The door remains open. That is the message from new Fiji Bati coach Mick Potter to local rugby league players dreaming of a place at this year’s Rugby League World Cup.
While acknowledging the challenges of stepping from the domestic competition into the international arena, Potter said outstanding performances would not go unnoticed.
“There’s always a possibility,” he said.
“I’m going to try and get out and have a look at some players in the next few weeks.”
The former World Cup semi-final coach admitted local players faced an uphill battle against professionals who train year-round in the NRL and Super League systems.
“My gut feel is, because they haven’t been in systems where they’re trained full-time and trained diligently all the time, like for 52 weeks of the year, I think it would be a little struggle,” he said.
Potter also identified adapting to professional team structures and communication as another hurdle.
“The language at times would be a struggle,” he said.
“That would be initially a stumbling block.”
Even so, the experienced coach is not ruling anyone out.
“Anything’s possible and I’m open to anything,” he said.
“If there’s someone that jumps out of the box and they’re saying you have to pick them as far as their performance is concerned, well, I’m open to it.”
With the World Cup just over two months away, Potter’s message is simple: perform consistently and force the selectors to take notice.
For Fiji’s best local talent, the opportunity is still there. The challenge now is making it impossible to be overlooked.
