Fijiana players finally paid missing money totalling £60,271 for representing the country
The Fiji Rugby Union will pay the Vodafone Fijiana XVs players a total of £60,271 ($172,600 ) to end a damaging row over payments that saw frustrated captain Sereima Leweniqila highlight the issue in a Facebook post.
As a result of the publicity over the missing money, the FRU interim board of trustees chairman Peter Mazey told local media that the payments promised to the Fijiana during the Wallaroos Test and Oceania championship in Australia was finally being honoured. The Fijiana finished runners-up to Samoa at the regional tournament on Australia’s Gold Coast.
It had emerged the players, including Asinate Serevi the daughter of former Fijian sevens star Waisale Serevi, were paid £35 ($100) per day while in Australia instead of £105 ($300) as promised by the team management while World Cup players were also owed two days of allowance last year, which amounted to £210 ($600). “As promised the Trustees of Fiji Rugby Football Trust Board met,” said Mazey.
“And after reviewing the evidence and information provided especially by the team and their captain resolved to pay the Fijiana 15’s players their outstanding allowances from the Womens 15’s World Cup in 2022 and to pay the remainder due to those who competed this year in the Oceania series. This is a total of $172,600.
“While we invited the team members, through their captain, to join us at Rugby House they preferred not to and we will now meet with them when the captain returns from overseas next week. This is to finalise the outstanding payment and more importantly get their help and contribution to Women’s rugby in the restructure of Fiji Rugby.
“We need their input into our planning going forward. I again thank all of those great women’s rugby players who came out and brought their issues to our attention by addressing them we can make Rugby especially women’s rugby better. We realise there have been errors and problems in the past. We are not there to really look at the past. We are there to sort it out and move ahead.”
The payment of money owed to the players comes after World Rugby took steps to try and stabilise the FRU. The Fiji Minister of Justice appointed an Interim Board of Trustees and an Administrator for the FRU and World Rugby engaged in meetings with stakeholders in Fiji. It has been reported that the FRU owes creditors £1.2m ($3.5m)
Comments on RugbyPass
“While Sotutu should start at No.8 for the All Blacks against England, but it’s only in that arena that he can prove just how good he really is.” And that my friends is where simply hasnt shone despite multiple opportunities. Even in this performance you can see what did him in in the test arena..he almost always still runs at the opposition almost ramrod upright making him easier to stop than it should be.
1 Go to commentsShould have been 0-0 and a message from SR CEO to both teams - “don’t worry about turning up next year”.
3 Go to commentsGreat work Owen Franks. A great of this team, scoring his first try for the Crusaders since 2010.He was beaming, justifiably. A fine win, he and the rest did the job up front.
1 Go to commentsDanny Care. Lang in die tand.
1 Go to commentsBig empty stadium does nothing for atmosphere but munster are playing well with solid performance
1 Go to commentsYes, Fiji can win the World Cup! With that belief plus their christian faith🙏 and hard work it is achievable. Great article. Ian Duncan Fiji resident 1981-84
2 Go to commentsInteresting comments about Touch. England’s hosting the Touch World Cup this year and the numbers have exploded since their last World Cup in 2019, something like 70% more teams and 40 nations taking part. And England Touch have made a big thing about how many universities are in their BUCS University Touch Championship as well as Sport England membership. Can only see this growing even more domestically as more people become aware of it
10 Go to comments“Cortez Ratima is light years ahead of anyone on current form, while TJ Perenara has also skyrocketed into contention following the unfortunate injury to the talented Cam Roigard.” At last some sanity. Hitherto so many pundits have been wittering on about Finlay Christie to the point one wondered if they were observing a FC in a parallel universe where the FC they saw wasnt just the mediocre Shayne Philpott project of Fosters hapless AB reign in the real world. Ratima, Perenara and Fakatava are the ONLY logical 9s for Razor now Roigard is crocked.
3 Go to commentsThis game was just as painful as the Hurricanes game. It was real fork-in-the-eye stuff.
3 Go to commentsNow if they could just fire the Crusaders ground PA guy who likes to play his dance music and just loves the sound of his own voice the entire game, even when play is going on. And I thought their brass band thing of a few years ago was bad.
5 Go to commentsUnfortunately when you lose by far the two form players this season in Roigard and Aumua, you're left replacing two game changing Tanks with a couple of pea-shooters. Which is also about the speed of TJs pass.
4 Go to commentsBit rich coming from the guy with zero loyalty to anyone or any team, including happily taking a players place in a league world cup squad because well, SBW wanted to play in it and thus an already named player got told he was no longer going. And airing stuff like this, which may or may not be true, doesn't exactly say you're a stand up guy either SBW. Just looking to keep his name in lights as usual.
38 Go to commentsTamati Tua. …the Taniwha NPC midfielder. Ollie Sapsford, Hawkes Bay NPC midfielder…doing well
4 Go to commentsFiji deserve to be in the rugby championship, fans love seeing the Fijian national team play, the Fijian Drua is a wonderful idea but the players can still be stolen to play for NZ and AUS…
2 Go to commentsThe first concern for this afternoon are wheather forecast…
1 Go to commentsWhy cant I watch Rugby games please?
1 Go to commentsBeautiful shot from Finau, end of story. Gutted for Shaun Stevenson though.
4 Go to commentsThe Chiefs definitely didn’t win ugly. They had the superior scrum, a dominant lineout, and their defence was excellent once the Waratahs scored their two tries (thanks to some lucky refereeing calls mind you). They put pressure on the Waratahs lineout throughout the game, and the mind boggles as to why the referee did not award a yellow card or a penalty try against the Waratahs for repeated scrum infringements on their own try line before Narawa’s first try. And the Chiefs were slick with their passing and running angles on attack. It was a dominant performance all round, even with many questionable refereeing decisions.
1 Go to commentsWasnt late. Ref 2 assistants andTMO all saw it so who are you to say it was?
4 Go to commentsAre the Brumbies playing the Blues twice in a row?
4 Go to comments