Fijian Drua


The Fijian Drua is a rugby union team based in Fiji that competes in the Australian National Rugby Championship. The team was created by the Fiji Rugby Union and launched in August 2017, shortly before the 2017 National Rugby Championship.

History

In July 2017, the Fiji Rugby Union announced that they would enter a team in the Australian domestic National Rugby Championship from the 2017 season onwards following successful negotiations with the Australian Rugby Union, with home matches being played in Suva as well as regional cities Lautoka and Sigatoka. On 25 July, Senirusi Seruvakula was named as the head coach of the team for their inaugural season, and a few days later the first players were invited to a training camp.
The team's name, logo and kit was revealed on 16 August 2017, with the FRU announcing that the team would be known as the Fijian Drua.
In their first year of competition in NRC 2017, the Drua won three of their first four matches to be well placed at the mid point of the season, but then lost three of their remaining four matches to finish in third place. The team was well beaten by the eventual Champions in their semifinal.
The Drua finished on top of the table after the regular season in the following year, losing only one match away to Queensland Country. In the last round they won the Horan-Little Shield by defeating Perth Spirit away in Perth, before beating in their semifinal at home in Lautoka. In the final, played at the same venue a week later, the Drua avenged their previous losses to Queensland Country with a 36–26 win to take the 2018 National Rugby Championship title.

Name and colours

The team is named after the drua, a traditional Fijian double canoe that served as warships in naval battles. The team's logo pictures a drua stylised inside a rugby ball, to symbolise Fijian players' speed, agility and flair. The Fijian Drua colours are sky blue, black and white.

Sponsorship

is the principal sponsor for the Drua, signing a five-year deal in late 2017. ISC is their kit manufacturer. The team is also sponsored by Paradise Beverages, with the Fiji Gold Beer logo and the Ratu Rum brand appearing on the sleeves and back of the jersey.

Current squad

The squad for the 2019 NRC season:

Records

Honours

National Rugby Championship

Head coaches