Flying Fijians captain on what ‘let us down’ in England defeat

Captain Tevita Ikanivere is confident the Flying Fijians will learn from the ill-discipline and decision-making that “let us down” in their 38-18 Quilter Nations Series defeat to England at Twickenham’s Allianz Stadium.

After taking out the Pacific Nations Cup title with a 33-27 win over Japan in September, Fiji returned to the Test arena on Saturday – running out onto the sacred turf at Twickenham, the host venue for one of Fiji’s most famous wins ever.

Fiji defeated England for the first time just before the 2023 Rugby World Cup, before falling to the same foe in a thrilling quarter-final in Marseille. Two years later, the Flying Fijians were back in London, looking to start their three-week Autumn Internationals window with a win.

When Ikanivere scored Fiji’s third and final try in the 51^st minute, the visitors only trailed by three points. Fiji fans dared to dream but England showcased their flair and class, piling on 17 unanswered points en route to a confidence-building triumph.

“Not the result we wanted,” Ikanivere said post-game, as seen on Stan Sport.

“Quite disappointed in ourselves, the discipline we had towards the end, not only the yellow cards but our decision-making. I think that let us down.

“We’ll learn from that. We’ll be better for it next week in France.”

Luke Cowan-Dickie opened the scoring in the fifth minute before Ikanivere hit back for Fiji with an effort soon after. The skipper led by example and the Flying Fijians appeared inspired as a result, with fly-half Caleb Muntz finishing a try-scoring chance with impressive skill.

Muntz added another three points to Fiji’s score with a penalty in the 28^th minute, which saw the visitors take a 13-7 lead. But a yellow card to Selestino Ravutaumada was a talking-point post-game, with England striking just before the break through Immanuel Feyi-Waboso.

Ellis Genge extended the home side’s lead further early in the second term before Ikanivere’s second of the Test. Fiji had a second player sent to the sin bin eight minutes later, with powerful midfielder Josua Tuisova sitting down for 10.

Jamie George, Henry Arundell and Maro Itoje crossed for a try each, with Marcus Smith converting the lock’s try, as England ran away with a 20-point victory. England will face the All Blacks next week at the same venue, as they look to keep their winning streak alive.

The Flying Fijians turn their focus to a match against France, who will be eager to bounce back after losing to the Springboks. Fiji will then take on Spain in their final international fixture of the 2025 season.

“We wanted a lot of Test matches against tier-one nations and we’re getting it,” Ikanivere explained.

“Or execution is the most important thing. Our exits are very important and we’ll work on that for next week.

“We’re enjoying ourselves… we’re learning and building towards the World Cup in ’27.”