Rob Valetini will step onto Ba’s 4R Stadium pitch this Saturday to play his 100th Super Rugby Pacific match, with the milestone made all the more personal by the presence of his parents in the stands. The ACT Brumbies loose forward was named in the starting XV on Thursday and said bringing his family to Fiji to witness the occasion was something he had wanted for some time.
In an interview with Australian news agency AAP, Valetini paid tribute to his parents’ sacrifices and explained why having them at Govind Park matters. “My parents have made a lot of sacrifices in my life, and I thought it would be nice to have it in Fiji and bring them over,” he said, adding that other family members already in Fiji would also be at the game. The Brumbies and the Swire Shipping Fijian Drua meet at 3.30pm local time.
While Rob celebrates his triple-digit appearance, his younger brother Kemu will not line up this round. Valetini said he hopes the sibling rivalry is still on the cards for the future. “It will be nice to celebrate with them and hopefully I get to play against my brother as well so hopefully he gets picked,” he told AAP.
The upcoming match returns Valetini to Fijian soil; he featured against the Drua in the opening round of Super Rugby last year in Suva, when the Brumbies edged the hosts 36-32. That narrow victory set the tone for what both teams expect to be a fiercely contested rematch at Govind Park, where local support for the Drua typically runs deep.
Swire Shipping Fijian Drua head coach Glen Jackson publicly congratulated Valetini on reaching the 100-game milestone, underscoring the regard in which the Brumbies forward is held around the competition. Valetini and his Brumbies teammates have signalled they are focused on the return fixture, with the Australian-based side saying this week that the squad is hungry for the weekend clash.
Beyond the personal milestone, the match carries broader significance for the Super Rugby Pacific season as teams jockey for momentum in the early rounds. For Valetini, however, the day will be measured in family presence and the chance to mark a career landmark on a packed Fijian pitch — a fitting stage for a player with ties to the Pacific region.
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