Waratahs coach Dan McKellar would have admired if not enjoyed parts of Moana Pasifika’s big win against the Crusaders last week.
The Waratahs certainly got a preview of what’s coming in Auckland on Saturday as Moana Pasifika bullied the Crusaders in Christchurch, with one All Blacks loose forward with a reputation for abrasiveness being ragdolled by the fired-up visitors.
McKellar will breathe a sigh of relief that Moana Pasifika No.6 Miracle Faiilagi, the best blindside flanker in the comp, and bruising midfielder Pepesana Patafilo will miss the game against the Waratahs due to injury. Still, he will also know that the performance against the Crusaders was infused with a deep sense of purpose.
You can’t manufacture the intensity Moana Pasifika brought to the Crusaders clash, and the reality is Moana Pasifika could easily have had a few more wins in the locker this year as a result of their huge improvement.
Under coach Tana Umaga, there has been a marriage of high-performance improvement and a sense of playing for something that is bigger than the individual this year.
That is being led by Ardie Savea, who is making a mockery of the idea that All Blacks need to build slowly into their Super Rugby campaigns. It really does feel that Savea is playing for his culture rather than a rugby team.
Waratahs prop Taniela Tupou.
However, the player who would benefit the most from being part of that squad is currently in Australia. Taniela Tupou has been written off extensively after a relatively quiet start to Super Rugby Pacific, but he just looks like a player who could become world-class again in the right team.
That’s not to say the Waratahs are doing anything wrong, but Tupou has just looked a little lost in recent years. He seems bereft of the purpose so clearly evident at Moana Pasifika, where players who might have been on the fringes of the five New Zealand Super Rugby Pacific teams have found another level.
In one sense, it’s a miracle that Moana Pasifika arestill around. Last year, the rumour mill cranked up with whispers about their survival. Player agents started to do their due diligence on the franchise’s future, wary of placing their clients at a joint that was going bust.
At the time, the Herald was reassured that they were safe, with the full backing of New Zealand broadcaster Sky Sport and support from a then-unidentified new backer.
That mail turned out to be on the money, with the Pasifika Medical Association coming on board as new owners in what has turned out to be a seminal moment in their history.
While all clubs in Super Rugby Pacific remain under financial pressure, Moana Pasifika are clearly on more solid financial footing than they were a year or so ago.
Tupou, who is off contract this year, will no doubt be in demand overseas but does he really want to put himself through the grind of long northern hemisphere seasons, where his value is likely to be greatest? (Japanese clubs don’t typically spend heavily on overseas props).
And in terms of the quality of coaching Tupou would receive at Moana Pasifika, he only needs to take a look at their coaching box: Umaga, the highly respected Tom Coventry, former Samoa coach Seilala Mapusua, NPC-winning coach Alando Soakai, former Welsh No.10 Stehpen Jones, and scrum coach Pauliasi Manu.
Rugby Australia would need to show a bit of contracting flexibility to make it happen and be prepared to pay a national top-up for a bloke who isn’t at one of the Australian franchises.
It might be a stretch too far for them, but Australia also needs to be reminded of what an asset a fit and engaged Tupou would be for them.
At present, there are two tighthead props in Australia genuinely capable of anchoring a Test scrum: Allan Alaalatoa and Tupou. Young Reds No.3 Massimo de Lutiis is clearly an up-and-comer, but he’s only 21, and he’ll still be a baby in tight-five terms when Australia hosts the Rugby World Cup in 2027.
