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DOUBLE UP FOR NADRO

By gREgORy RAVOI

October was the month of the fearless stallions as the Nad-roga rugby team came out on

top, winning both of the major national competitions - the Digicel Cup and the Farebrother-Sullivan trophy.

As winners of the Digicel Cup, Nad-roga was the standout team to beat in the Farebrother-Sullivan Challenge, and was placed as the last team to face any other team that was to make it through the competition beginning at the end of August.

Suva, which was the defending champions of the Farebrother trophy kicked off the challenge on 31 August,

breezing through their first win against Lautoka, thrashing them 20-3.

Namosi then had the chance to play Suva on 7 September but fell short of a win, losing yet gain to Suva 33-17.

Vatukoula on the other hand man-aged to close up the margins as com-pared to Lautoka and Namosi on 14 September, ending the game with 32-20 against the undefeated Suva team.

The weary Suva team ended their winning streak on 21 September against Naitasiri when they went down fighting 25-23 in a brutal encounter.

Nadi then took on the Naitasiri team on 28 September and although settling for a 25-all draw, Naitasiri advanced to the next challenge because it won the

previous match against Suva. Tailevu proved too strong, however, for the Nai-tasiri team as they defeated the high-landers 16-14 in a close encounter on 12 October.

The final Farebrother challenge was held on 19 October at ANZ stadium with a big face-off against Nadroga and Tai-levu. It was played in front of a large crowd with loyal fans for each team dressed in their respective colours.

Nadroga overpowered the brave Tailevu side, winning the coveted Fare-brother-Sullivan trophy 27-22 and add-ing another piece of silverware to the Stallions’ trophy cabinet which already houses the Digicel Cup for the 2013 sea-son.

Hakwa Nadro ... Sigatoka hosted a victory march through the town celebrating Nadroga’s Digicel Cup and Farebrother-Sullivan challenge win. Inset: Members of the Nadroga rugby team, Samisoni Viriviri, left, and Jonetani Ralulu, right, with their spoils.

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rakavi.com Insert to Repúblika | November/December 2013

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THE SIMS BROTHERS

KORBIN SIMSPOSITION PropNATIONAL TEAM FijiCLUB Newcastle KnightsLEAgUE NRLBIRTH DATE 2 January 1992WEIgHT 112kgHEIgHT 190cmBIRTH PLACE Australia

republikamedia.com

By SEB LAUzIER/IRB.com

you might forgive Ben Ryan a wry smile, or for thinking that there was probably

an easier, more low-key start to his time as the new coach of Fiji’s men’s sevens team, a little further away from the intense scrutiny of Fiji’s rugby-loving public.

But it’s perhaps fitting that this great admirer of Fijian rugby tackled his new and mammoth challenge head-on at the Fiji Wa-ter Centennial Sevens, which doubled as the Oceania men’s Sevens championship, from 4-5 October.

Fiji was still being coached by Alifereti Dere that weekend while Ryan observed, but the players were understood to be keenly ap-plying themselves to the task of getting as fit as possible for the new boss. The big question is how the Englishman thinks he can convert all of that magical potential into regional and world dominance.

“It’s a bit like Brazil and football (soccer); it’s the Fijian way of playing the game that

just excites you so much and I certainly won’t be looking to change that overall philosophy that overarches how they play the game in the islands,” Ryan said.

“But I think I can add some professional-ism. I can help them with one or two things on the field that will mean that they can leak less points and score more points at the other end.”

Ryan is sure to receive and accept help in Fiji - especially at first - and neither is he setting off from a standing start. As well as having lined up against them numerous times in competition, he feels a strong em-pathy through working with players on the invitational circuit and also with England in the case of Josh Drauniniu and Isoa Damu, whom he singles out as the finest player he has ever worked with in either sevens or 15s.

“They have an amazing array of talent in the islands and it’s just making sure now that the foundations are stable and stronger, and that everyone is aligned, because there’s no doubt that the sporting world could get in-

spired by the Fiji Sevens team over the next few years towards the Rio Olympics.

“Here you’ve got, in the men’s and wom-en’s, serious contenders for the gold medal and it’s an incredibly exciting time to be in-volved in the Fijian game.”

Selecting the right 12 players will be one of his biggest challenges.

“It’s a challenge because you have to have your philosophy in line with everyone else’s, so selectors, coaches, management, they need to know what type of players that you want and that then drives your selection and your pathways and your age grade teams.

“There are some outstanding individual tournaments that already exist in Fiji and putting those together and having a national series would certainly help a lot with getting the best players on the field, and making sure it’s professional: making sure that salaries are paid and players understand exactly what is needed from them to be the best players and the best team in international sevens.”

4 | Repúblika | RAKAVI.COM | republikamagazine.com November/December 2013

Ben’s baptism of fire

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Being Ben ... Ben Ryan sits with Alifereti Dere as Fiji compete at the 2013 Oceania Sevens in Suva in October.