WATCH: The quickest try in Super Rugby Women’s history

WRAP Super Rugby Women’s couldn’t have gotten off to a more breathtaking start in 2025 with Fijian Drua’s Vitalina Naikore scoring less than 10 seconds into the new season, which began with a Grand Final rematch against the NSW Waratahs.

The Drua’s physical and fast-paced tempo proved too strong as they recorded a 23-17 win over the Waratahs.

The Drua’s physical and fast-paced tempo proved too strong for a scrappy Waratahs outfit.

NSW ran in three tries to two at Allianz Stadium through winger Maya Stewart, prop Bridie O’Gorman and centre Georgina Friedrichs.

But that wasn’t enough to match tries to Drua centre Vitalina Naikore and winger Josivini Naihamu plus two conversions and three penalty goals from fullback Luisa Tisolo.

But Chancellor is taking the positives from only the fourth loss in the defending champions’ seven-season history.

“This season is going to be a tough one, and that’s exactly what we want,” she said.

“We want better competition and we’ve got it. So we need to step up and play the rugby that we’ve played in the pre-season.

“We didn’t meet the (Drua) in the beginning and we made it really hard for ourselves to get into the game.”

The sultry starting temperature inside Allianz Stadium mirrored the Drua’s fiery opening play as it took only eight seconds for the Fijians to draw first blood.

Naikore captalised off a bouncing kick-off, before she soccered the ball into the in-goal and planted it.

Twelve minutes later, the Waratahs spread the ball down the left side of the Drua’s defence where leading Wallaroos’ try-scorer Stewart cut inside and strolled over the line.

The Drua looked to take a stronger foothold in the game and were rewarded when Naihamu tore through the Waratahs centre to score.

Three minutes into the second half, NSW cut the deficit to 10 points when Bridie O’Gorman scooped the ball and darted towards the right corner before scoring.

The Drua tightened their grip on their 20-10 advantage, restricting the Waratahs in their half as mistakes began to plague their attacking momentum.

As fulltime beckoned, the Drua continued to hold on to the ball, and were rewarded as the frustrated Waratahs conceded their third penalty goal.

The Waratahs were able to finish the game with a try when Friedrichs steamrolled through a post-scrum gap to reduce the losing margin to six points.

Brumbies flyhalf Faitala Moleka has missed an after-the-siren penalty in her side’s 29-29 Super W draw with the Western Force in Perth.

In a thrilling finish to Saturday’s match, Force substitute Sammy Treherne scored a 79th-minute try to reduce the margin to two points, before an ice cool Nicole Ledington nailed the sideline conversion to level the scores.

The Force gave away a penalty moments after the restart, giving Moleka the chance to win the game in the 81st minute with a 36m penalty on a 40-degree angle.

Mokela hooked the kick badly to the left, with the miss ensuring for a share of the spoils.

The Force started the match as hot favourites after bolstering their squad during the off-season.

Wallaroos recruits Allana Sikimeti, Sera Naiqama, Ashley Marsters and Cecilia Smith were all named in the starting line-up, with Treherne adding impact from the bench.

“Pretty disappointed,” Force coach Dylan Parsons said.

“We knew it was going to be on us to be able to control that game, and we just didn’t do that for bigger periods of the match.

“The Brumbies probably deserved to win, so we’ve got out of jail a little bit there with the draw and still getting two competition points.”

The Brumbies scored four tries to two in an entertaining first half to take a 26-17 lead into the break.

Meranie Paraone scored the opening try after just three minutes, but the Force hit back with two quick tries of their own.

A tackle-busting run by Force winger Brooklyn Teki Joyce set up Anneka Stephens for the home side’s first.

And the Force led 14-7 in the 12th minute when outside centre Cecilia Smith got on the end of a series of slick passes.

A yellow card to Smith two minutes later changed the complexion of the match.

Brumbies winger Biola Dawa scored while the Force were down a player.

And when Brumbies flanker Chioma Enyi scored two tries in the space of three minutes approaching half-time, the visitors were in complete control.

The second half was a grind, and it wasn’t until the final few minutes that things started really opening up, with Moleka’s after-the-siren miss proving to be the critical moment.