NAVATU Secondary School under-19 head coach Alipate Ravulo has thrown down the challenge to schools and teams in the North — prepare to win, not simply to participate.
Ravulo’s message comes after his side created history as the first northern school team to ever reach the Vodafone Super Deans Championship U19 final, becoming the lone northern school to carry the division’s hopes on the biggest stage of Fiji’s secondary school rugby competition.
For Ravulo, the achievement is proof that northern schools have the ability to compete with their Viti Levu counterparts when given the right preparation.
His challenge to other northern teams is simple but profound: preparation must be purposeful.
“Prepare to win, don’t prepare to participate,” Ravulo said.
He believes preparation must go beyond physical conditioning and rugby skills, with teams needing to cater for the physical, mental and spiritual aspects of their players.
Ravulo said northern teams should not see themselves as inferior to schools from Viti Levu.
“We are all the same. Whether we are from Viti Levu or Vanua Levu, we are all human. We just need to prepare well,” he said.
More importantly, Ravulo believes northern schools should have no excuses after Navatu’s historic run.
The school does not have its own rugby ground or gym and has had to work with very limited resources, yet its U19 side has fought its way into the national final.
If Navatu can reach the biggest stage despite those limitations, Ravulo believes schools in the North with better facilities and greater resources should be capable of achieving even more.
“Navatu’s achievement should tell every school in the North that it is possible,” is the message behind Ravulo’s challenge.
His words carry added weight because Navatu’s campaign has demonstrated what can be achieved when belief, discipline and preparation are placed ahead of circumstances.
The message was echoed by his captain and standout player, Vilimone Kanawabu, who has emerged as one of the competition’s leading performers.
Despite attending school in the North, Kanawabu broke into the Fiji Schoolboys team last year, showing that talent from Vanua Levu can earn recognition at national level.
Kanawabu believes the formula for achieving rugby goals is equally straightforward.
He said unwavering faith, coupled with hard work, was the secret behind reaching one’s goals.
