'A big boost': Fiji Sevens co-captain backs potential home World Sevens Series tournament
The prospect of hosting a Sevens World Series tournament in Fiji would be “a big boost” to the national sevens side and the country as a whole, according to rising Flying Fijians star Meli Derenalagi.
Despite Fiji’s status as a global hotbed for rugby sevens, the nation is still yet to hold a World Series event, but reports from New Zealand media earlier this year suggested that could be set to change in the coming years.
Speaking at the Hamilton Sevens in January, New Zealand Rugby chief rugby officer Nigel Cass confirmed that the Kiwi leg of the world circuit would not be held in Hamilton next year, and that Fiji had instead been considered an option as an alternative host.
Early suggestions indicated that Fiji and Hamilton would host the New Zealand leg of the series in alternate years, but Cass said the Pacific nation didn’t have the infrastructure to hold a tournament as soon as 2021.
While the event will stay in New Zealand for the next two years, Cass refused to rule out Fiji as a potential host in 2023.
“We were really hopeful of getting a tournament in Fiji in 2021,” he said. “There’s a hell of a lot of infrastructure for a tournament of this type and, for next year, it’s just not going to be possible.
“We’re not giving up though. We’re really keen, as are the Fijians, to take a tournament to Fiji and we remain really hopeful that we can do that in 2023.”
Taking a tournament to Fiji, who have been crowned World Series champions four times and are reigning Olympic gold medallists, excites Derenalagi.
He said the opportunity to play in front of his loved ones would be significant for both him and his teammates.
“It would be a big boost for our team,” Derenalagi told RugbyPass. “To play in front of our loved ones – especially our family, our kids – to show them… when [he and his teammates] are missing from home, this is what they always do around overseas, but they can show it here back at home.”
A passionate Fijian crowd would undoubtedly be eager to see Derenalagi and his teammates strut their stuff on home soil, especially if they were to replicate the form that made them 2018-19 World Series champions.
Although that was Derenalagi’s debut campaign with the national side, he proved to be a standout performer for Fiji in their run to the title – so much so that he was crowned World Rugby Sevens Series 2019 Rookie of the Year.
The youngster’s meteoric rise continued this year when, at the age of just 21, he was named co-captain alongside veteran star Jerry Tuwai ahead of this year’s Hamilton Sevens.
The Wallabies boss has called the incoming Reds star to reassure his future following reports of the Melbourne Storm's eagerness to keep him in the NRL.https://t.co/4sbW4QCBQ9
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) June 15, 2020
Together, the duo helped guide Fiji to a maiden Sydney Sevens title in February, but the coronavirus-enforced disruption to the season has left the side stranded in third spot on the overall standings with four tournaments to play.
The postponement of the Singapore and Hong Kong events from April to October leaves those tournaments as the final two of the 2019-20 season, with the London and Paris legs rescheduled to take place in September.
With 83 points to their name, Fiji trail series leaders New Zealand by 32 points heading into the last four tournaments, but Derenalagi isn’t getting ahead of himself just yet.
“For us, we’ll just take one step at a time,” he said. “We are just looking forward to getting back on track. We have to wait for this lockdown to be uplifted, and then we can start training again with the brothers, and maintain our focus again.
“[It is] quite a bit challenging for us. [We’re] in third place at the moment, with four tournaments left for us, so we are working hard to get back on track and try to put ourselves in competition to compete for first spot.”
The London, Paris, Singapore and Hong Kong events haven’t been the only major sevens tournaments to have fallen victim to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The year-long postponement of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics has thrown a spanner in the works as Fiji prepare to defend their gold medal.
With the men’s sevens tournament now set to take place next July, Derenalagi has some time to weigh up his options beyond next year.
The lure of chasing a Sevens World Cup and Commonwealth Games gold medal the year after the Olympics could keep him in the seven-a-side game, but it would be unsurprising if he attracted interest from professional clubs abroad before then.
As always, however, Derenalagi remains firmly focused on the task at hand.
“My main focus now is on the Olympics. After the Olympics, I will make up my mind whether to move or stay put.”
2019-20 World Rugby Sevens Series events
September (Dates TBC) – London Sevens
September (Dates TBC) – Paris Sevens
10-11 October – Singapore Sevens
16-18 October – Hong Kong Sevens
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Comments on RugbyPass
Havili, our best 12 by a mile, will be in the squad, if he stays fit. JB is the most overrated AB in the last 50 years.
61 Go to commentsWe had during the week twilight footy, twilight cricket, tw golf plus there was the athletics club. Then the weekend was rugby 15s plus the net ball, really busy club scene back then but so much has changed and rugby has suffered. And it was all about changing lifestyles.
6 Go to commentsIn the 70s and 80s my club ran 5 Senior sides plus a Vets. Now it is 2 sides with an occasional 3rd team. Players have difficulty getting to training now, not sure why and the commitment is not there. It seems to me more a problem of people applying themselves and not expecting to turn up and play whenever they want to.
6 Go to commentsROG’s contract is until 2027. The conversation about a successor to Galthie after RWC 2027 may be starting now. We can infer that Galthie’s reign stops then. He is throwing the Irish Coaching Job angle in because he is Irish. The next Irish coach MUST be Leo Cullen. As well as being the best coach available, coaching the vast majority of Irish Internationals week in week out, he has shown incredible skill at recruiting the best coaching staff for the job in hand. That was a failing in France. Cullen is a shrewd guy and if there is a need for foreign coaches underneath him he won’t hesitate. Rightly so. Ireland does need to start to bring Irish coaches through. Not just at the professional level but we need to train coaches to man new pathways for developing kids from schools/clubs up through the divisions.
7 Go to commentsNo Islam says it must rule where it stands Thus it is to be deleted from this planet Earth
18 Go to commentsThis team probably does not beat the ABs sadly Not sure if BPA will be available given his signing for Force but has to enter consideration. Very strong possibility of getting schooled by the AB props. Advantage AB. Rodda/Skelton would be a tasty locking combination - would love to see how they get on. Advantage Wallabies. Backrow a risk of getting out hustled and outmuscled by ABs. Will be interesting to see if the Blues feast on the Reds this weekend the way they did the Brumbies we are in big trouble at the breakdown. Great energy, running and defence but goalkicking/general kicking/passing quality in the halves bothers me enormously. SA may have won the World Cup for a lot of the tournament without a recognised goalkicker but Pollard in the final made a difference IMO. Injuries and retirements leave AB stocks a bit lighter but still stronger. 12 and 13 ABs shade it (Barret > Paisami, Ione = Ikitau, arguably) Interesting clash of styles on the wings - Corey Toole running around Caleb Clark and Caleb running over the top of Toole. Reece vs Koro probably the reverse. Pretty even IMO. 15s Kelleway = Love See advantage to ABs man for man, but we are not obviously getting slaughtered anywhere which makes a nice change. Think talent wise we are pretty even and if our cohesion and teamwork is better than the ABs then its just about doable.
11 Go to commentsCompletely agree. More friday night games would be a hit. RFU to make sure every club has a floodlit pitch. Club opens again Saturday to welcome touch / tag. Minis and youths on Sunday
6 Go to comments1.97m and 105Kg? Proportionately, probably skinnier than me at 1.82 and 82kilos. He won’t survive against the big guys at that weight.
55 Go to commentsThe value he brought to the crusaders as an assistant was equal to what he got out of being there. He reflected not only on the team culture but also the credit he attributed to the rugby community. Such experience shouldn’t be overlooked.
7 Go to commentsGood luck Aussie
11 Go to commentssmith at 9 / mounga 10 / laumape 12 / fainganuku 14
61 Go to commentsBar the injuries, it’s pretty much their top team …
2 Go to commentsDon’t disagree with much of this but it appears you forgot Rodda and Beale, who started at the Force on the weekend.
11 Go to commentsExcept for the injured Zach Gallagher this would be Saders best forward pack for the season. Blackadder needs to stay at 7, for all of Christies tackling he is not dominant and offers very little else. McNicholfullback is maybe a good option, Fihaki not really upto it, there was a reason Burke played there last year. Maybe Havilli to 2nd five McLeod to wing. Need a strong winger on 1 side to compliment Reece
1 Go to commentsTo me TJ is clearly the best 9 in the competition right now but he's also a proven player off the bench, there's few playmaking players who can come off the bench as calm and settled as he is, Beauden can, TJ can and I doubt any of the scrumhalves in contention can, if they want to experiment with new 9s I want him on the bench ready to step in if they crumble under the pressure. The Boks put their best front row on the bench, I'd like to see us take a similar approach, the Hurricanes have been doing similar things with players like Kirifi.
61 Go to commentsROG has better chance to win a WC if he starts training and make himself eligible as a player. He won’t make the Ireland squad but I reckon he may get close with Namibia (needs to improve his Afrikaans) or Portugal. Both sides had 1000:1 odds to win the RWC in 2023 which is an improvement on ROG’s odds of winning a RWC as a coach. Unlike Top 14 teams, national teams can’t go shopping and buy the best players - you work with the available talent pool and turn them into world beaters.
7 Go to commentsthat backline nope that backline is terrible why would you have sevu Reece when he’s not even top 5 wingers in the comp why have Blackadder when there’s better players no Scott barret isn’t an automatic the guy is more of a liability than anything why have him there when you have samipeni who’s far far better
61 Go to commentsAh, good to find you Nick. Agree with everything about Cale. So much to like about his game
55 Go to commentsNot too bad. Questions at 6, lock and HB for me. The ABs will be a lot stronger once Jordan and Roigard return. Also, work needs to be made to secure Frizzell back for next season and maybe also Mo’unga; they’re just wasting time playing in japan
61 Go to commentsOn the title, i wonder for many of those people it is a case something like a belief in working smarter, not harder?
1 Go to comments