Moana Pasifika

They're also seeking first win of the season following five defeats. The Highlanders, on the other hand, enter the game on a two-game winning streak including their most recent one, a 57-24 drubbing of the Fijian Drua.

"We are very aware of the Highlanders' strength," said Moana Pasifika head coach Aaron Mauger.

"You can see the confidence building in their game, but for us the actual focus has been ourselves...we need to be decisive, we lacked that last week and that's the big message: be decisive."

RNZ reports the Drua tackle the Highlanders in Dunedin on Saturday and Pasifika face the Hurricanes at Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland later on the same day.

Both teams are coming off defeats last weekend, albeit in very different ways.

Drua needs focus to win

Keeping the focus and playing basics rugby right are keys to the Drua's campaign if they want to contest the play-offs.

That plus discipline could be the difference of a win or loss against the Highlanders, who are also fighting to keep their hopes alive.

The ACT side eventually ran out 62-36 winner in Canberra on Saturday.

The match saw the lead change five times until the Brumbies, on the back of a strong lineout, took control of the game in the final quarter.

The Brumbies put on four late tries and Moana Pasifika ran out of steam in the final 20 minutes.

New flanker Miracle Fa'ailagi set the tone in in the second minute when he took an intercept and galloped 70 metres to score.

Pasifika lost beyond the final siren, 21-18 at HBF Park in Perth.

Western Force were awarded a scrum penalty after the final siren which Bryce Hegarty from eight metres in front off the sticks, scored to give the Western Australia side the victory.

"It's one we let slip," Moana Pasifika coach Aaron Mauger admitted.

"We've got to be better in those moments. We couldn't execute our basics. It's hard to play when you're not catching the ball."

The scores were level at 18-18 in Saturday night's Super Rugby Pacific match when the Force had Ollie Callan red carded in the 73rd minute and Siosifa Amone also then sent off with a yellow three minutes later.

But instead of wilting under the numerical disadvantage, the 13-man Force pulled off a series of clutch plays at the death to secure the win in front of 6497 fans.

Rakuro was part of the Drua Academy earlier this week, before being named in the No. 23 jersey ahead of their season opener in New Zealand.

But the wingers debut couldn’t have gone any better.

In the dying stages of the game, Rakuro found himself in space – but dramatically slipped over mere metres from the try-line.

But it worked in his favour, as the covering defender slipped over. After getting to his feet, the debutant jotted the ball down for a memorable score with about three minutes to play – which can be seen above.

The Pacific team finished bottom of the table in their debut season in 2022 with two wins - against the Hurricanes (24-19) and the Brumbies (32-22) against 12 defeats. Many of their earlier matches were postponed due to covid-19, both within their own squad and their opponents'.

As part of the build-up to the new campaign, they played a pre-season match at the weekend against the Chiefs, going down 48-7.

They have one more pre-season game, against the Highlanders in Queenstown on Friday, before beginning the competition proper.

It comes after New Zealand Rugby and Rugby Australia signed a new joint-venture agreement in Sydney.

NZR Chief Executive Mark Robinson and RA Chief Executive Andy Marinos each welcomed the new partnership, which will extend the existing joint venture from 2024 to 2030, as a significant moment for professional club rugby in the Pacific region.

Robinson said the agreement represented a unified commitment to the Super Rugby Pacific format.

He said the long-term agreement provides certainty for players, coaches, fans, sponsors and broadcast partners.

With the objective of increasing the competitiveness of the international game, World Rugby has part-funded the franchises to provide an impactful environment and pathway that will ultimately benefit Fiji, Samoa and Tonga on the biggest stage – Rugby World Cup.

The selection of 43 players for the Pacific Nations Cup from Moana Pasifika and Fijian Drua is an important step in that journey, providing each union with the benefit of access to a group of players performing in an environment geared towards achieving success at international level.

In a physical and high-scoring match-up, the Force proved too strong and clinical for the home side scoring seven tries to four.

Run-on captain Ian Prior praised the character and resilience of the squad. "It's no secret that it's been a tough couple of weeks, but I'm immensely proud of the group," Prior explained.

"This one is for the fans. They've stuck with us through the years, and we wanted to make our family and friends proud, which I hope we did today."