The team will deliver on game day says Telecom Fiji Warriors coach FRU Media
Telecom Fiji Warriors coach FRU Media
Despite the short time given to prepare the team, Telecom Fiji Warriors coach Senirusi Seruvakula remains positive and believes that his team will deliver on game day. They spent their first week in camp at Nadave last week working on their fitness and pattern of play.
“The first three solid days we trained at Ratu Cakobau Park working on our fitness then to the pattern of play that is required of us,” Seruvakula said.
He confirmed that the pattern of play that is suitable for us has been adopted by the Vodafone Flying Fijians and will be used across the board from elite right down to grass roots. The coaches are implementing it now with the TFL Warriors and this should filter down to the provincial teams too.
Today (Monday) they will have another fitness test to see their progress. This week, they will focus on their set pieces.
“We will have a review fitness test on Monday (yesterday) then work on our line-outs and scrum in the week.”
Seruvakula can see the talent in the local boys but says they need more discipline and commitment.
“We have the potential and they (the boys) know that this is the door to get into the test side but the choice is theirs to make. If they desperately want it, then they have to put in the hard yards.”
The players were chosen from the last season’s provincial tournament and were given a training program to prepare themselves.
“We have an experience side; players that had played for the team before and those that came through age grade.”
Canada replacing the Australian academy teams will hopefully bring more excitement, and intensity to the tournament. They might recruit some of their sevens player to the tournament and are using the tournament to pick their national side to play in the Pacific Nation Cup tournament later in the year.
The tournament is pretty much designed to give the participating country’s local players a chance at higher competition which is important in a World Cup year. The tournament will also draw the eye of national selectors and also showcase home-grown talent.
It will be more demanding and very intense but all participating teams’ objectives are the same; to feed the national side in the best way possible.
Fiji is in Pool A with Tonga and Canada. They will play in a round-robin against Pool B Argentina Pampas, Samoa and Japan in a cross pool.
A lot is expected from the TFL Warriors playing at home so they need to better last year’s results at third place.
The TFL Warriors will play a friendly match against Naitasiri on Wednesday to gauge their fitness and performance and another game next week against the Police team.
Vodafone Flying Fijians forward coach Allen Muir is expected in the country next week to assist the TFL Warriors and also the Vodafone U20 team.
While the TFL Warriors trial their players against the local teams, The Pampas are currently training in Australia hoping to repeat what happened last year when they won the WRPC.
On 27 February they will play against the Warratahs and then on 6 March against Auckland Blues before they travel to Suva for the Pacific Challenge.
Fiji Warriors will play their first match against the Pampas on the first day of the WRPC tournament at the ANZ Stadium.