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Rugby
All Blacks run riot, Wallabies survive Japanese onslaught
Heading to this week’s International Test matches, Southern Hemisphere giants All Blacks and Wallabies had a good workout. While the Wallabies were made to work hard against the Brave Blossoms, the All Blacks scored 16 tries as they hammered the USA Eagles. Sky...
Moana Pasifika signs first Fijian player
Moana Pasifika is raking in its first Fijian player to the franchise as the search continues for the newly formed side. Timoci Tavatavanawai, Moana Pasifika reported on its Facebook platform, is a winger and was part of the Crusaders and Highlanders wider squads during the 2021 Super Rugby season. The former Fiji under-20 utility back...
Talatala Tokaibai aims for rugby haven
Talatala Tokaibai is among young Fijian rugby players looking for refuge in the sport. With rugby becoming a haven for players through lucrative contracts, international exposure and test experience, the Vunibau, Serua lad is among players in the Fiji Rugby Union High Performance Unit. The unit’s academy is a pathway for blokes such as him...
Fiji rugby club coaches encouraged to attend clinics
Fiji Rugby Union development officer Koli Sewabu is encouraging all club coaches and interested participants to attend coaching clinics hosted by the parent body. Sewabu said the idea of going to provinces and working with club coaches was to boost the coach accreditation process. “We’ve been through a total shift in paradigm in terms of...
Fiji rugby in need of playmakers
Fiji needs first-five-eighths, said Fiji Rugby Union elite player pathway manager Viliame Gadolo. The FRU, through its development programs, is working hard to identify, groom, supply and patch areas national teams are lacking such as player supply. Especially on key and specialised positions such as the flyhalf, who masterminds and controls play, and know when,...
All Blacks forwards coach John Plumtree is a fan of Ardie Savea at No 8
Being unencumbered by the captaincy could empower All Blacks loose forward Ardie Savea to create fireworks against Wales in Cardiff. The question is whether Savea lights the fuse at openside flanker or No 8, when the sides clash at Principality Stadium on Sunday morning. Savea hasn’t played since lock Sam Whitelock replaced him as skipper for...
World Rugby’s massive blow to World 12s concept
The proposed World 12s rugby tournament has been delivered a potentially terminal blow by the sport’s global governing body. World Rugby says after consideration by powerful committees, “stakeholders do not wish to explore the concept further at this time”. Dubbed the Indian Premier League of rugby, organisers planned to launch the 12-a-side tournament in August...
Former All Black loses memorabilia as storage unit sold without him knowing
Former All Black and Wellington wing Bernie Fraser has lost precious family possessions and treasured rugby memorabilia after a storage unit he owned was sold without his knowledge. Fraser’s children said the storage unit in Wellington was filled with entirely personal property of great sentimental value to the family, including childhood family photos and videos,...
Former rugby league internationals to sue RFL over brain damage
Head injuries, concussions and their potential long-term health impact have been in the spotlight in rugby since former rugby union players filed a class-action lawsuit against governing bodies, including World Rugby, alleging a failure to minimise the risks. Former Britain and England halfback Bobbie Goulding, ex-Wales winger Michael Edwards and former Scotland fullback Jason Roach...
Osea Kolinisau inducted into the World Rugby Hall of Fame
2016 Rio Olympics gold medal winning Fiji 7s captain Osea Kolinisau will be inducted into the World Rugby Hall of Fame in 2021. World Rugby has revealed that six legends of the game in Osea Kolinisau (Fiji), Humphrey Kayange (Kenya), Huriana Manuel-Carpenter (New Zealand), Cheryl McAfee (Australia), Will Carling (England) and Jim Telfer (Scotland) will...
27th October
Mesulame Dolokoto in Drua signing
THE Fijian Drua team yesterday announced five forwards and two backline additions to the squad for its inaugural Super Rugby Pacific campaign. Wave Six-player announcements feature seasoned reps and exciting young prospects as the Fijian Drua continues on its maiden voyage to Super Rugby. These include Flying Fijians Mesulame Dolokoto, Teti Tela and Haereiti Hetet,...
Fijian Drua and New Balance announce Apparel Partnership
The Fijian Drua, Super Rugby Pacific’s newest franchise and global athletic leader New Balance have today announced a new 3-year partnership. The deal will see New Balance, through its elite teamwear partner Belgravia Sports Apparel (BSA), provide all onfield and training performance wear for the Fijian Drua, as well as supporter apparel products for Drua...
Interim Fiji 7s coach Saiasi Fuli awarded the 50th Independence medal
Interim Fiji 7s coach Saiasi Fuli is grateful that hard work has being recognised after he was awarded the 50th Independence medal at Government House in Suva on Monday. It was a commendation for promoting Fiji, especially after guiding the Fijiana 7s team in its Tokyo Olympics bronze medal victory. He is also a former national...
Nanukuloa youngsters join rugby program
The Nanukuloa Rugby Union (NRU) has embarked on a junior development program with the aim to teach youngsters in the village the basics of rugby. This task has been taken up by Moape Laweni, the man behind the resurgence of Nanukuloa Rugby Union in 2015. Nanukuloa has been one of the standout teams in the...
Fiji Rugby calls on local coaches to get proper accreditation
Club coaches need to get proper accreditation and gain enough international experience to qualify as head coach of the Fiji 7s team. Fiji Rugby recently advertised the position of the Fiji 7s head coach following Gareth Baber’s move into the 15s code as Edinburgh’s new skills and assistant attack coach. Under the knowledge, skill and...
‘It’s got massive potential’: Otago Uni finishes data collection in World Rugby head injury study
Otago University has just started the painstaking work of cross-referencing 40,000 head impacts recorded on specialist mouthguards with 400 hours of video footage in a ground-breaking study that is likely to change rugby’s understanding of head injuries and may even change World Rugby policy. The enormous study, in collaboration with World Rugby, New Zealand Rugby...
Waitui-Waidroka women‘s 7s team on a roll
A new women’s team will take part in the Fiji Rugby Union sanctioned Super Sevens Series on November 12-13 at the ANZ Stadium in Suva. The Waitui-Waidroka women‘s 7s team consists of teenage girls from the villages of Naselai, Nausori, Nakaile, Natogadravu and Sawani. The team comes under their youth club that was formed under...
Fijian centre Semi Radradra makes former All Blacks captain Kieran Read dream 12 team
Kieran Read has revealed his ideal team should he get a chance to coach in the proposed World 12s. The former All Blacks captain’s dream team includes six All Blacks, including Ardie Savea, Sam Whitelock and Richie Mo’unga, while Springboks Steven Kitsoff and Cheslin Kolbe also feature. Ex-captain Read, who played the last of his 127 tests at...
France excited to take on All Blacks
Stand-in captain Antoine Dupont does not believe his new role will affect his performance and is eager for his French side to benchmark their progress against New Zealand in their clash in Paris next month. Dupont, considered arguably the best halfback in the world, has been named captain with regular skipper Charles Ollivon likely to...
26th October
Biu urges players, officials to take up rugby coaching courses
Nasinu Rugby Football Union president Paula Biu spoke on the importance of players and management making use of level one and two coaching workshops. Biu said this was the first level of coaching from World Rugby affiliated down to Fiji Rugby Union and then to the union. “We are trying to get our club coaches...
Flying Fijians coach to improve team
Flying Fijians head coach Vern Cotter is working hard with his officials in shaping the national team ahead of their Europe tour. In a virtual conference, Cotter said a lot of information had been changed on what they were doing, the themes and where the team had been heading internationally. He spoke on the coaches...
Tailevu Rugby selects new VP
Tailevu Rugby Union has selected Major Valu Raumakita as the vice-president over the weekend during their executive meeting at the Republic of the Fiji Military Forces headquarters in Nasinu. This was confirmed by secretary Bulou Jojina Niumataiwalu. Niumataiwalu said they have outlined plans to visit their affiliated clubs to spread awareness on the No Jab...
It’s a sham – All Blacks v Wales labelled ‘money-making mismatch’
The All Blacks’ test with Wales this weekend has been labelled a “sham money-making mismatch” by British media. Ian Foster’s All Blacks arrived in Wales on the back of their 104-14 thrashing of the United States in Washington and were greeted by some unwanted headlines. This test is outside the official November test window and...
25th October
Moana Pasifika signs three more
AUCKLAND, 25 OCTOBER 2021 (RNZ PACIFIC) – Manu Samoa trio Jack Lam, Alamanda Motuga and Henry Time-Stowers are the latest players to sign with Moana Pasifika ahead of the inaugural Super Rugby Pacific season. Veteran flanker Jack Lam spent the past two seasons with Japanese club NEC Green Rockets before returning to New Zealand earlier...
Club games called off – Plans for teams to play in 10s competitions
Suva Rugby Union’s Digicel Club Championships this year have been cancelled. “This is in light of the mandatory six-week training period from date of achievement of 80 per cent vaccination rate required by the FRU (Fiji Rugby Union) before any tournament can be played,” confirmed union secretary Tevita Tuiloa. “Thus, any tournament to be played...
Fijiana have team bonding in mud pool
The Fijiana 15s team lifted their momentum towards next year’s Rugby World Cup with a high tempo mud run at the Republic of Fiji Navy base in Togalevu to cap off their week. Coach Senirusi Seruvakula took his extended squad to train in the mud-pool at the naval base in Togalevu on Thursday to add...
Rugby-United States game important ahead of Wales clash, says All Blacks Foster
(Reuters) – New Zealand coach Ian Foster claimed the All Blacks learned valuable lessons ahead of more testing challenges on the European leg of their current tour after handing the United States a 104-14 thrashing in Washington on Saturday. Foster’s team scored 16 tries while conceding twice in a one-sided clash that saw the All...
Rugby-Cooper set for Wallabies tour but injury raises Hodge doubts
(Reuters) – Australia flyhalf Quade Cooper will travel to Europe for the Wallabies’ tests against Scotland, England and Wales next month but Reece Hodge’s availability is in doubt after he sustained a pectoral injury in Saturday’s 32-23 win over Japan. Coach Dave Rennie confirmed Cooper would be part of the squad following uncertaintly over the...
Rugby-New Zealand rout United States 104-14 in Washington test match
(Reuters) -New Zealand got back to winning ways as they romped to a record 104-14 victory over the United States in Washington on Saturday in a lopsided test match in which the Eagles at least secured their first-ever try against the All Blacks. New Zealand, who had not played in the U.S. since 2016, totally...
24th October
Fijiana prepares for Rugby World Cup
The Fijiana 15s extended squad continued its preparations for the Women’s Rugby World Cup in New Zealand next year with a stint at mud pools at the Naval Base in Togalevu, outside Lami on Thursday. The Fiji Rugby Union website said coach Senirusi Seruvakula took the girls to mud pools to test their fitness and...
