Members of Fiji's national rugby team will try to keep it clean on and off the field at the Rugby World Cup in New Zealand. (Phil Walter/Getty Images)

The Fiji rugby team has been urged to play clean rugby and avoid off-field temptation at a church service marking their impending departure for the Rugby World Cup.

Religion and rugby are central elements of Fijian life and the Fiji players chose to attend a Sunday service at the Centenary Methodist Church in the capital Suva before entering camp to prepare for their departure for New Zealand.

In his sermon, Reverend Sakaraia Koli urged the Fiji players to always be at their best.

Koli told the team "it will never be easy going out there. You will have a lot of relatives and friends in New Zealand who may tempt you to drift aside from your goal but you make sure to understand your goal."

Fiji will play in Pool D at the 20-team World Cup with defending champions South Africa, Pacific rival Samoa, Wales and Namibia. The Fijians beat Wales to reach the quarter-finals of the 2007 World Cup in France.

Koli warned the players Sunday of the importance of discipline.

"There are only two key components if you want to do well," he said. "That is to play clean rugby and be a disciplined player on the field.

"You cannot win games if you have 13 players on the field, so that is where self-discipline is very important to the team."

Koli took inspiration from the Corinthians text in the Bible for his sermon.

"Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training," he said. "They do it to get a crown that will not last.

"But we do it to get a crown that will last forever."

Koli then turned from the bible to the training manual to provide technical advice.

"I want to share with you the four Ps," he said. "That is to maintain possession which will carry you to the opposition's tryline with a very fast pace.

"Pass when it is the right time to pass to carry on the momentum of the game and position yourself in the right position every time."

The Fiji team will go into camp in Nadi before leaving for New Zealand later this week.