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Fiji national rugby league team

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Fiji
Badge of Fiji team
Team information
NicknameThe Fiji Bati
Governing bodyFiji National Rugby League
RegionAsia-Pacific
Head coachRick Stone
CaptainJayson Bukuya
Most capsWes Naiqama (14)
Top try-scorerAkuila Uate (13)
Top point-scorerWes Naiqama (132)
Home stadiumNational Stadium
IRL ranking6th
Uniforms
First colours
Team results
First international
Samoa Western Samoa 32–18 Fiji 
(Apia, Samoa; 1992)
Biggest win
 Cook Islands 6–54 Fiji 
(Suva, Fiji; 1992)
Biggest defeat
 Australia 84–14 Fiji 
(Marathon Stadium, Newcastle; 12 July 1994)
World Cup
Appearances4 (first time in 1995)
Best resultSemi Final 2008, 2013

The Fiji national rugby league team, nicknamed the Bati (pronounced [mˈbatʃi]), has been participating in international rugby league football since 1992. The team is controlled by the governing body for rugby league in Fiji, Fiji National Rugby League (FNRL), which is currently a member of the Asia-Pacific Rugby League Confederation (APRLC). They are currently ranked 6th in the RLIF World Rankings.

History

1990s

The game was introduced to Fiji only in 1992 but despite this there has been a long history of Fijian players making their mark in rugby league, most notably back in the 1960s when great players such as Joe Levula and Laitia Ravouvou joined Rochdale Hornets and became household names in the English competition.

Interest and participation in rugby league snowballed throughout Fiji, and as well as continued success in the World Sevens, the Batis began playing full 13-aside games against international teams. By 1994, Fiji had hammered the Great Britain Amateur tourists (40-8) and, captained by mighty front-rower James Pickering, beat France (20-12).

They had also produced their first rugby league superstar after winger Noa Nadruku joined Canberra Raiders and in 1993 became the top try-scorer in the Australian competition.

Fiji took part in their first World Cup in 1995 where, just as the 2000 World Cup, they had the misfortune to be placed in the same group as both England and Australia. But the Batis made a massive impression in their opening World Cup game in which they ran riot against South Africa, 52-6, and had the crowd on their feet at Keighley.

During the Super League war, Fiji, like most countries other countries, aligned itself with Super League. In search of international competition, the Australian Rugby League played a match against a "National Rugby League of Fiji" team in 1996. This match has been granted Test status by the Australian Rugby League, but not by the Rugby League International Federation.

2000s

The Fiji Bati qualified for the 2008 Rugby League World Cup held in Australia after finishing second in Pacific qualifying behind Tonga. Fiji's qualification campaign started with a thrilling 30-28 loss to Samoa before reversing the scoreline a few days later with a 30-28 win over the Tongans. Fiji won their final qualifying game against Cook Islands 40-4. Having qualified the Vodafone Fiji Bati team started their Rugby League World Cup 2008 campaign with 42-6 win over France followed by a 2-point defeat to Scotland, however they topped their group with a superior points difference. Beating Ireland in their quarter final they came within one match of the World Cup final, but were defeated by Australia, ending the tournament in 4th place.

2010s

Fiji automatically qualified for the 2013 Rugby League World Cup after participating in the 2008 tournament. They took on Australia, England and Ireland in the pool stage. In their first match they took on 'the Wolfhounds'. They played at the famous Spotland Stadium, in Rochdale, where Fiji have an historic affiliation with. The Fijians convincingly won by a score of 32-14. As expected Fiji lost to both Australia and England, although they surprised many, as they only conceded 34 points against the teams in each game and they led 2-0 against Australia, and were within a few minutes of taking a half-time lead against England. Fiji would take on 'fierce Pacific rivals' Samoa in the quarter final. They won the, passionate pacific, fixture and they would celebrate with a 22-4 victory. They celebrated even more, as it meant Fiji reached their second consecutive World Cup semi-final. They took on Australia again, but this game was nothing like the group stage fixture. Fiji's errors conceded them 62 points against a classy Australian side. This defeat ended and equalled their best World Cup campaign in their history.

In May 2014, Fiji took on Samoa in the '2014 Pacific Rugby League Test' at Penrith Stadium. The International was created as a qualifier for the final 2014 Four Nations spot. It was also a chance for the Four Nations team (winner of this international) to warm-up before the event kicked off later in the year. Fiji failed to qualify with their fierce pacific rivals getting the better of them by 32-16.

In May 2015, Fiji took on Papua New Guinea in the '2015 Melanesian Cup Test' at Cbus Super Stadium. Fiji won the match and the inaugural Melanesian Cup title.[1] Fiji never looked like losing the match after an easy first half performance, leading 18-0 at the break. They went on to win the test match by 22-10.

Players

For all past and present players who have appeared for the national team, see Fiji national rugby league team players.

Current squad

The following players were called up for the Melanesian Cup test match[2] (caps and points apply for after the match finished):

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Pts. Club
FB Kevin Naiqama (1989-02-04) 4 February 1989 (age 35) 9 8 Australia Wests Tigers
FB Tyrone Phillips (1994-01-05) 5 January 1994 (age 30) 1 0 Australia Canterbury Bulldogs
WG Marika Koroibete (1992-07-26) 26 July 1992 (age 32) 7 8 Australia Melbourne Storm
WG Eto Nabuli (1988-08-24) 24 August 1988 (age 36) 2 0 Australia St. George Illawarra Dragons
CE Fabian Goodall (1994-12-13) 13 December 1994 (age 29) 2 8 Australia Parramatta Eels
CE Brayden Wiliame (1992-12-17) 17 December 1992 (age 31) 1 0 Australia Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles
CE Daryl Millard (1985-02-20) 20 February 1985 (age 39) 9 4 Australia South Sydney Rabbitohs
SH Ryan Millard (1987-03-13) 13 March 1987 (age 37) 5 0 Australia Brisbane Norths
PR Eloni Vunakece (1987-05-27) 27 May 1987 (age 37) 7 4 Australia Wyong Roos
PR Daniel Saifiti (1996-05-01) 1 May 1996 (age 28) 1 0 Australia Newcastle Knights
PR Osea Sadrau (1986-04-24) 24 April 1986 (age 38) 8 0 Fiji Fiji
PR Viliame Kikau (1995-04-05) 5 April 1995 (age 29) 1 0 Australia North Queensland Cowboys
HK Apisai Koroisau (1992-11-07) 7 November 1992 (age 32) 5 6 Australia Penrith Panthers
SR Jayson Bukuya (Captain) (1989-04-21) 21 April 1989 (age 35) 10 12 Australia Cronulla Sharks
SR Jacob Saifiti (1996-05-01) 1 May 1996 (age 28) 1 0 Australia Newcastle Knights
LF Korbin Sims (1992-01-02) 2 January 1992 (age 32) 5 4 Australia Newcastle Knights
? Tikio Noke ? 1 0 Fiji Fiji

Tournament history

Rugby League World Cup

World Cup record
Year Round Position GP W L D
United Kingdom 1995 Group Stage 6/10 3 1 2 0
United KingdomRepublic of IrelandFrance 2000 Group Stage 12/16 3 1 2 0
Australia 2008 Semi-finals 4/10 4 2 2 0
EnglandWalesRepublic of IrelandFrance 2013 Semi-finals 4/14 5 2 3 0
AustraliaNew Zealand 2017 To Be Determined
Total 0 Titles 4/13 15 6 9 0

Four Nations

Four Nations record
Year Round Position GP W L D
EnglandFrance 2009 Not Invited
AustraliaNew Zealand 2010 Failed to Qualify
EnglandWales 2011 Not Invited
AustraliaNew Zealand 2014 Failed to Qualify
EnglandScotland 2016 Not Invited
Total 0 Titles 0/5 0 0 3 0

Pacific Cup

Pacific Cup record
Year Round Position GP W L D
New Zealand 1992 Group Stage 9/10 4 1 3 0
Fiji 1994 Second Place 2/10 6 4 2 0
New Zealand 1997 Group Stage 5/6 3 0 2 1
New Zealand 2004 Group Stage 4/6 2 1 1 0
New Zealand 2006 Second Place 2/6 3 2 1 0
Papua New Guinea 2009 Semi-finals 3/5 2 1 1 0
Total 0 Titles 6/12 20 9 10 1

Other competitions

Fiji have also participated in:

Results and fixtures

For all past match results, see the team's results page.
IRL Men's World Rankings
Official rankings as of 30 June 2024
Rank Change Team Pts %
1 Steady  Australia 100
2 Steady  New Zealand 82
3 Steady  England 80
4 Steady  Samoa 67
5 Steady  Tonga 49
6 Increase 1  Fiji 47
7 Decrease 1  Papua New Guinea 46
8 Steady  France 28
9 Steady  Lebanon 22
10 Steady  Cook Islands 20
11 Steady  Serbia 19
12 Steady  Netherlands 17
13 Steady  Italy 15
14 Increase 1  Greece 15
15 Decrease 1  Malta 14
16 Steady  Ireland 14
17 Steady  Wales 13
18 Steady  Jamaica 10
19 Steady  Scotland 9
20 Steady  Ukraine 7
21 Steady  Czech Republic 7
22 Steady  Germany 6
23 Increase 3  Chile 6
24 Steady  Poland 6
25 Increase 3  Norway 6
26 Increase 1  Kenya 5
27 Decrease 4  Philippines 5
28 Decrease 3  South Africa 4
29 Steady  Nigeria 4
30 Steady  Ghana 4
31 Increase 2  United States 4
32 Increase 4  Montenegro 4
33 Decrease 2  Brazil 3
34 Decrease 2  Turkey 3
35 Increase 7  North Macedonia 3
36 Decrease 2  Bulgaria 3
37 Decrease 2  Cameroon 2
38 Decrease 1  Spain 2
39 Decrease 1  Japan 1
40 Decrease 1  Albania 1
41 Increase 5  Canada 1
42 Decrease 2  Colombia 1
43 Decrease 2  El Salvador 1
44 Decrease 1  Morocco 1
45 New entry  Russia 0
46 Decrease 2  Sweden 0
47 Decrease 2  Bosnia and Herzegovina 0
48 Increase 2  Hungary 0
49 Increase 3  Argentina 0
50 New entry  Hong Kong 0
51 Decrease 3  Solomon Islands 0
52 Decrease 5  Niue 0
53 Increase 1  Latvia 0
54 Decrease 1  Denmark 0
55 Decrease 6  Belgium 0
56 Decrease 1  Estonia 0
57 Decrease 6  Vanuatu 0
Complete rankings at INTRL.SPORT
  • Fiji def. Samoa 24 - 4 (2 June 2010) [3]
  • Fiji def. Tonga 26 - 16 (31 October 2009)
  • Cook Islands def. Fiji 24 - 22 (24 October 2009) [4]
  • Australia def. Fiji 52 - 0 (16 November 2008)
  • Fiji def. Ireland 30 - 14 (10 November 2008)
  • Fiji def. France 42-6 (1 November 2008)
  • Tonga def. Fiji 14-12 (19 October 2007)
  • Junior Kangaroos def Fiji 15-14 (5 October 2007)
  • Fiji def. Cook Islands 58-12 (26 January 2007)
  • Fiji 40 def. Cook Islands 4 (7 October 2006)
  • Fiji 30 def. Tonga 28 (4 October 2006)
  • Samoa 30 def. Fiji 28 29 September 2006)
  • Tonga def. Fiji 22-4 (2006)
  • Fiji def. Cook Islands 40-18 (2006)
  • Fiji def. Samoa 26-4 (2006)
  • Fiji tied Cook Islands 20-20 (February 2005)
  • Fiji def. Niue 34-24 (23 October 2004)
  • Cook Islands def. Fiji 20-12 (21 October 2004)
  • Tonga def. Fiji 56-6 (17 October 2004)
  • Cook Islands def. Fiji 36-24 (17 August 2004)
  • Fiji def. England "A" 44-8 (11 November 2002)
  • England def. Fiji 66-4 (4 November 2000)
  • Australia def. Fiji 66-8 (1 November 2000)
  • Fiji def. Russia 38-12 (29 October 2000)
  • Fiji def. Tonga 10-6 (3 June 2000)
  • Tonga def. Fiji 23-20 (27 May 2000)
  • New Zealand Māoris def. Fiji 70-0 (29 April 2000)
  • New Zealand Māoris def. Fiji 28-12 (25 April 2000)
  • New Zealand Māoris def. Fiji 44-14 (22 April 2000)
  • Fiji def. Samoa 30-4 (1999)
  • Fiji def. Samoa 22-16 (1999)
  • Samoa def. Fiji 6-1 (1999)
  • Papua New Guinea def. Fiji 16-14 (1998)
  • Papua New Guinea def. Fiji 34-12 (1998)
  • Fiji def. Papua New Guinea 14-10 (1998)
  • Fiji def. Tonga 22-14 (1998)
  • Cook Islands def. Fiji 22-14 (1997)
  • New Zealand Māoris def. Fiji 32-22 (1997)
  • Fiji drew with Tonga 14-14 (1997)
  • Fiji drew with Tonga 22-22 (1997)
  • Australia def. NRL of Fiji 84-14 (1996)
  • Fiji def. Cook Islands 14-8 (1996)
  • Great Britain def. Fiji 72-4 (5 October 1996)
  • Australia def. Fiji 66-0 (14 October 1995)
  • England def. Fiji 46-0 (11 October 1995)
  • Fiji def. South Africa 52-6 (8 October 1995)
  • Fiji def. France 20-12 (9 July 1994)
  • Papua New Guinea def. Fiji 35-24 (1993)
  • Fiji def. Cook Islands 54-6 (1992)
  • Tonga def. Fiji 23-20 (1992)
  • Niue def. Fiji 14-10 (1992)
  • Western Samoa def. Fiji 32-18 (1992)

See also

References

  1. ^ "Fiji vs. PNG 2015 Melanesian Cup". Nrl.com. Retrieved 2 May 2015.
  2. ^ http://www.nrl.com/squads-announced-for-pacific-tests/tabid/10874/newsid/85714/default.aspx
  3. ^ http://www.fijitimes.com/story.aspx?id=147843
  4. ^ http://www.fijitimes.com/story.aspx?id=132229
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