Former All Black's captain Tana Umaga. Photo: PHOTOSPORT
In any sport, start-up franchises rarely produce stunning results in the first few seasons. Whilst established teams inherit decades of team cohesion and culture passed down from player to player, start-up teams have no generation before them, no era to draw inspiration from.
In just their second year of Super Rugby, Moana Pasifika managed to scalp only one victory from 14 games, that being a 33 to 24 win over the Waratahs in their last game of the season. It was a well-deserved farewell for Moana Pasifika Coach Aaron Mauger, who mapped-out the development of an entirely new team and uncovered unknown gems such as Miracle Fai'ilagi, Solomone Funaki and Timoci Tavatavanawai.
"He's laid a foundation for us that we can build from," said Tana Umaga in a press conference following his public announcement as new head coach of Moana Pasifika.
"He's given me some pointers around how the players work... in a lot of those games, they were close.
"You're always making mistakes but you just got to learn from them and grow."
Moana Pasifika players. Photo: photosport
The 50-year-old All Black legend who made history as the first Samoan to captain the All Black, Umaga assumes his second stint as a super rugby head coach. He was head coach of the Auckland Blues between 2016 and 2018, and coached Counties-Manukau between 2012 and 2015.
Tana is currently defence coach for Manu Samoa, assisting Vaovasamanaia Seilala Mapusua in the country's World Cup Campaign later this year.
"Tana is the embodiment of Moana Pasifika and all that we stand for, our dreams and aspirations," Moana Pasifika chairperson La'auli Savae Sir Michael Jones said.
"His ability to mentor and develop his charges on and off the field is an invaluable asset for our programme, we are extremely excited for what the future holds for Moana Pasifika under Tana's guidance and influence.
"Tana also provides direct connections to our Pacific home nations given his current coaching role with Manu Samoa which supports the ambition of Moana Pasifika to provide high performance pathways for players who want to represent Pacific Island nations."
Wellington, Hurricanes and All Black teamates Tana Umaga (left) and Jonah Lomu. Photo: Pho
'Moana Pasifika means a lot to a lot of people'
In the wake of Moana Pasifika's poor standings this season, some critics have questioned the franchise.
The headline of a recent article published by the Rugby Addict read "Moana Pasifika is a franchise surely doomed to fail".
"You're always making mistakes but you just got to learn from them and grow," Umaga said.
"In a lot of those games, we were close... from what I've seen, there's improvement that needs to be made."
New signing Miracle Fai'ilagi in the Pasifika's change strip against the Western Force at the weekend Photo: Moana Pasifika
Moana Pasifika's standings also belie its contributions to the quality of Pacific Island rugby teams. In just two years, Moana Pasifika has produced 14 international test players for Samoa and 13 for the 'Ikale Tahi - all of whom have honed experience against New Zealand and Australia's elite teams. The same can be said for Drua Fiji.
"Moana Pasifika means a lot to many people, and it's created pathways for players, as we've seen with Miracle Fai'ilagi," Umaga said.
"We want to find more Miracles not just in Samoa but also in Tonga, and the Pacific islands in general.
"We want to leave no stone unturned in terms of developing a better performance for all of us and get those successes that our Pasifika people want."
