THEY don’t hear the crowd, but the world hears about them.
Fiji’s Deaf Rugby teams are ready to make their mark again as they head to the 2025 Pacific Rim Deaf Rugby Sevens tournament in Australia.
Head coach Tomasi Rokoqiqi, who has led the team since 2019, says Fiji is now the team to watch.
“Even the Australian coaches keep asking, is Fiji coming? Because they know what we bring,” he said.
Fiji won the inaugural Oceania Deaf Rugby Sevens title in 2019, beat Japan in Suva in 2023, and overcame New Zealand in a friendly series earlier this year.
Last year, both the men’s and women’s teams won gold at the 2024 Australian Deaf Games in Newcastle, New South Wales, where Rokoqiqi coached both squads.
“There was no coach for the women’s team, so I stepped in. Back then, we didn’t have support just fundraising and faith,” he said.
He thanked the Government, the Fiji Rugby Union and the Fiji National Sports Commission for finally recognising the team and supporting their campaign.
The women’s side plays Australia at 2.30pm and Barbarians at 3.30pm on June 28.
In round two of the competition on June 29, they face Barbarians at 9.30am and Australia again at 12pm.
The men’s team faces Samoa at 3pm, Australia at 4pm and Japan at 6pm on June 28 in round one of the competitions.
They return to play Australia at 9am, Japan at 11.30am and Samoa at 2.30pm on June 29.
“Our goal is to win this trophy, then focus on the 2026 Deaf Rugby Sevens World Cup in Japan next year,” Rokoqiqi said.
“We may not have proper facilities, but with God on our side, we can conquer anything.”
