Fullback Joe Pincus believes the Melbourne Rebels' early season trial in Fiji will have them ready for anything as they prepare for the Drua.
The Rebels are riding high after last week's thrilling win over the Queensland Reds at AAMI Park.
Wallabies Andrew Kellaway and Reece Hodge's returns only add to their confidence as they head to Suva.
Hodge will start in the centres after overcoming a hand laceration whilst Kellaway makes his first appearance of 2023 via the bench following his broken foot.
They are much-needed returns before their trip to Fiji, with the Drua out to continue their unbeaten home start in Fiji.
But Pincus says the Rebels' pre-season game, which they lost 24-0, provided some valuable insight into how to prepare and play in the tropical conditions and in front of the raucous crowd expected at HFC Bank Stadium.
"(The pre-season game) wasn't a good experience at the time but it was a good learning experience about accepting the hard conditions and not letting it affect our game plan and our attitude," said Pincus
"That's definitely going to be in play this weekend; we know it's going to be warm and humid but that's something we can acknowledge now and bring into our game model and hopefully play to our best."
Pincus retains the No.15 jersey despite Kellaway's return, relishing some consistent game time as he tried to make an impact in the 15-man game.
"That's obviously something that I've lacked a little bit as I've been at the Rebels for a year now and have had to deal with some injuries so it's been nice to be on the field for some good minutes," the Queensland-born speedster said.
"At fullback I definitely feel comfortable there ... but 15 is a jersey number that Kells (Kellaway) will be looking at and he's played there very well for the Wallabies so it might be something that I'm going to have to deal with in the coming weeks.
"It's also going to be a great opportunity for me to watch and learn from him because he's obviously a very talented player."
