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Fiji coach Simon Raiwalui steps down after World Cup exit

Waisea Nayacalevu of Fiji is consoled by Simon Raiwalui, Head Coach of Fiji, after defeat to England during the Rugby World Cup France 2023 Quarter Final match between England and Fiji at Stade Velodrome on October 15, 2023 in Marseille, France. (Photo by Adam Pretty - World Rugby/World Rugby via Getty Images)

Fiji head coach Simon Raiwalui has confirmed that he will not look to extend his contract with the Fiji Rugby Union beyond the end of this year.

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The former Fiji lock made the announcement on X on Tuesday just two days after his side were narrowly beaten 30-24 by England in their World Cup quarter-final meeting in Marseille.

The 49-year-old only took charge of the Flying Fijians in February this year after former coach Vern Cotter resigned. With less than nine months with the team, he took them to a World Cup quarter-final, beating Australia for the first time in almost 70 years. Prior to the World Cup, he also presided over Fiji’s first ever win over England when they won 30-22 at Twickenham in August.

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WATCH as French captain Antoine Dupont spits the dummy about some of referee Ben O’Keeffe’s decision in their one-point loss to South Africa

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WATCH as French captain Antoine Dupont spits the dummy about some of referee Ben O’Keeffe’s decision in their one-point loss to South Africa

He wrote on X: “Well I guess it is time to make it official, specifically what the next cycle will look like for Fiji Rugby… I will not be seeking an extension of employment with FRU past 31st December. Thanks again to the players, staff & all the supporters, it has been quite a ride!”

Following Fiji’s loss at the Stade Velodrome on Sunday, Raiwalui said that he “couldn’t be prouder” of his squad.

“The pride’s never gone away,” he said. “It’s there from the beginning until the day I die. These boys are family. Pride doesn’t disappear.

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“The joy is there. For 15 weeks these boys have worked hard and we will celebrate that. We’re hurting now in terms of the result but I couldn’t be prouder of this group in terms of what they’ve put in. They’ve built something for the next generation of Fijian rugby players. They’ve laid a foundation.

“We’re hurting at the moment and it will hurt for a long time because it was something we had built and we thought we could go further. The belief in the team has always been there. I’m bursting with pride.”

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Comments

8 Comments
C
CuzzyG 402 days ago

Joe Rococco

D
Dave 402 days ago

What a shame such a waste of such an inspirational person, hopefully rugby Fiji can convince him to stay on, so good for the game in so many ways.Davej

A
AG 402 days ago

I sincerely hope that he is not lost to rugby. I watched his post match conference and he just came across as true class- emphasis was placed on both the quality of the rugby player and the quality of the human being. Of course his coaching ability is plain-
the Fijian team’s performances were testament to that.

A
Akuila 402 days ago

I hope World Rugby offers him a job in development. His perspective will help the game become bigger and better.

T
Timmyboy 402 days ago

Eddie Jones enters the chat

E
Euan 402 days ago

I'll bet that Foster and Joe Schmidt will take over.

R
Rohan 402 days ago

What a Godsend he was for Fiji, and what a remarkable job he did in such a short period of time. Gutted that he's not looking to renew terms

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Hellhound 21 minutes ago
France put World Cup pain behind them with unbeaten run in November

France is starting to look like they are finally over their WC headache, although they were lucky that NZ had a very bad game. The Argies as usual is one game good, the next bad. If they can sort that out and be more consistent, they could become contenders for the WC.


NZ, Argentina (if they are more consistent), and now the Wallabies too is in an upward curve (can they be consistent?), as well as Fiji(as inconsistent as Argentina) looks like possible contenders. The Boks will be as usual a huge threat to defend their title. Things are looking up for the South, so the North should rightfully beware of the Southern Hemisphere threat.


With the French looking dangerous, the English with their close runs (mostly a mindset problem) and the Scottish seems to be the NH main contenders. The Irish is good, but not excellent anymore. They are more overbearing and with their glory days mostly gone with old players hanging on by a thread, by 2027 if they don't start adding in the younger players, they won't make it past yet another WC Quarter final. The problem is that their youngsters, while good is nothing special.


That is just 8 teams without the Irish that can become real WC contenders. Lots of hickups to be sorted still for these teams, excluding the Boks to become a threat. Make no mistake, the top Tier is much closer than people realise and the 2027 WC will be a really great WC, possibly the best contended WC ever.

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