The Fiji National Rugby League is hopeful that the Fijiana 7s rugby side’s bronze medal victory at the Tokyo Olympics will rub off on the shoulders of the Fiji Bulikula side in their quest to gain a spot at the next Rugby League World Cup.
The Fiji Bulikula failed to gain a spot at the 2021 RLWC after lack of international matches.
The FNRL had a set out plan to implement a premier women’s competition to be part of the Vodafone Cup this year, however the idea was shelved following sporting restrictions imposed because of the COVID-19 pandemic second wave.
FNRL acting chief executive officer Don Natabe said the Bulikula did not play enough matches to improve their world rankings.
Natabe said there were only eight places in the women’s competition at the RLWC so the world rankings were important for qualification.
“We are currently ranked number ten in the world,” he said.
“So our plan right now is to qualify for the next RLWC which is likely to be held in France in 2025.
“We are looking at building a good high performance unit and setting up a really good premier women’s competition in the country. This will kick off next year.
“Initially we were looking to start off this year but things have been shelved because of the pandemic. We had already secured funding support from Vodafone and other partners for the competition.
“So those plans will be advanced to 2022 and then buildup towards the 2025 RLWC.”
