Fiji captain Akapusi Qera admits loss of star man Nemani Nadolo is a 'massive loss'
Wednesday 30 September 2015 17:23, UK
Fiji captain Akapusi Qera admits the absence of Nemani Nadolo will be "a massive loss" for his team when they face Wales in the World Cup on Thursday.
Winger and goalkicker Nadolo misses the match at the Millennium Stadium after he was handed a one-match ban for a dangerous tackle in their 28-13 defeat to Pool A opponents Australia seven days ago.
Nadolo's unavailability, combined with the absence of injured scrum-half Niko Matawalu, has made a difficult test even harder for the Pacific Islanders and Qera knows they must perform at their best to get something out of the game.
"Losing Nemani is a massive loss for us," he said.
"He is one of our consistent kickers and he has big boots to fill, but I know the other boys have an opportunity, and they will grab it with both hands.
"We need to play the best we can to compete with Wales on Thursday."
Fiji's chances of qualifying for the quarter-finals appear to be over as they have already lost to England and Australia earlier in the competition.
But Fiji, who knocked Wales out of the 2007 World Cup following a thrilling pool stage win in Nantes, will continue to battle and will take heart from how well Wales have performed despite struggling with serious injury problems themselves.
"For us, we have to concentrate on what we need to do in the game, our game-plan and our execution," said Fiji head coach John McKee.
"Wales have had a lot of injuries, but they got a great result against England and you can't discount a team because they've had injuries.
"One of the things that really showed against England was the tremendous spirit they have in that team, and the fight to get a result. How they hung in there at times and finished very strongly.
"Sometimes, adversity in terms of injuries can strengthen a group, so I don't see any weakness in Wales because they have had to pull in other players or they've had injuries."
Fiji's last visit to the Millennium Stadium 10 months ago resulted in a 17-13 defeat, but only after Wales suffered a major scare, and McKee feels his side has improved since then.
"We are a better team now than we were last November," he added.
"We've got the core group from then, and through our work in preparation for this World Cup we are a better team. But we know Wales are as well.
"That result gives us some confidence going into the game because we know we can compete really well with them, and we know we need to be at our absolute best on the night to be competitive."
