A fierce and thrilling day of school rugby action is expected at Churchill Park in Lautoka today as the West Secondary Schools Vodafone Deans and Raluve finals take centre stage.
In the boys’ division, Ratu Navula College has dominated the lower grades and will feature in three finals taking on Tavua College in the Under-14 grade, Natabua High School in the Under-15 final, and Ba Provincial Freebird Institute in the Under-19 showdown.
Natabua, the traditional powerhouse, also fields teams in four grades. They face Ba Methodist High School in the Under 16 final and Ba Pro in the Under-17 match-up.
But all eyes will be on the Under-18 final, where Natabua High School meets Cuvu College in the marquee fixture scheduled for 4.10pm. This highly anticipated clash is expected to be one of the toughest battles of the day.
West Secondary Schools Rugby Union president Jovesa Saqali said the finals are the culmination of months of intense preparation.
“We are looking forward to the U18 final.
“They’ve met earlier this season and Natabua came out on top, but we know Cuvu College one of last year’s West representatives will come strong.”
In the Raluve (girls’) competition, defending national champions Natabua will face Jasper Williams High School in the U18 final. Natabua also defends their national U16 title against St Theresa.
“The West holds both the U16 and U18 Raluve national titles.
“It’s great to see Jasper step up again – their U16 side nearly denied Sigatoka Methodist during the semis last week,” Saqali added.
