'We had them': Flying Fijians captain takes lessons from France defeat

Tevita Ikanivere insists the Flying Fijians have the “courage” and “firepower” to compete with any team in international rugby, despite falling to France 34-21 in Saturday evening’s Quilter Nations Series clash.

Nicolas Depoortere opened the scoring, with France running out to a commanding 21-0 lead by the midway point in the first term before Fiji hit back with two quick tries just before half-time.

Kalaveti Ravouvou and Selestino Ravutaumada helped reduce the deficit to just seven points in Bordeaux, before Simione Kuruvoli converted a Jiuta Wainiqolo try early in the second half to bring the teams level at 21-all.

It was game on with about 30 minutes to play, with Thomas Ramos giving Les Bleus a small lead with two penalty goals. Depoortere all but sealed the win with 10 to play, with France returning to winning ways after losing to South Africa last weekend.

“First of all, we’re gutted. We thought we had them,” Ikanivere said on the broadcast.

“Our discipline let us down again, especially letting a good side like France go 21 points up and chasing them.

“They’re a quality side and they showed it today.

“We just fell short. We’ll learn from it and take it over to Spain next week.”

This was Fiji’s second loss in a row, after England defeated them by 20 last weekend at Twickenham’s Allianz Stadium. Fiji’s three-match 2025 Northern Tour is almost over, with one more Test to play against Spain.

After winning the 2025 Pacific Nations Cup, the Flying Fijians continue to build towards the upcoming 2027 Men’s Rugby World Cup in Australia, taking plenty out of their two defeats against two top-five teams on the rankings.

“We’ve got the courage, we’ve got the firepower to take on any team in the world,” Ikanivere added.

“It just comes down to the little moments and the little disciplines.

“We want to end the year on a high… hopefully get a win and go back to our clubs happy and looking forward to next year again.”