'Whole new level': Why Zac Lomax's rugby debut will be no joke as Western Force visit Fijian Drua

NRL convert Zac Lomax will make his Super Rugby Pacific debut on the hardest road trip of all this weekend.

The Fijian Drua at home in Lautoka is about as rough as it gets for visiting sides. There are multiple factors which have contributed to the Drua becoming a 'nightmare in paradise' and led to an impressive home record since 2022.

Here's why it'll be a litmus test for Lomax and his Western Force teammates 45 minutes north of Nadi.

Watch the 2026 Super Rugby Pacific season with every match streaming live and on demand on the home of rugby, Stan Sport

THE FIJIAN FANS

Everywhere you go across the islands, Drua flags fly in the villages. It's a proud supporter base that explodes on game day.

"Churchill Park is awesome because it's right on the main drag in Lautoka. Everyone is wearing something Drua and everyone's there early," says commentator Sam Wykes, a former Force lock and one of the leading voices in Pasifika sport.

"The noise they make around kickoff is hard to describe. We've had days when they're so loud, our audio team dropped the input on the crowd effects microphones down to a 1 out of 10 and it was still too loud."

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Wykes' co-caller Greg Clark, who's commentated over 200 Test matches and done more Drua games than anyone alive, says it's just deafening.

"10,000 sounds like 30,000 at times. They're known as the world's best fans and inaugural coach Mick Byrne described them as their 16th man," Clark says.

''Anything's possible in the stadiums of Ba, Suva and Lautoka. I remember an afternoon when one of the fans was dancing at the top of the temporary stands and then just disappeared.

"He'd fallen through a gap, dropped 20 feet under the stands, but miraculously come away unscathed. He just dusted himself off and kept dancing."

Waratahs and Wallabies outside back Andrew Kellaway has been playing Super Rugby for over a decade now and says the locals are different altogether.

"The Drua fans are unique in that they're loud no matter what. It only takes a tiny glimpse of brilliance and they go off which can really impact the momentum of the game," Kellaway says.

THE CONDITIONS

It can be unimaginably hot and humid. The Queensland Reds' visit this year saw them play while the temperature was over 30 degrees while the humidity hovered around the 90 per cent mark.

Often, the clouds break mid-game leading to a flooded field with sinking, heavy grass underfoot.

"Imagine playing touch rugby in a sauna while 15 world class athletes do everything they can to take your head off your shoulders," explains Kellaway, the 49 Test Wallabies back.

"The legs get heavy but it's the lungs that really hurt. Something about the humidity and sun drain your energy really quickly. You can lose between 3-6 kg across those 80 minutes."

''It's like when you're at the gym and you open the door to the steam room and the heat just hits you in the face," adds Wykes.

"I'd do the interviews with visiting teams when they got off the bus and you'd just watch their reactions. the first thing they'd always say to me was 'how hot is it?'

''When they asked that, I knew they were in for a long afternoon. It was really interesting when the Brumbies came over in round one last year. Their coach Stephen Larkham was wearing long pants and a 3/4 zip. I asked him if that was to set an example pyscologically and he just winked at me. They won that afternoon so there's something in it.

''Jamie Joseph used to coach me at the Sunwolves and would always say, 'the heat is your friend, make the heat your friend.' If teams turn up in Lautoka wearing singlets and hats in the warmup, they usually lose."

Clark, who penned The Rise of the Drua says breathing can be difficult for some.

"Some players liken it to playing at altitude in South Africa. There's no respite when it rains and becomes steamy.''

Finally, it's not just the heat and humidity which shocks visiting teams.

''I remember last year, one of the Western Force guys came over to me at halftime and said, 'Bro, there are frogs on the field'!" adds a laughing Wykes.

THE NA BOLE

Reserved for home games and special occasions, the Drua's cultural challenge before kickoff translates in parts to, 'We will fight to the death. We will destroy your defences. We are relentless, honest and disciplined. Go the Drua.'

It is a fearsome sight and lifts the energy ten-fold.

Kellaway, who's faced the All Blacks' haka ten times, describes it this way.

"They're both incredible in their intensity, but seeing a Fijian man built like a bus holding a spear and shouting at you is particularly intimidating."

Wykes thinks it takes them to another level.

"There's no doubt it gives them a lift. Look at a guy like Frank Lomani, look at his eyes when he delivers it. There is just so much feeling in the Bole."

THE NATION IS WATCHING

There's an old saying that when the Fijian sevens team is playing in a big tournament on the HSBC World Series, the nation stops to watch.

It's said a Fijian Prime Minister even tracked down a director mid-broadcast and reminded him that the camera must always stay on the Fijian huddle at halftime. A similar fanaticism extends to the Drua.

''The numbers are huge mate," confirms Wykes.

''Everyone is watching across all the villages, across all the islands of Fiji. The kickoff time is even set to fall in line with the local bus timetables. The earlier start enables everyone to get from their villages to the ground and back on the bus. People love the Drua."

Clark, who's also seen a ton of the sevens circuit, understands what it means to the Fijians.

"They know their rugby and appreciate everything that's good about the game, especially when sides like the Drua and the Flying Fijians turn on their trademark flair.

THE NUMBERS

Stan Sport stats guru and rugby desperado Kate Lorimer crunched the numbers and they're stacked against the visiting sides, with the Drua winning at 66 per cent at home.

Crucially though, it's the toll that the trip can take on sides the following round.

Neither the Brumbies, Waratahs or Force have ever won the next game. Only the Chiefs and Highlanders have a perfect record on that front. So, what can Force debutant Lomax expect?

"The Drua will want to let him know they're on his patch and reputation doesn't mean anything in Fiji. The fans love their sport and will know all about the convert and his talent. I think he'll love it despite a few bruises and lost kilos," rounds out Clark.

"I know Zac played Origin, but this is a whole new level. He's gonna need to wear sunscreen on the bench and when he gets out there it's gonna be rough. You just don't know what you're gonna get," adds a laughing Wykes.

Catch Lomax and the Force vs Drua, live and exclusive on Stan Sport from 2pm AEST on Saturday.