Fiji continued its unbeaten run in the Oceania U20 Challenge by securing a dominant 48-19 victory over Moana Pasifika at the North Harbour Stadium in New Zealand today.
The Fijians showed their speed, flair, and solid set piece performance right from the kickoff, leading to six unanswered tries in the first half and a commanding 38-0 lead at halftime.
Despite the aggressive defense from Moana Pasifika, they spent the majority of the first half defending against Fiji’s onslaught.
The second half saw Moana Pasifika showing resilience and energy, with fly-half Tyler Pulini breaking the deadlock for his team in the 54th minute, followed by Alistair Saulala’s try six minutes later.
Fiji’s fullback Tevita Sovau responded with a try, maintaining Fiji’s lead. Moana Pasifika’s Spence Ioelu managed to score towards the match’s end, but it wasn’t enough to overcome Fiji’s lead.
Both teams faced yellow cards due to ill-discipline in the first half.
Despite a spirited comeback attempt from Moana Pasifika in the second half, Fiji’s early dominance sealed their victory.
Fiji’s skipper Nalani May praised Moana Pasifika’s effort saying; “We achieved our goal; we achieved our target.”
“Hats off to Moana Pasifika; they definitely gave us a good battle out there,” he told Oceania Rugby.
Fiji is set to take on Samoa in Round Three of the Oceania U20s Challenge, scheduled for Wednesday, March 6 at 6.30pm.
