The Fort Worth Press - Drua bag historic Super Rugby win as Crusaders surge clear

USD -
AED 3.672974
AFN 68.425216
ALL 93.007834
AMD 390.01331
ANG 1.81621
AOA 911.999957
ARS 998.249996
AUD 1.54345
AWG 1.8
AZN 1.699887
BAM 1.852776
BBD 2.034663
BDT 120.423833
BGN 1.85313
BHD 0.376872
BIF 2975.829027
BMD 1
BND 1.346811
BOB 6.963779
BRL 5.806301
BSD 1.007759
BTN 84.987093
BWP 13.673805
BYN 3.297919
BYR 19600
BZD 2.031252
CAD 1.40043
CDF 2864.99997
CHF 0.887045
CLF 0.035513
CLP 979.910444
CNY 7.243099
CNH 7.255902
COP 4479
CRC 514.586422
CUC 1
CUP 26.5
CVE 104.456686
CZK 23.962998
DJF 179.450744
DKK 7.067675
DOP 60.695052
DZD 134.182994
EGP 49.321298
ERN 15
ETB 122.993165
EUR 0.94762
FJD 2.27485
FKP 0.788387
GBP 0.78809
GEL 2.730243
GGP 0.788387
GHS 16.275027
GIP 0.788387
GMD 70.999767
GNF 8626.906515
GTQ 7.732614
GYD 209.363849
HKD 7.78093
HNL 25.442281
HRK 7.133336
HTG 132.50221
HUF 386.750254
IDR 15875.4431
ILS 3.748965
IMP 0.788387
INR 84.433209
IQD 1320.093319
IRR 42092.498493
ISK 139.630035
JEP 0.788387
JMD 159.538871
JOD 0.709102
JPY 155.900501
KES 129.500052
KGS 86.201845
KHR 4082.940274
KMF 466.349913
KPW 900.000286
KRW 1408.14273
KWD 0.307714
KYD 0.833937
KZT 496.700918
LAK 22131.335237
LBP 89600.701953
LKR 294.541861
LRD 189.957415
LSL 18.103174
LTL 2.95274
LVL 0.60489
LYD 4.882485
MAD 10.020131
MDL 18.159255
MGA 4702.502532
MKD 58.284107
MMK 2097.999867
MNT 3397.99984
MOP 8.017648
MRU 40.117279
MUR 46.889905
MVR 15.449622
MWK 1747.434509
MXN 20.571925
MYR 4.482016
MZN 63.899993
NAD 18.103174
NGN 1684.119587
NIO 37.087736
NOK 11.152585
NPR 135.978578
NZD 1.70394
OMR 0.385031
PAB 1
PEN 3.819421
PGK 4.022654
PHP 58.849994
PKR 278.051027
PLN 4.116289
PYG 7864.722013
QAR 3.674102
RON 4.717298
RSD 110.890999
RUB 98.500922
RWF 1383.186748
SAR 3.757416
SBD 8.383555
SCR 13.620275
SDG 601.497717
SEK 10.996295
SGD 1.345889
SHP 0.788387
SLE 22.814988
SLL 20969.502481
SOS 575.878195
SRD 35.279754
STD 20697.981008
SVC 8.756103
SYP 2512.530181
SZL 18.108875
THB 35.04298
TJS 10.662352
TMT 3.51
TND 3.147935
TOP 2.38999
TRY 34.356195
TTD 6.800372
TWD 32.57475
TZS 2680.545109
UAH 41.343768
UGX 3672.512403
UYU 42.486895
UZS 12811.433733
VES 44.996696
VND 25374.272123
VUV 118.722041
WST 2.798776
XAF 621.79325
XAG 0.033135
XAU 0.00039
XCD 2.70255
XDR 0.753908
XOF 621.79325
XPF 113.11667
YER 249.774976
ZAR 18.27157
ZMK 9001.193302
ZMW 27.374927
ZWL 321.999592
  • CMSC

    0.0700

    24.61

    +0.28%

  • CMSD

    -0.0200

    24.73

    -0.08%

  • JRI

    0.0200

    13.24

    +0.15%

  • BCC

    1.4200

    142.55

    +1%

  • NGG

    -0.7800

    62.12

    -1.26%

  • SCS

    -0.3000

    13.37

    -2.24%

  • BTI

    0.1800

    35.42

    +0.51%

  • BP

    0.4100

    28.57

    +1.44%

  • RBGPF

    59.2500

    59.25

    +100%

  • RIO

    -0.5800

    60.62

    -0.96%

  • RELX

    -0.4700

    46.12

    -1.02%

  • RYCEF

    -0.0400

    7.07

    -0.57%

  • GSK

    -0.4100

    35.11

    -1.17%

  • BCE

    -0.4800

    27.21

    -1.76%

  • VOD

    0.2800

    8.75

    +3.2%

  • AZN

    0.1000

    65.29

    +0.15%

Drua bag historic Super Rugby win as Crusaders surge clear
Drua bag historic Super Rugby win as Crusaders surge clear

Drua bag historic Super Rugby win as Crusaders surge clear

Fijian Drua secured their first Super Rugby Pacific win against a hapless Melbourne Rebels, but fellow newcomers Moana Pasifika were beaten on their belated debut at the weekend as powerhouse Canterbury Crusaders surged to the top of the table.

Text size:

The Australia-based Drua lost their opening two games heavily, leaking 82 points, but they showed not just backbone, but also flair, in a come-from-behind 31-26 win at Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium.

Onisi Ratave, Vilive Miramira and Apisalome Vota all scored tries with four second-half penalties from Teti Tela helping secure the historic win.

It compounded a horror start to the season from the Rebels, who were missing a host of players through injury and suspension as they suffered a third straight loss.

"To say it's unlucky would be disrespectful to the Drua, they played a better game than us in almost every facet," said Rebels skipper Michael Wells. "We'll have to have a good hard look at ourselves."

While Drua got off the mark, New Zealand-based Moana Pasifika, whose opening two games were postponed due to Covid-19, slumped 33-12 against the mighty Crusaders.

Despite the defeat, the new outfit, skippered by Wallabies prop Sekope Kepu, impressed with some bruising defence and slick ball movement to give the 12-time champions a run for their money.

They jumped to a surprise lead through a Solomone Funaki try, but ultimately the Crusaders' experience paid dividends as they battled to a five tries to two win at an empty Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin with All Blacks hooker Codie Taylor bagging a brace.

Crusaders coach Scott Robertson admitted it was "real, real tough" and Kepu said his team took a lot of confidence from their performance.

"It was about trusting ourselves and backing each other and the boys showed a lot of courage, lot of passion," he told reporters.

"We can take a lot of confidence out of that (because) they've set the bar for years."

The win pushed the Crusaders one bonus point clear at the top of the 12-team table after round three, with the ACT Brumbies and Queensland Reds the only other unbeaten sides.

- 'Game-by-game' -

The Brumbies, bolstered by a powerhouse pack featuring Wallabies James Slipper, Folau Fainga'a, Allan Alaalatoa, saw off a dogged NSW Waratahs 27-20 at Canberra Stadium, racing to a 10-0 lead and then 24-6.

But the 'Tahs gallantly fought back in the rain to earn a losing bonus point.

Skipper Alaalatoa said his team was building nicely for the season.

"The most important thing is just taking it game by game, definitely celebrating this win and then moving forward," he said.

The Reds also kept their unbeaten streak intact with an impressive 29-16 win over Western Force in Perth, driven by star playmaker James O'Connor who played a hand in all four tries and slotted nine points with the boot.

It culminated a chaotic week for the Reds who could only train once in the lead-up to the game due to devastating floods in Queensland then endured a 14-hour flight to Perth due to delays and an unplanned stopover.

Elsewhere, the Auckland Blues edged past the Waikato Chiefs 24-22, but only just with Chiefs' substitute Bryn Gatland missing a long-range penalty at the death to win the game at Eden Park.

Wellington Hurricanes, meanwhile, earned their second win of the season with a 21-14 victory over the Otago Highlanders, who, like the Rebels, have lost all three games so far.

J.P.Cortez--TFWP