The Brumbies are expecting a much different Fijian Drua’s outfit to their opening round defeat, believing they will be at their best when they face off at GIO Stadium.
The Drua were dominated by the Waratahs 40-10 in their opening Super Rugby Pacific game last Friday.
However, Brumbies winger Tom Wright suggests the inclement conditions had a major factor in this, confident they’ll be at their best in what’s expected to be prime running rugby condition on Saturday afternoon.
“I think 2 pm in a hopefully dry and sunny game in Canberra, I think the pictures we get will be a bit different than the Tahs got in terms of skill level,” he told reporters.
“A lot of the stuff they like to get off such as their offloads and flair, it’ll come out in that afternoon game.
“It’s probably good news for us. We have a fairly big challenge coming, we’ll probably see the best of the Drua come out in round two.
“They’re a team that’s going to thrive off their energy. From 1-23, they’re just as skilful as each other. In terms of us, when need to try to play to our strengths and take them to set piece, it’s no secret that we’re well equipped in that area but to improve on where we felt we let ourselves down last week, was pretty disappointing.”
Wright and the Brumbies head into the week full of confidence after their thrilling win over the Western Force, with the Wallabies flyer setting up their game-winner.
“(Lachlan Lonergan) is a hard bloke to miss, he’s pretty round these days big Noss,” he said with a smile on the play.
“I just saw him screaming up there in fat man’s alley and I think he did a good job. We talk about finishers bringing impact and energy and I think a game-winning try ticks off both of those boxes.”
However, after a below-standard showing at set-piece time, prop Scott Sio knows they must find another level to match it up with the Drua.
“They’re big, strong guys out there so they’re going to be strong at that contact point, not just around the field but at set-piece time,” Sio added.
“For us, we need to stay patient and consistent whilst backing our systems,” he said.
SOURCE: RUGBY.COM.AU/PACNEWS
