RWC Review: No. 17 Fiji

[M Two One]

The 2011 Rugby World Cup has ended and unfortunately for the rugby faithful, this means that we'll have to wait four years once again, but don't be disappointed, this was a special tournament. New Zealand hosted this time around, and with that, we realize that we may not see the rugby mad country host again for a very long time.

We hope that you all savored every moment and every match, no matter what the outcomes were, the disappointments or heartache. What impressed us the most is how well second tier nations developed over the past four years, which is great news for the sport on a worldwide scale.

Development is the key to this game, as any, and this world cup has opened the door to a large number of new fans.

As we take a look back, Shaggy, psychic duck and M Two One review the twenty participants from worst to first over the next week. The rankings were put together through several opinions based on performances.

Feel free to debate and discuss. The 2011 Rugby World Cup may have ended, but rugby lives on 24/7.

Four years ago Fiji qualified for the quarter finals by defeating Wales 38-34 in what was undoubtedly one of the most exciting world cup matches of all-time. Although they went on to lose in the quarters to eventual cup winners South Africa, the tournament was considered major success that launched the Flying Fijians into ninth in the IRB world rankings.

Fast forward to the 2011 Rugby World Cup and you have to wonder, what exactly happened to Fiji? There are several problems, most notably scheduling concerns and of course the political problems back home. All of that aside, Fiji simply looked as though they didn't want to play for anything at times.

The world cup started fairly well for Fiji with a win over Namibia. Vereniki Goneva scored four tries in this match, but even he took second to Namibia's surprising play, which had the rugby world buzzing with excitement. Fiji was nearly perfect in this match, only missing one conversion and securing six tries in total. Their second match, against the Springboks, was a total blowout. South Africa proved their superiority by a 46 point margin victory, although many speculate that Fiji were still fatigued from their previous match only four days prior.

Their third match was against fellow islanders Samoa. Many believed that this match would be a close one considering that both teams had faced Namibia already, and the two pool favorites leading into the match, but it didn't end that way. Samoa had no trouble handing Fiji a loss by utilizing their kicking game through the entire first half. Fiji scored and converted a try in the second half, but their opponents added two of their own to make it a twenty point margin.

One of the most anticipated matches of this world cup was Fiji against Wales in a rematch from 2007. The two nations were already a good distance apart on the IRB rankings prior to the tournament, but that didn't really affect anyone's anticipation. Perhaps it was fatigue setting in deep, but this match was surprisingly one of the biggest blowouts of the world cup. Prior to the match, no one really expected Fiji to really contend anymore, but to see a 66-0 final score was incredibly painful for the Fijian crowd.

Fiji's poor play spans further back than the world cup, but their pathetic display on the big stage dropped them even further down the IRB world rankings. Fiji have a solid pool of players to choose from, but whether or not they can get them to play for their home nation is another question entirely. - M

 

[Muzzy]

It was just very questionable team selection for fiji imo, and then naming a second string team from that team to play wales, there was no way fiji were gonna compete

 

[nickdnz]

I think the end sums it up. With out most of their world class backs like Delasau, Caucaunibuca, Bobo, Nacewa etc, they never looked like the attacking team they once were.

 

[M Two One]

Bobo, despite his age, can still turn it on. I really miss him at Biarritz.