Namatakula veteran leads Fijian Barbarians while Tadulala assists

Versatile Amenoni Nasilasila is going to captain the Fijian Barbarians 7s team to the 2017 SUDAMERICA’S Rugby 7s this weekend.

The appointed was confirmed by Barbarians head coach Josateki Savou before they departed for Uruguay yesterday.

Earlier on Sunday night, the first group of players – Seru Cavuilati, Mesulame Kunavula, Risiate Tadulala, Alivereti Veitokani and manager William Bale flew out of the country.

Savou said, Nasilasila is among the experienced players and he would be assisted by Risiate Tadulala.

“We got a mixture of young and experienced players that have played in the seven series,” he said.

Savou is confident that the team would do the job despite the nine days of preparation during the festive season.

“The morale is high and we are looking forward to this week’s tournament.

“Preparing the team during Christmas and New Year is a big challenge but the boys did adjust to the training and also they made sacrifices.”

The tournament will be in Uruguay from January 6-7 and in Chile from January 14-15. Teams that are to feature are Argentina, USA, Canada, Chile, Brazil, Uruguay and Colombia.

“We’ve no idea on which team we will be playing against but we know that South American teams are very physical and also strong at the breakdowns and tackles,” Savou added.

“The most important thing is to maintain possession taking into consideration our defence, which we are also working on.”

The team travelled via Los Angeles, Miami, Argentina and then to Uruguay.

“We will reach there on Wednesday and the captain’s run is on Thursday and play on Friday.”

Edited by Leone Cabenatabua

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