Ben Gollings had the dream start to his 7s coaching career with the national 7s team. After missing out on the HSBC WRSS leg two in Malaga and Seville, Ben led Fiji to victory in the Fun Flavour Oceania 7s tournament which featured the All Blacks and Australia.
He had his eyes on young blood and they repaid his faith in style.
Gollings preferred working with former Fiji 7s and 15s star Viliame Satala with whom he shared some memorable playing days in Japan.
Star 7s playmaker Jerry Tuwai was also on hand to give his support to the Englishman who hopes to emulate the success of Ben Ryan who guided Fiji to back-to-back HSBC WRSS overall titles and the gold medal from the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Gollings is on the right track, and I’m adamant he will create history in Toulouse and London with a relatively new brigade.
Four debutants named for
Singapore and Vancouver 7s
Four debutants were named in the Fiji 7s team for the Singapore and Vancouver 7s tournaments.
Army halfback and crafty Filipo Bukayaro, sensational Fire speed merchant Vuiviawa Naduvalo, lanky winger Tira Wilagi and Police Blue forward Josevani Soro were the new faces.
Wardens’ skipper Tevita Daugunu captained the side and was assisted by senior players Waisea Nacuqu, our towering forward strength in Josua Vakurinabili and two-time Olympic gold medalist Jerry Tuwai who returned to the international stage after the Tokyo Olympics.
Gollings had enough time to gauge the capability of the players through the Fun Flavour FRU Super 7s Series and the Fun Flavour Fiji Rugby Mini International 7s.
The squad for the Singapore and Vancouver 7s tournaments included Josua Vakurinabili, Joseva Talacolo, Jeremaia Matana, Vuiviawa Naduvalo, Tira Wilagi, Tevita Daugunu, Elia Canakaivata, Iowane Raturaciri, Filipo Bukayaro, Waisea Nacuqu, Kaminieli Rasaku, Jerry Tuwai, Iowane Teba and hit-man Josevani Soro.
Nacuqu grabs 100 tries on the circuit
Waisea Nacuqu is no stranger to international rugby, getting his break in 2013 under former coach Ben Ryan. Fans can never forget his dream run in Tokyo in 2014 when he scored a scintillating run-away try against South Africa in the final.
He was declared the best player of the 2018 Singapore 7s final. He won the 2018-19 HSBC WRSS overall title. In the local 7s scene, he has become a key player for Police Blue side. Nacuqu is also an Olympics gold medalist.
Our nippy half-back has played 183 matches for Fiji, scoring 103 tries and 785 points. Wise, as he is fondly called, is a game breaker and has on occasions scored match winning tries.
He is well known for his speed and ability to break the opposition defence. Nacuqu, who is from Votua village in Ba, scored his 100th try against England at the Vancouver 7s and mesmerised fans with his footwork.
He was badly missed in the final which Fiji lost to the Pumas 29-10.
Daugunu wins debut
tournament as captain
Tevita Daugunu, who captained the Natadra Young Boys, Raiwasa Taveuni and the Wardens team, made his debut for the national side in Dubai last year. Like any other Fijian, donning the white jersey was his dream.
Despite experiencing some big injuries, he kept trying for a spot in the national 7s team. His role model is Jerry Tuwai. Daugunu played for the Natadra team in the Fiji Bitter Savusavu 7s tournament in 2018 and won the tournament.
He played full-back for RKS in the U-19 grade and was shortlisted for the Fiji U-20 trials to tour South Africa, but was dropped. He then joined Wardens.
He lost one of his biggest supporters, his mother, when he was in Year 10 and three years ago he lost his father.
Daugunu gave credit to his wife (Adi Karalaini Tokalaulevu) and children — Israel, Disala and Maraia, who was named after his mother, for being his strength.
He overcame challenges to captain the team to victory in Singapore in his maiden tournament.
He dedicated the win to the children, who celebrated Palm Sunday, and the late Peni Veidreyaki.
Daugunu’s inspiration comes from his brother Filipo Daugunu, who plays for the Reds.
Flamboyant Fijians excite
Singapore crowd
Fiji became the first three-time champions of the HSBC Singapore Rugby Sevens after overwhelming the All Blacks 7s 28-17 in the Cup final amid a raucous crowd at the National Stadium on Sunday night.
The reigning Olympic champs, who previously won in Singapore in 2006 and 2018, stamped their authority over their equally-illustrious opponents, who made their first appearance at the 2021/22 HSBC WRSS after missing the first four legs due to COVID-19 travel restrictions.
Our boys missed the previous two legs in Spain due to COVID-19 outbreaks in their squad, but they were lightning-quick in their attacks and ferocious in defence to notch the memorable victory, a successful turnaround from a loss in their opening pool match to Ireland 21-12.
Fiji beat France and Japan 26-19 and 62-0, respectively, to top the pool.
In the cup quarters, Fiji outplayed South Africa 19-14, and then trailed Australia 12-7 at half-time, before mounting a stirring fight-back to subdue their rivals 19-12.
The dominant first half performance from the Fijians sealed an epic win in the final. It was one-way traffic for Fiji in the first half of the final.
Tries from Vuiviawa Naduvalo, Waisea Nacuqu and Joseva Talacolo gave Fiji a commanding 21-0 at half-time and although our arch rivals mounted a second-half comeback, Naduvalo, who made a massive statement, added another try to hold the Kiwis at bay.
The win was a gift for our children who celebrated Palm Sunday. Jerry Tuwai and Vuiviawa Naduvalo made the 2022 Singapore 7s Dream Team.
Argentina breaks 14-year-old
drought on the circuit
The Santiago Gomez Cora coached-Argentina side played with a lot of confidence. Their last win on the circuit was in 2009 at the San Diego tournament when they beat England 19-14.
They were out to break their winless jinx on the circuit.
Hence, their baptism of fire drowned our attack and rhythm. The Pumas had brushed aside Ireland 26-19 and Scotland 24-5, but drew against France 12-12.
In the quarters and semis, Argentina thrashed England 40-17 and outclassed the Aussies 24-12, and with the likes of Rodrigo Isgro, German Schulz, Felipe del Mestre, Santiago Vera Feld, Lautaro Bazan Velez, Tobia Wade, Marcos Moneta, who was their best player, Joaquin de la Vega, Agustin Fraga, veteran Gaston Revol, Luciano Gonzalez, and Franco Sabato, the Los Pumas took a 17-5 lead at the break.
They extended their lead to 29-10 with two lightening tries, and when the final whistle concluded the coaching panel and players shed tears of joy as they won their third title on the HSBC WRSS circuit.
Fiji remained unbeaten in pool play, posting huge scores against England (27-12), Kenya (38-7) and the USA (33-12). After coming from behind to beat France 26-19 in Singapore, we sizzled past them 24-21 to set up a mouth-watering semi-final against Samoa whom we thrashed 45-5.
However, we were outclassed by the Pumas in the final.
Nand’s experience at the Vancouver 7s
Sabdhya Nand is a passionate and staunch Fiji 7s fan. He is originally from Waiqele, Labasa – a sugar-cane farming settlement.
He migrated with his family in 2003 after their land lease was not renewed.
Despite leaving Fiji, he follows the 7s team’s performance and has never missed the Vancouver 7s. Nand lives in Squamish which is about 65 km north of Vancouver in British Columbia.
Watching 7s on TV kept him excited about attending the games someday, so as soon as announcement for the first Vancouver 7s was made, he quickly organised his group and purchased tickets the day it went on sale.
His family decided to stay at a hotel close to the stadium so they could attend all the games and not worry about driving back and forth.
According to Nand, the atmosphere is electrifying at BC Place and his love for rugby 7s draws him to the stadium every year.
He even attended the Vancouver 7s last year 2021 when Fiji did not take part. Nand shared that the Fiji 7s team was just amazing to watch and it was a proud moment for him to see our boys perform at their best on the world’s biggest stage.
He added that the boys are very highly skilled and a great bunch to talk to and share ideas. Jerry Tuwai is Nand’s favourite player. He felt that the team did very well, and despite the loss, every Fijian at the stadium was satisfied with their performance.
He believes the team did an excellent job, and he is confident that this team is going to be impressive in the future. He has placed his bet on the team to win the Toulouse and London 7s tournaments. Nand and his family will cherish the moments spent with the Fiji 7s team in Vancouver.
- RAJNESH LINGAM is a regular contributor to this newspaper. The views expressed are his and not of this newspaper.
