Moana Pasifika captain still dreaming of a future for Super Rugby side

Moana Pasifika captain Miracle Fai'ilagi still holds hope the franchise will be saved.

The Super Rugby team was placed in liquidation on Tuesday, with this weekend's season-ending game against the Brumbies in Canberra set to be their last.

However, Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters has suggested all might not be lost, but wouldn't provide any further details.

There appears to be two frontrunners who could save the franchise.

RNZ understands one is a private consortium, Kanaloa Rugby, which has the backing of former All Blacks Ben Atiga and Jerome Kaino.

The other option to rescue Moana appears to be the possibility of government assistance or aid budget money out of New Zealand, Australia and Samoa.

The team's debts include a $2.7 million crown loan. Liquidator Stephen White said it's still early days.

"We haven't yet had any approaches, but we are aware that NZ Rugby has had various conversations with parties," White said.

"We know there are consortia out there that have looked at the franchise over the course of the recent past. So we'll be reaching out to those people soon to see if there's anything we can assist with."

Fai'ilagi told RNZ's Morning Report that he envisions a future for Moana Pasifika and hasn't given up on the team playing in next year's Super Rugby competition.

"Yeah, 100 percent, we want this team to continue," Fai'ilagi said.

"Our prep this week has been 100 percent effort, we just train to win, that's one of our standards."

Fai'ilagi said Moana Pasifika have been doing their best to prepare for their final game of the year and doing their best to enjoy each others company.

"We're not just counting days, but we're just making the days count. Despite everything that's happening in the background, the boys always turn up with 100 percent effort and with energy. We're having fun.

"The Brumbies are not an easy team, at home as well. So, that's the big task ahead of us and we're just focusing on that. There's people behind the scenes who are helping us with everything that's happened and that puts us in a position to focus on the game, the execution of our plan and focusing on ourselves and our fans. Everything we do is for them."

Fai'ilagi, 25, is one of Moana's success stories. He was playing club rugby in Samoa as an amateur before being signed by the franchise.

"It was the dream for growing up in the islands, playing club footy, I wasn't taking it seriously back then, just enjoying playing rugby."

He said Moana Pasifika was created to give players like him a chance.

"It's quite special just to get the opportunity to come here and express myself and also to learn the cultures of other people," Fai'ilagi said.

"When I was young I hardly connected with people, I'm too shy. But coming here you meet a lot of people and those people will help you along the way. That's something special about this group.

"We have a guy from Japan, we have a guy from Great Britain and the other boys from other cultures. It is quite special, this team, just bringing all of those guys together."

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