Donal Lenihan: Pacific Island nations offer golden chance to extend rugby's global reach
Players of Fijian Drua perform a warm cry during the round one Super Rugby Pacific match between the Waratahs and the Fijian Drua in Sydney last weekend. Picture: Brett Hemmings/Getty Images
On a weekend of relative calm, with the Six Nations entering temporary hibernation, a revamped Super Rugby Pacific tournament kicked off in the southern hemisphere to herald a new era in the professional game.
At long last, the Pacific Islands are represented in a meaningful, top-quality club competition that will hopefully have positive long-term consequences for Fiji, Samoa, and Tonga. When you consider the incredible statistic that 27% of professional rugby players worldwide hail from the Pacific Islands, it's about time those rugby-mad countries were offered a real chance to maximise their playing strengths at international level.
