{"id":380589,"date":"2024-03-30T10:50:22","date_gmt":"2024-03-30T11:50:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/?p=380589"},"modified":"2024-03-30T12:03:40","modified_gmt":"2024-03-30T12:03:40","slug":"unplayable-conditions-lead-to-farcical-match","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/?p=380589","title":{"rendered":"'Unplayable' conditions lead to farcical match"},"content":{"rendered":"

T\ufeffhe Fijian Drua outclassed the Western Force 31-13<\/a> in torrential conditions in Lautoka on Saturday.<\/p>\n

Churchill Park was so wet that former Fiji coach Simon Raiwalui and Sydney Morning Herald columnist Paul Cully both questioned whether the match should have gone ahead.<\/p>\n

The sodden surface made play farcical at times.\ufeff<\/p>\n

Watch all the action from the 2024 Super Rugby Pacific season,<\/strong><\/em> with<\/strong><\/em> every match ad free, live and and on demand on Stan Sport<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/SimonRaiwalui\/status\/1773882521236992434?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw<\/a>https:\/\/twitter.com\/paulcullystuff\/status\/1773882830634000768?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw<\/a><\/p>\n

"Obviously challenging conditions but this will feel like one we look back on and one that got away from us," Force captain Nic White said.<\/p>\n

"They just played to these conditions a lot better than us. We had plenty of opportunities, we weren't able to capitalise on the opportunities we were given."<\/p>\n

\ufeffThe loss left the 1-5 Force last on the Super Rugby Pacific ladder behind the Crusaders.<\/p>\n

READ MORE:<\/strong> Latrell charged over ugly Addo-Carr incident<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

READ MORE:<\/strong> Tszyu predicts 'classic' title defence against Fundora<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

READ MORE:<\/strong> Sailor's cheeky dad sledge after Broncos victory\ufeff<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

\"Selestino<\/p>\n

"I thought we started the game really well around a structured game against a side that plays well in unstructured play," White said.<\/p>\n

"They played a more structured game, they kicked to a contest and hit these wide rucks a lot better than us.<\/p>\n

"It'll hurt to look at and one we're going to have to look at."<\/p>\n

NEW PODCAST! Nine and Stan's Michael Atkinson and Sam Worthington tackle all the burning questions in Australian rugby<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

https:\/\/omny.fm\/shows\/rugby-world-cup-inside-line\/the-act-rebels-is-a-merge-on-the-cards\/embed?in_playlist=podcast&style=Cover<\/a><\/p>\n

Victory meant the \ufeffDrua remained unbeaten at home this season.<\/p>\n

The match was played in typical Lautoka conditions, hot and humid and with teeming rain that turned the ground into a skating rink.<\/p>\n

They are conditions in which Fijian players are brought up and thrive.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/StanSportRugby\/status\/1773898570111832317?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw<\/a><\/p>\n

Young No.10 Isaiah Ravula-Armstrong controlled the game, putting through a chip kick for a key second half try to Iosefo Masi.<\/p>\n

The Drua led 18-5 at halftime and held on in the second half, despite a red card to Tevita Ikanivere for a dangerous clean out.<\/p>\n

The Drua are seventh on the ladder with a 3-3 record.\ufeff<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

T\ufeffhe Fijian Drua outclassed the Western Force 31-13 in torrential conditions in Lautoka on Saturday. Churchill Park was so wet that former Fiji coach Simon […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":380585,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/380589"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=380589"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/380589\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":380591,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/380589\/revisions\/380591"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/380585"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=380589"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=380589"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=380589"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}