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Pacific players unite in outrage over 'World League' freeze out

Tim Nanai Williams and Julian Savea in 2017

World Rugby’s new proposal of a 12-team World League has been met by a myriad of condemnation by players, fans and pundits.

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Already, leading players such as Johnny Sexton, Owen Farrell and Kieran Read have lampooned the new proposal, claiming that player welfare has been ignored with an increased international calendar.

However, the biggest losers in this proposed system will be Tier Two nations, as teams like Fiji, Samoa, Tonga, Georgia and Romania will miss out on this league, and will be frozen out for 10 years. In light of this, former and current Pacific Island players have taken to Twitter to show their vehement disapproval of the potential system, highlighting the neglect of these countries.

Fiji, perhaps have the most to be aggrieved about, as they currently sit in ninth in the world rankings (and were eighth), ahead of the USA, Japan and Italy, all of whom are part of the 12-team league.

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Former Bath, Gloucester and Samoa centre Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu has been very vocal in the wake of the proposal, calling for the Pacific Islands to boycott the upcoming World Cup in protest.

Former Wasps, Perpignan and Samoa lock Dan Leo also took to Twitter to show his outrage, suggesting that it is no surprise that Pacific Island nations are being overlooked by World Rugby.

All Black Lima Sopoaga and former Fiji sevens captain Osea Kolinisau commented on Leo’s post, also showing their disapproval of this league.

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https://twitter.com/LimaSopoaga/status/1101054654429974528

Fijian sevens legend Waisale Serevi also joined in, underlining the contribution that Pacific Island nations have provided to world rugby over the years, and that they deserve a place. This is undeniable, as not only have those nations produced some of the leading players in the world currently, but it was only last Autumn that Fiji beat France, proving that they can compete with the best.

Fuimaono-Sapolu was also critical of fellow players in Tier One nations, who have not shown enough concern for Pacific ‘exclusion’, rather only looking out for themselves and their own welfare.

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Meanwhile, Bath winger Cooper Vuna, who has represented both Australia and Tonga, alluded to the fact that the Tongan board have done nothing regarding this.

A raft of journalists have displayed their opprobrium for this concept, as well as many accounts on Twitter, which are indicative of the widespread criticism this project is receiving. ‘PacificRugbyWelfare’ commented how the earning potential in America is being made at the expense of the Pacific nations, something that was shared by Leo, Toulouse and Samoa prop Census Johnston and Clermont Auvergne and Fiji flanker Peceli Yato.

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Hellhound 44 minutes ago
South Africa player ratings | 2024 Autumn Nations Series

There is this thing going around against Siya Kolisi where they don't want him to be known as the best national captain ever, so they strike him down in ratings permanently whenever they can. They want McCaw and reckons he is the best captain ever. I disagree.


Just like they refuse to see SA as the best team and some have even said that should the Boks win a third WC in a row, they will still not be the best team ever. Even if they win every game between now and the WC. That is some serious hate coming SA's way.


Everyone forget how the McCaw AB's intimidated refs, was always on the wrong side, played on the ground etc. Things they would never have gotten away with today. They may have a better win ratio, but SA build depth, not caring about rank inbetween WC's until this year.


They weren't as bad inbetween as people claim, because non e of their losses was big ones and they almost never faced the strongest Bok team outside of the WC, allowing countries like France and Ireland to rise to the top unopposed.


Rassie is still at it, building more depth, getting more young stars into the fold. By the time he leaves (I hope never) he will leave a very strong Bok side for the next 15- 20 years. Not everyone will play for 20 years, but each year Rassie acknowledge the young stars and get them involved and ready for international rugby.


Not everyone will make it to the WC, but those 51/52 players will compete for those spots for the WC. They will deliver their best. The future of the Boks is in very safe hands. The only thing that bothers me is Rassie's health. If he can overcome it, rugby looks dark for the rest of the rugby world. He is already the greatest coach in WR history. By the time he retires, he will be the biggest legend any sport has ever seen

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J
JW 59 minutes ago
'They smelt it': Scott Robertson says Italy sensed All Blacks' vulnerability

No where to be seen OB!


The crosses for me for the year where (from memory);


This was a really hard one to nail down as the first sign of a problem, now that I've asked myself to think about it. I'd say it all started with his decision to not back form and fit players after all the injuries, and/or him picking players for the future, rather ones that could play right now.


First he doesn't replace Perofeta straight away (goes on for months in the team) after injury against England, second he falls back to Beauden Barrett to cover at fullback against Fiji, then he drops Narawa the obvious choice to have started, then he brings in Jordan too soon. That Barret selection (and to a lesser extent Bell's) set the tone for the year.


Then he didn't get the side up for Argentina. They were blown away and didn't look like they expected a fight and were well beaten despite the scoreline in my opinion. Worst performance of the year in the forth game and..


Basically the same problems were persistent, or even exaggerated, after that with the players he did select not given much of an opportunity, with this year having the most number of unused subs I can remember since the amateur days.


What I think I started to realise early on was that he didn't back himself and his team. I think he prepared the players well, don't get me wrong, but I'll credit him with making a conscious choice in tempering his ambition and instead choosing cohesion and to respect (the idea of it being important in himself and his players) experience first and foremost (after two tight games and that 4th game loss). I think he chose wrong in deciding not to be, and back, himself. Hard criticism.


And it played out by preferring Beauden to Dmac on the EOYT (though that may have been a planned move).


I hope I'm right, because going through all the little things of the season and coming up with these bullets, I've got to wonder when I say his last fault is one we have seen at the Crusaders, playing his best players into the ground. What I'm really scared of now is that not wanting a bit of freshness in this last game could be linked with all these other crosses that I want to put down to simple confidence issues. But are they really a sign that he just lacks vision?


Now, that's not to say I haven't seen a lot of positives as well, I just think that for the ABs to go where they want to go he has to fix these crosses. Just have difficult that will be is the question.

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