Fiji men's hockey coach Shaun Corrie says this afternoon's matchup against the New Zealand President's XI is a litmus test in their bid to claim the Oceania Pacific Cup title.
The home side opened their campaign with a 13-1 demolition of Samoa on Saturday while the New Zealanders thrashed Papua New Guinea 12-0.
The Fiji team them used yesterday's rest day to watch New Zealand topple defending champions Australia Country 5-3 and Shaun Corrie is expecting a tough encounter.
"In terms of the Pacific Cup I think this game is going to be the biggest one for us. New Zealand played really well yesterday, we watched that game. They are strong all-round, a good team, quality side. It's going to be tough for us [and] we need to ensure that our defensive game is solid".
Fiji's hopes of defending their Oceania Pacific Cup women's title suffered a severe blow with the home side thrashed 9-0 by the New Zealand President's XI in Suva.
Two years ago the Fiji women did the double, winning both the Oceania Cup and the Hockey World League events but despite a dominant win over Vanuatu on Saturday, New Zealand were a class above the hosts.
Australia Country top the women's standings after trouncing Vanuatu 7-1, while Papua New Guinea beat Samoa 5-1 for their first win in the Hockey World League and the PNG men beat Samoa 4-1.
