FIJI under-20 rugby team captain Temo Mayanavanua is confident of a good outing in the 2017 Oceania Rugby U20s Championship which starts today in Australia.
Fiji and Samoa have joined defending champions New Zealand and hosts Australia this year.
Mayanavanua said the players were looking forward to their first match against New Zealand.
“We have been preparing for the last three months and the training had been very hard and the boys have done the hard yards,” he told Australia Rugby Union media unit.
“It is a great opportunity for us to match our individual skills with nations like New Zealand, Australia and Samoa who are tier one nations.”
The Salimoni Ravouvou-coached side is using the tournament as a preparation ground before they compete in the Junior World Trophy in August.
“Fiji is just a island nation but it is full of talent and raw talent and it was hard to select the final 26 players,” Ravouvou said.
“We are really honoured the management has picked the well prepared 26-member team,” he added.
“The boys have been looking forward to the New Zealand game and they are the champion team.
“We are expecting a tough match,” Ravouvou said.
The match kicks off at 7pm (Fiji Time) tonight.
