COACH: FLYING FIJIANS jersey must be earned

USHERING Fiji to a new rugby era newly appointed Fiji Water Flying Fijians head coach Jake White has vowed to restore pride in the Flying Fijians jersey.

In his first session with the media the former Springboks coach and world cup rugby winner has assured that no spot will be guaranteed in his squad, and players will need to earn the privilege of wearing the national jumper for every Test match.

This approach is a core component of his coaching philosophy that ensures every eligible player representing their local clubs, unions or playing professionally abroad is given a fair chance to compete for the Flying Fijian jersey.

“I wanted to make it difficult for you to play for Fiji. I want to make it difficult to get into the team. I think, you know, you could probably pick three back lines and they’re probably as good as each other for Fiji,” White explained.

“So why is it a given right that one guy must always play for Fiji and I want to make sure that we create competition.”

To achieve this White will begin by using the team’s two-week assembly sanctioned under world rugby in France for the November tests where all 30 players will be present to meet and get to know his players while laying down his vision, expectations and standards as the new head coach. For local players he will be working closely with local conditioning coaches to ensure players achieve the required conditions of international rugby.

This will help them unlock their full potential playing locally and be ready for consideration for high-performance developments and local training camps.

As an admirer of the Fiji’s rugby flair the South African’s intends to strengthen the side’s set-pieces and implement structures to unleash the full devastating effect of Fiji’s attacking flair.

Fiji Rugby Union board chairman John Sanday said White’s appointment is Fiji Rugby’s statement of intent in accomplishing its vision of building a Flying Fijians team that remains unmistakably Fijian in its identity but is increasingly formidable in its execution.