Fiji trip that could resurrect season as Jorgensen returns for Waratahs

Prior to their journey to Fiji to face the Drua, the Waratahs have been strengthened by the recovery of fullback Max Jorgensen from a hip injury.

The Waratahs will arrive in Fiji on Thursday with one victory from their four games this season, following their 12-10 loss to the Blues on Saturday (which followed a 23-21 loss to the Highlanders the previous week).

Jorgensen is back in the No. 15 jersey, having filled in for Mark Nawaqanitawase during the Blues game.

At Churchill Park in Lautoka, Nawaqanitawase will play his 50th Super Rugby game on his preferred right wing. Reilly Triston slides to the bench.

Despite having defeated the Drua in all four of their prior meetings, the Waratahs will be prepared to face more of the intense rain that has already resulted in flooding in Fiji when they get to Nadi. The already difficult matchup will become even more difficult due to the weather.

Waratahs captain Jake Gordon stated, “There will be a hostile crowd and heat, but both teams will feel the heat.”

“Every time we’ve played Fiji, we’ve performed incredibly well; we’ve neutralized their threats.

“The risk there is that we won’t get any looser with the ball when it gets a little bit wetter.”

“We return to our aerial game and move to the set-piece. It is crucial for us to avoid playing like the Drua in Fiji the next week.

Loose-head prop Angus Bell, who expressed shock at being benched the previous week, and Mahe Vailanu, who makes his injury comeback to start at hooker, are back in the starting lineup.

After playing for 73 minutes during his first Super Rugby start last Saturday, Julian Heaven was named on the bench. This meant that Jay Fonokalafi, the Waratahs’ debut try-scorer, who was summoned up from a construction site last week, would not be playing.
Additionally, there isn’t room for Wallabies center Lalakai Foketi, who is scheduled to return for selection against the Rebels in Sydney the following week and is still recovering well from a neck injury.

Australian coach of the Drua, Mick Byrne, thinks the Waratahs will not be intimidated by the idea of going to Fiji and will still be a strong team despite their recent close defeats.

They will be quite disappointed because, aside from a missed penalty goal and a few other things, they might have won two close games. They will claim that this is a chance. Human nature dictates that they’ll likely look at us and think, “This is a game we should win, and we know that,” since we’re behind them on the ladder, Byrne said.

When asked about the strain his fellow coach is under, the former Wallabies and All Blacks skills coach refused to get pulled into discussions concerning the future of Waratahs coach Darren Coleman.

“I don’t read the news or anything like that, but I believe you would have to be living under a rock not to have heard that Darren Coleman was under duress from the media in any case. That’s all I know; it’s not arrogance, I don’t know if it’s internal,” Byrne remarked.

This place is really busy. I’ll catch up with him over the weekend; you’re too occupied with your own program.

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