Dallas McLeod, Levi Aumua, Ryan Crotty, Jone Rova, Will Jordan, Sevu Reece, Macca Springer, Manasa Mataele, Chay Fihaki, Leigh Halfpenny, Heremaia Murray.
