Pasifika Sipoti Preview – History Made in the Super Rugby Pacific Final

Super Rugby League final ushered in a historic moment, and the young No. 8 player was ready to go

History will be made and a new champion will be crowned on Saturday when the Blues and Chiefs meet in the 2024 Super Rugby Pacific Grand Final at Eden Park in Auckland.

The Blues are bidding for their first Super Rugby title since 2003 – the last time they hosted a grand final – and won their fourth Super Rugby title.

Led by head coach Vern Cotter, the Auckland-based side are unbeaten on home soil in 2024, including a dominant 34-20 semi-final win over the ACT Brumbies on Friday.

The Chiefs booked their second consecutive finals berth with a stunning 30-19 win over group winners the Hurricanes in the semi-final in Wellington on Saturday.

The club lost to the Crusaders in last year’s final but have another chance to claim their first Super Rugby title since 2013.

Super Rugby Pacific boss Kevin Malloy says the 2024 season has been a great campaign with great results both on and off the field.

He said both teams had played well and the final “will be one of the most exciting and competitive rugby games we have seen this year”.

“Rugby fans across the Pacific will be treated to a night of world-class action as both clubs give it their all to lift the Super Rugby Pacific Trophy.”

Match: Sotutu VS Sititi

While there are many stars who will be competing and competing against each other, there are two stars who are sure to have a major impact on their respective teams.

Blues No. 8 Hoskins Sotutu will face rookie and Chiefs final player Wallace Sititi.

It will be a showdown between two young Pacific Islanders looking to make their mark on New Zealand rugby.

And their names are not new either, as their fathers have played football in New Zealand and their respective countries.

Sotutu is the son of former Auckland and Fiji flyer Vaisakai, a winger and centre who played for Auckland Wesleyan College and later Marist College.

He also represented Counties Manukau at the national provincial championships in 1989 and played for Auckland between 1991 and 1997.

The Bua native also played in the first Super 12 season for the Auckland Blues and made his debut for Fiji on May 15, 1999 in a Test match against Canada in Vancouver.

He represented the Fiji Flyers at the 1999 Rugby World Cup, playing in four matches.

Sotutu also tried out for the All Blacks in 1995 and played for the New Zealand XV in the same year, but never played for the national team.

Siti is the son of former Manu Samoa captain Semo, who played in three World Cups between 1999 and 2007.

Semo also served as captain of the Samoa 7s rugby team and led the team to the 2001 Rugby World Cup 7s in Argentina.

He also played five times for the Wellington Hurricanes in Super Rugby and played 13 times for Wellington in the national provincial championships.

While the younger Sotutu had played for the All Blacks before, Sititi was right behind him.

The two showed their strength and power in the 2024 season, and many believed that it would be a fierce battle.

Sotutu has already thrown for 12 touchdowns this season, tying him with Crusaders winger Seu Reese. This number also makes him the Blues player with the most touchdowns in a single season.

Sititi etched his name firmly into the All Blacks squad with one of the greatest individual performances in Super Rugby history to date.

Born in Samoa and raised in Scotland, Japan and New Zealand, Siti was named after William Wallace, the protagonist of the movie “Braveheart.” He overshadowed this year’s most outstanding player, No. 8 Brayden Iose of the Hurricanes, and foreshadowed his impressive future.

Both of them are vying to become the All Blacks’ second eight alongside Adi Savea.

Cotter believes his Fijian giant has improved by leaps and bounds.

“He’s getting better every game and now he’s key for us. He’s definitely the deciding factor in the game now.”

Chiefs mentor Clayton McMillan said Siti had performed well all season and had a great game against the Hurricanes in the semi-final in the capital last weekend.

“He has definitely become an important player for our team. I know he will be key in our final.”

Judging from the results this year, Sotutu seems to have the upper hand. He has dribbled the ball 138 times, while Sititi has only 125; he has beaten defenders 30 times, while his Samoan compatriot has only 23; he has scored 12 goals, while Sititi has only scored 2 goals so far.

But Sititi sprinted 393 meters after contact, compared to 347 meters for Sotutu, and made successful contact 93% of the time. His Fijian opponent made successful contact 88% of the time.

Both players are of Pacific Islander descent who were named to the 23-man roster for both games.

The Blues have Ofa Tu’ungafasi, Patrick Tuipulotu, Akira Ioane, Sotutu, Caleb Clarke, AJ Lam, Rieko Ioane, Mark Tele’a, Joshua Fusitu’a, Angus Ta’avao and Taufa Funaki.

Chiefs have Jimmy Tupou, Tupou Wai, Samipene Fono, Siti, Emoni Nalawa and Quin Tupae.

Tupulotu returns to the final

Meanwhile, the hosts have been given a major boost heading into Saturday’s decider with the return of captain and All Black Tuipulotu.

Tuipurotu has recovered in time from a medial collateral ligament injury he suffered in the quarter-final win over Fiji’s Drua.

Initially there were rumours that he would be sidelined until the start of the Test season due to injury.

However, the Blues have named captain Josh Beehre as a replacement in the second row.

“Patty is a true Blues fan and he came to us this week eager to play in the grand final,” Cotter said.

“He tested his knee in the gym on Monday and again on the grass yesterday. He is recovering well and has been cleared by our medical team to play – he is a welcome addition to our squad, our talisman and our leader.”

Chiefs are counting the cost of physical exertion in the semi-final after losing All Blacks hooker Samisoni Taukei’aho.

Taukiaho suffered a leg injury in the win over the Hurricanes and left the game after 20 minutes.

McMillan made one change to the bench, with Manaaki Selby-Rickit coming on for Naitoa Ah Kuoi.

Blues Matchday 23: 1 Ofa Tu’ungafasi, 2 Ricky Riccitelli, 3 Marcel Renata, 4 Patrick Tuipulotu (c), 5 Sam Darry, 6 Akira Ioane, 7 Dalton Papali’i, 8 Hoskins Sotutu, 9 Finlay Christie, 10 Harry Plummer, 11 Caleb Clark, 12 AJ Lam, 13 Rieko Ioane, 14 Mark Tele’a, 15 Stephen Perofeta; reserve: 16 Kurt Eklund, 17 Joshua Fusitua, 18 Angus Tavao, 19 Josh Beeler, 20 Adrian Choate, 21 Taufa Funaki, 22 Bryce Shim, 23 Cole Forbes

Chiefs Round 23: 1 Aidan Ross, 2 Tyrone Thompson, 3 George Dale, 4 Jimmy Tupou, 5 Tupou Wai, 6 Samipenny Finau, 7 Luke Jacobson (c), 8 Wallace Sititi, 9 Cortez Latima, 10 Damian McKenzie, 11 Etne Nanai Seturo, 12 Lamek Boispi, 13 Anton Linate-Brown, 14 Emoni Nalawa, 15 Sean Stevenson; reserve: 16 Bradley Slater, 17 Jared Proffitt, 18 Reuben O’Neill, 19 Manaki Selby-Rickett, 20 Simon Parker, 21 Xavier Rowe, 22 Quinn Tupaia, 23 Daniel Rona

Game start: 7:05 p.m.

referee: Nick Berry assistant: Jordan Way and Damon Murphy

*RNZ Sport’s live blog

Fiji targets Oceania Nations Cup

Fiji will be looking to beat Tahiti in their Group B match at the Oceania Nations Cup in Suva.

Head coach Rob Sherman knows that with a win they will top the group and potentially face Vanuatu or New Zealand in the semi-finals. FBC News report.

Tahiti and Papua New Guinea, who had played Samoa in earlier matches, will also be looking for a win each as a defeat would see them miss out on the semi-finals.

Tahiti only need to draw with Fiji to advance to the semi-finals, while Papua New Guinea will need to beat Samoa by at least 7-0.

Sherman said they are well prepared and determined to keep up the momentum.

“That’s really what happens in international football. We can start with some wins and keep going. That’s our intention.”

He added that the presence of fans has encouraged the team and he is looking forward to getting the same crowd and support in the final group match.

Fiji will face Tahiti tomorrow, Saturday, at 7pm at the HFC Bank Stadium.

Samoa and Papua New Guinea meet before the Fiji game.

Meanwhile, Fiji’s men’s football team has risen to 166th in the FIFA rankings.

They have improved from 168.

Papua New Guinea and Tahiti also moved up one spot each, with Tahiti now ranked 161st and Papua New Guinea 165th.

Vanuatu now ranks 170th, down from 172nd, while New Zealand dropped three spots to 107th.

The Solomon Islands now ranks 133rd, American Samoa 188th, Samoa 181st, and the Cook Islands remain at 187th.

Vanuatu fights hard for Paris spot

The Vanuatu women’s beach volleyball team will play their final match of the Paris Olympic qualifiers against New Zealand this weekend.

Both teams faced off against two strong New Zealand teams in the quarter-finals of the AVC Beach Volleyball Continental Cup Finals held in Xiangshan, Ningbo, China.

The Vanuatu Beach Volleyball team said there was no other way to qualify other than winning the tournament and placing top in the qualifiers.