Moana Pasifika face a hectic end to their Super Rugby Pacific campaign with three games in eight days, and their first is against a Reds team in Brisbane who are keen to make up for their 26-53 loss to the Blues in their last outing.

Moana play the Force on Tuesday in Auckland, and they host the Brumbies on Saturday.

That loss dropped the Reds to seventh on the points table and already having conceded a home playoffs berth, they are determined to build their momentum in the final two rounds.

Loose forward Harry Wilson told rugby.com.au that he believed no one wanted to face the Reds in the quarterfinals.

Four consecutive losses against New Zealand teams have dropped them down the points table.

Wilson, who has recovered from a head knock that prevented him playing in Auckland, returns to the side on Friday.

Despite their losses, there had been improvements in some areas of their game, and they still had a positive frame of mind, he said.

"Confidence is awesome going into [the] finals. We know we have to get a win this round and be showing improvement.

 

 

"Once we're in the finals, it's a matter of winning the big moments there. No one wants to face us in the quarterfinals, I know that," he said.

The side had shown its ability to make good starts, they led the Hurricanes 17-0 and the Highlanders 12-0, but both sides had fought back and taken the wins.

The Reds' inconsistency has led coach Brad Thorn to reinforce the message that the minutes either side of halftime are important.

"We've played some really good footy over the past month, but we've pretty much lost matches in that time before and after halftime," he said.

"Our biggest focus has been on that 15-minute period. We've changed up little things at training to get better there."

While the side would be without centre Hunter Paisami, who suffered a collarbone injury in Auckland, and prop Taniela Tupou, who is still recovering from a calf injury, the return to play and form of wing Suli Vunivalu was a bonus for the side.

A try scorer in Auckland, he showed the value of his running and support game.

"After being out for so long, it takes a while to get back in the groove. We all saw on the weekend what sort of x-factor he adds to our team.

"Getting his hands on the ball can change games," Wilson said.