As the road to the Women’s Rugby World Cup in England this August nears its destination, the Vodafone Fijiana XV has derived a list of areas to work on before they meet the world’s fiercest and fastest at the global event.
Some areas which have sprung up as ones to work on with careful consideration include the improvement of efficiency in the red zone, a powerful start in the first 15 minutes of play and the need to maintain defensive structure when under pressure.
In response to this, head coach Ioan Cunningham says he is pleased with the trajectory they are on, but improvements are of the essence.
“We’re seeing green shoots of growth, and I’m very pleased with the direction we’re heading. We still have a long way to go, but this performance showed we’re on the right path,” Cunningham said in a post-match interview.
He shared these remarks after their close 24-31 defeat to the USA Women’s Eagles team in their most recent Test last Sunday at the Audi Field in Washington D.C., United States.
It was a defiant comeback in the second half for the Fijiana since they trailed 0-14 behind the Americans at half-time and grasped newfound energy after the breather.
Despite the team’s proximity in nearly causing a upset due to the close points margin, Cunningham was happy at the side’s performance.
“I am very proud of the team’s performance to stay in the fight after a tough start,” the Welshman said.
“We showed our grit and composure to get back into the match and put ourselves into a position to win it.”
As they now look ahead to their next Test early next month against the Manusina Samoa, the loss in Washington has led them to focus on mitigating errors in their handling and the lack of opportunities noted.
“That’s an area we need to improve if we want to compete consistently with the best sides in the world,” added Cunningham.
“We need to be more clinical when those chances come.”
And the Fijiana XV may examine these areas closely since the Samoans may look to counter the weaknesses noted in the Test against the Americans.
One such area noted by Cunningham was the need to work ‘smarter under pressure.’
“We work hard for each other, which is excellent, but we need to be smarter under pressure. Our tackling needs more physicality — we allowed USA too many meters on the carry,” he said.
The Fijiana XV’s outing to the United States to face their opponents saw them punching above their weight, since they are currently in 14th place with 59.98 points and the Americans at 9th place with 72.05 points on the world rankings.
When Fijian media had asked Cunningham last Thursday of the significance of such a difference on the ladder, he said countering them was the next step after the 2025 Oceania Rugby Women’s Championship and acknowledged the threat posed by the Americans.
“They’ve obviously got great athletes across the field and they play with high intensity, high physicality and that’s great preparation for us before the World Cup,” he said at the time.
Meanwhile, as the embers of their clash against the Americans fade out the last of its glow, the Fijiana XV’s reunion against the Samoans may see them have the upper hand since the former defeated the latter 24-20 at Lawaqa Park in Sigatoka last month.
Samoa currently sits at 15th place on the world rankings with 59.72 points, 0.26 points away from Fiji at 14th and their meeting next month will be another step forward to their preparations for the World Cup.
The Fijiana XV meets Samoa in their next Test match at 12pm on Saturday, August 9 at Churchill Park in Lautoka.
