6 Jun 2014

Sport: Basics will help says Tonga rugby coach

10:46 am on 6 June 2014

The Tonga rugby coach Mana Otai says doing the basics well is the key for all Pacific teams when they come together for the annual Pacific Nations Cup.

The Cup kicks off tomorrow when Samoa host Tonga in Apia.

Samoa, Tonga, and Fiji all have to contend with the unavailability of a number of front-line players, whose careers take them all over the world.

Mana Otai says they basically have to start from scratch.

"Every six months we come together and try and put together a team in three days, that's our reality, so really it's about trying to put the team together with slightly different combinations this time and we almost have to start from square one again so really it's trying to have some sort of continuity and still be able to do the basics very well, that's really the key."

Mana Otai says they're trying to put some more work into their set pieces which troubled Tonga in their last outing.