Babas ready to rough it up

Fiji Times - Tuesday, April 15, 2008 7:52 AM

THE Air Pacific Barbarians are expecting a physically brutal battle against Savai'i Samoa in their opening match of the Pacific Rugby Cup.

Playing away from home, coach Eddie Waqa is expected to bulk up his side against the former PRC champions for the Sunday game at Marist Stadium in Apia.

"To be honest, we really have no idea of what they (Savai'i Samoa) are made up of," Waqa said.

"But like any Samoan team, we expect them to be physical and they will take the game upfront.

"We also expect them to have big fellows in the middle (backs).

"They are playing in front of their home crowd and as former champions, they'll want to keep their profile intact."

Waqa said necessary changes would be made to his starting lineup from the one that played against the Air Pacific Fiji Warriors last weekend.

"I think we'll need to make some changes in the forwards to help counter the big Samoans.

"I'm looking at putting in some strong forwards to counter their attacking play."

Unlike the Warriors, the Barbarians are made of non-Test players who part of a development program by the Fiji Rugby Union.

The side flies off to Samoa tonight with a psychological advantage after beating the Warriors in the pre-season match.

Waqa said mental preparation was seen as a ploy to ruffle a few feathers.

"We've told them to believe in themselves. They did it against the Warriors and I believe they can do it again.

"They've been reminded that they have been given an opportunity to shine. Their hard work during the Colonial Cup season has not gone unnoticed.

"We're giving them a chance to prove themselves."

The side had a new training scene yesterday after moving camp to Nadi on Sunday. The side trained at Saint Mary's School ground in Namaka.

"This morning (yesterday) we did some endurance work and realignment of our backline attacks," Waqa said.

"We also worked on our rucks. We want quick clearance of the ball and we covered the role of each player.

"I think our advantage is the speed the players have and this is something we want to show in Apia."

The team flies out at ten tonight.