‘Fiji definitely outplayed us’ – Samu Kerevi after shock defeat
Wallaby Samu Kerevi on the charge against Fiji.
Wallabies centre Samu Kerevi admitted that Fiji outplayed Australia as the Pacific side ran out 22-15 winners on Sunday.
It was the first time in 69 years that Fiji claimed a win over their rivals which was set up by a cleverly planned assault at the breakdown resulting in plenty of opportunities to keep the scoreboard ticking over.
Discipline issues
Kerevi, who was born in Fiji, simply outlined that poor discipline cost the Wallabies the game, and it is something that needs to be addressed immediately.
“Fiji definitely outplayed us. They came with a great game, but we had discipline issues that we need to sort out,” Kerevi said.
“Our discipline wasn’t good enough, you can’t give a great kicker a lot of points. Same with Wales, they’ve got Dan Biggar, that kicks really well. So our discipline and definitely our breakdown (has to improve).
“We’ve made it a bit harder for ourselves, but there’s a lot of belief in the team and Eddie (Jones, head coach) speaking to us. We want to look at that game and get our learnings from it and move on quickly.”
🗣️ “I never stopped loving Fiji, but now I’m head over heels.” #AUSvFIJ #FIJ
🇫🇯 Fiji's performance was praised by ex-players, government, fans and coaches. #RWC2023 https://t.co/uCviAzEdYz
— Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) September 17, 2023
“Everyone is hurting”
It was a difficult outing for rookie fly-half Carter Gordon who was removed from the field by Jones after 50 minutes where he struggled to fire. Kerevi came to the defence of his teammate and claimed he let down the playmaker.
“He got subbed pretty early but you’ve got to back Eddie’s feeling there.
“Everyone is hurting, not just Carter. I let him down on the outside there, so got to pick up my learnings too to help him.”
The result is interesting for Pool C as Wales is atop with wins over Fiji and Portugal. The Flying Fijians move up to second with this victory on the same points as Australia who beat Georgia in their opener.
Wales and Australia clash this weekend in an important Test match whilst Fiji take a rest this weekend.
