Raiders almost

Sports

Raiders almost rammed

By Gabriel Singh

Super League has made a major breakthrough in wooing over Fiji’s rugby union-mad public.

And it was all because the mighty Raiders almost got raided in Suva. Super League’s most expensive team - the $5 million-a-year plus Canberra Raiders came on a promotional raid to Fiji and only just survived a most embarrassing raid on their reputation.

Raider-tumed-Ram Steve Stone led Super League’s newest franchise, the Adelaide Rams, to a glorious debut in the opening series of pre-season matches which now has Fiji hooked.

What was to have been an exhilarating display of things come nearly turned sour

for Laurie Daley’s star-studded Canberra outfit.

In the end they needed a last gasp try from centre Ruben Wiki to steal a 38-36 victory at Suva’s National Stadium on Saturday, February 10.

And with 8000 people turning up on a windswept, dull, grey typically Suva after noon, rugby league officials were grinning in delight at the response from Fiji fans.

The turnout at the stadium, where the Raiders and Rams clashed in the climax of Super League Fiji’s National Nines Championship was equal to or better than two major rugby union sevens tourna ments being played at the same time in other towns on Viti Levu.

It was as though the gods had blessed Super League’s debut in the South Pacific.

The Rams, resplendent in their Blue and Red outfits, proved a feisty combina tion out to show they were not just in to make up the numbers.

The pre-season match in Suva had spe cial appeal because it was the first time Fiji’s most famous rugby league son, Namatakula Village flyer Noa Nadruku, was playing in the Mean Green Machine colours on home soil.

Nadruku, who had a nightmarish start, showed both sides his rugby character in a match which produced 13 tries - some of them breathtaking runs along the length of the field - 10 conversions and a penalty to produce almost a point a minute.

The high scoring game went down well with fans who had paid $2O and $8 to see the game.

Adelaide Rams skipper Steve Stone looks for a way out during the Superleague clash at Suva's National Stadium

“Money well spent,” said Jovesa Kalokalo, a fan who travelled from the Western side to watch his hero, Nadruku, in action for the raiders.

Super League innovations like playing in four 20-minute quarters and the scoring team kicking back to the opposition got a strong reception from the fans.

But it was Nadruku, although there was another Fijian involved in the game, that the fans wanted to see.

The former Fiji rugby union Hong

Kong Sevens star elicited an agonised hush as he knocked-on with his first touch of the ball.

But the player who will earn $A 190,000 a season for three years pulled himself together after that.

Nadruku turned on the brilliance only seen on television screens in Fiji previous ly to score the first of two superbly taken tries.

The bone-crunching hits and sheer pace of play had fans on the edge of their seats throughout.

Though it was a typically early season error infested match, the scoring was at times brilliant.

Nadruku was set up after five minutes by skipper Daley. But the Fijian hero did not have everything his way.

He was hounded by another fellow Nadrogan, Josese Tamani, making his rugby league debut for the Rams.

Tamani, who was playing union for Randwick in Sydney last season, is a pow erhouse player, using brute strength to

repeatedly break through tackles.

Tamani left the Raiders stranded to put the Rams 10-6 ahead and the play see sawed throughout with the Rams leading 36-32 with five minutes on the clock.

It was then that Wiki, who had a quiet game, exploded, bursting through two tackles and making the tryline. The con version brought an almost audible sigh of relief from the Raiders camp.

The match featured 10 capped players one Fijian, three Papua New Guineans, three Kiwis and three Kangaroos.

Nadruku was the lone Fijian interna tional.

Kumuls were Raiders second row David Wesley, and Rams triallists Elias Paiyo and Bruce Mamando.

Paiyo was later named captain of the

Kumuls for the 16-nation Super League World Nines to be played at Suva’s National Stadium over February 22-24.

Mamando too was named in the PNG team.

The Australian capped players were all in the Raiders ranks - skipper Laurie Daley, Bradley Clyde and David Fumer.

Nadruku was named in the Fiji Bati squad but Tamani missed out.

The Suva game was one of several played over the weekend.

In Rarotonga, the Newcastle-based Hunter Mariners surprised 1995 Australian

Rugby League premiers Canterbury

Bulldogs 12-10 with former Auckland Warrior Willie Poching landed a penalty from wide out in the last minute.

The Mariners had lost 18-16 to the

Bulldogs the previous week.

Like Suva, Cook Islanders turned up in force, almost 6000 of them, to watch Super League action live.

The win was lauded in Fiji because Mariners coach Graham Murray had taken charge of Fiji’s team to the sport’s inau gural World Cup in Britain last October where Fiji trounced South Africa and then

was pounded into submission by England

and eventual winners Australia.

The Raiders points came from tries from Nadruku (2), David Furner (2), Ruben Wiki, Simon Woolford and Luke Davico.

Fumer and Matthew Wood kicked two

goals each while Jason Ferris got the other points for Canberra.

Adelaide’s points came from a hat-trick of tries to Solomon Kiri, two to Rod Maybon and one to Tamani.

Kurt Wrigley kicked six goals for the Rams.

Nadruku and the Raiders played a round of golf in Nadi on Monday before flying out for Nuku’alofa, Tonga, where on Saturday, February 17, they played Murray’s Mariners in the Friendly Islands.

And Raiders chief executive Kevin Neil brought considerable cheer to Super League Fiji which had named its 15-mem ber team for the World Nines.

Neil promised the Fijians the Raiders would sign on any Fiji Bati who had their contract with an Australian Rugby League aligned club cancelled because they were appearing in a Super League tournament.

It was welcome news for Pio Kubuwai, Niumaia Korovata, Hi Toga and lan Sagaitu.

Kubuwai and Korovata play for the Yanco Group 20, Toga for Griffiths and hooker Sagaitu for the Sydney Tigers - all ARL linked.

But Neil made it clear the Fijians would only be drafted i,nto the Canberra Group

Eight or country competition.

They would then have to play their way up through the Raiders ranks if they want ed to emulate Nadruku, Fiji’s most suc cessful rugby league player yet. ■