A SPORTS injury fund will be set up at Levuka Hospital through Island Breeze Rugby Plus and Super Rugby’s Sefanaia Naivalu’s team —— The Melbourne Rebels.
Island Breeze co-international director Waqa Baravilala stated this yesterday at the launch of the Island Breeze’s sports development program.
Naivalu, 25, from Ovalau, was unknown in the local rugby arena until the Island Breeze team uncovered the untapped talent he had and got him across to Australia where he played for Melbourne Rising club in 2014 and joined Rebels the following year before making an appearance as a Wallaby last year.
“For next week we will have a milestone in starting a new fund in the Levuka Hospital with the partnership to launch a sports injury fund through Sefanaia Naivalu and the Rebels,” Baravilala said.
Looking at rugby holistically as is the purpose of Island Breeze Rugby Plus, Baravilala said they wanted to look at rugby and beyond.
“So that we can care for players on and off the field, that’s another big one, so we’re working on that,” Baravilala said with regards to the plans for setting up of the new funds for rugby injuries.
To kick-start fundrasing to that account, Baravilala said a charity 7s tournament would be held on January 20 at the Nasau Park, directly aimed at the initiative.
The charity tournament will end their four-day Ovalau clinic with the Rebels media officer and injured Rebels no.8 Rob Leota who will also be a presenter alongside former Flying Fijians coach Ilivasi “Human Skewer” Tabua.
Leota, 19, was a member of the Australian rugby 7s youth team that won a silver medal at 2015 Youth Commonwealth Games and also represented the Australian Schoolboys.
