Tigers told 'no room for errors'

The Namoli West Tigers women's team will need to polish up their fundamen­tals ahead of their Fiji National Rugby League Women's (FNRLW) semi-final clash against USP Raid­ers at Buckhurst Park (ground 1) today.

This was the view of head coach Tuliana Ragadi in an interview with SUNsports yesterday.

"This is the semi-final, and we are looking to give USP Raiders team a tough challenge," she said.

"We prepared well and we need to improve our basics, like our marker positioning."

This comes after most of her play­ers made the transition from rugby union to league through the Yasawa women's team in the Ranadi Cup competition.

Ragadi added that her team will not take USP Raiders lightly despite their 54-0 win over Lami Steelers in the quarterfinals last week.

"The Raiders are an established league team, so there is no room for errors. I told the players to follow what has been taught during train­ing and not underestimate the USP Raiders side."

The USP Raiders last won the FNRLW competition in 2023 after defeating Police Sharks 14-12 in the grand final at Albert Park in Suva. The Raiders lost 18-20 to Po­lice Sharks in the grand-final at the National Stadium in Suva last year, while the Namoli West Tigers lost 14-32 to Police Sharks.

"Our players dominate with speed, especially my backline, and the for­ward pack has strong carries. We are expecting a strong game against the USP women's Raiders side."

Ragadi acknowledged the club's president, Paulini Umu, and vice­president, Milika Evanson, for their leadership and support throughout the campaign. "It's been a good year for us as we have a chance to redeem ourselves after the loss to Police Sharks in the semi-final last year," she said.

"We urge our families in Namoli and supporters in Lautoka to back the girls in their game against USP Raiders in Suva."

Ragadi advised her players to work together as a unified team on the field and aim for the win. She added that she was grateful to have their centre, Salote Vuniwaqa, and hook­er, Vitorina Toga, named in the Fiji Bulikula 42-member squad for the Women's Rugby League World Cup.

FNRLW semi- final fixtures

■ 10.30am Army Bears v Police Sharks

■ 1.35pm USP Raiders v Namoli West Tigers

Vodafone Cup semi-final fixtures

■ 12pm Army Bears v Navy Al­batross

■ 3.10pm Nadera Panthers v Saru Dragons.