PINA

Fijian Drua have trampled the Melbourne Rebels' season further into the ground, coming from behind to claim their first Super Rugby Pacific victory. The newcomers trailed 14-0 and were a man down thanks to a yellow card before turning it on at Sunshine Coast Stadium in an historic 31-26 win. Missing 14 men through injury and suspension, it was the biggest...

Fijian Drua coach Mick Byrne expects his team's involvement in Super Rugby Pacific to have a positive impact on Fiji's national side after the competition's newest franchise picked up their first win on Saturday. The Drua handed Melbourne Rebels a 31-26 defeat in their third appearance in this year's newly expanded Super Rugby championship, and Byrne is confident the ramifications...

Fijiana Drua have taken to Super W in scintillating fashion, destroying the Melbourne Rebels 66-5 in their competition debut. The new side have relocated from Fiji to the Gold Coast to be part of the six-team league, with the country's top talent vying for spots in the national team for this year's World Cup. They produced a combination of brilliant skill...

Moana Pasifika coach Aaron Mauger says there is much more to come from his side after they put down a marker in their first Super Rugby game on Friday. Moana Pasifika were aggressive and well organised, repeatedly smashing the Crusaders’ ball carriers in a 33-12 loss as Pasifika rugby’s 26-year wait to play in Super Rugby finally ended. That approach was...

Guam is welcoming a host of National Olympic Committees (NOCs) from Oceania to its shores for a weeklong series of workshops to strategise on the delivery of sport funding and programmes for athletes in the Pacific Islands. Ricardo Blas, Secretary-General of the Oceania National Olympic Committees (ONOC) and President of the Guam National Olympic Committee (GNOC) is hosting the ONOC...

Secretary-general of the Pacific Islands Forum, Henry Puna, has said he was “not privy” to discussions about his future as top diplomat of the region. It comes as Puna condemned the attacks on Ukraine by Russia, saying he was “very concerned” about the escalating war. “That's why our leaders have come out very strongly in condemning the aggression by Russia,” he...

Tongan families who lost their houses in the tsunamis on 15 January will be assisted by government to rebuild homes. A groundbreaking ceremony to start the “Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai Volcanic Eruption Tsunami Recovery Project” was held on Monday at Patangata and Sopu on the coast of the capital. Prime Minister Hu’akavameiliku officiated the event at two of the affected communities. The...

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is releasing an US$8 million (A$11.3 million) grant from its Pacific Disaster Resilience Programme (Phase 3) to help finance the Government of Kiribati’s response to the community transmission of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. The country is battling large-scale community transmission of the pandemic, with Kiribati's Ministry of Health and Medical Service confirming 11 deaths...

Leaders of the Quad grouping of countries - the United States, India, Australia and Japan - agreed on Thursday that what is happening to Ukraine should not be allowed to happen in the Indo-Pacific, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said. A virtual meeting of the four-country grouping was held at a time of increased concern about Taiwan, a self-ruled island...

UN Member states at the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA-5.2) have unanimously agreed to develop a legally binding treaty to end plastic pollution, making it one of the world’s most ambitious environmental actions since the 1989 Montreal Protocol which effectively phased out ozone-depleting substances. The adopted UN resolution calls for the development of a robust treaty that allows for global rules...