Aseza Hele describes her return to Test rugby in Suva as feeling as significant as her international debut, after the loose forward played a major role in South Africa's 55-12 first-Test victory over Fiji on Saturday.
Hele, winning her 33rd cap, had been sidelined since the Women's Rugby World Cup in England nearly a year ago following hand surgery. Back in the starting XV, she finished the match with 16 ball carries and 127 metres made, her physicality a persistent problem for the Fijian defence throughout.
"Coming back from rehabilitation, one is not always hundred percent sure how the body will react in a match situation," Hele said from Nadi, where the squad is based for the week. "Once the match started, I felt really comfortable and I could just focus on doing my job out there. It felt great to get back in the physical part of the game and I felt like I was myself again."
Hele also drew personal satisfaction from seeing teammates who had missed the home series against the USA last month given the opportunity to reassert themselves. She was among that group.
The result carries added weight given the history between the sides. South Africa's only previous meeting with Fiji ended in a last-play defeat at the 2022 Women's Rugby World Cup in New Zealand. "That defeat in New Zealand was still hurting and with this performance, we buried that for good," Hele said.
Conditions in Suva tested both sides, with a strong wind adding complexity, and Hele expects Fiji to respond sharply in the second Test at Churchill Park in Lautoka on Saturday, kick-off 13h00 local time (03h00 SA time). "We know they will come back stronger. But that is good for us too, as we respond well to pressure."