Great Year for Byrne & the Flying Fijians

Many have called him names and criticised his selection of players, but at the end of the day Flying Fijians head coach Mick Byrne  has produced the goods.

In his first year as head coach for any national rugby team, Byrne has guided the Flying Fijians to a 70 per cent Test winning record (this excludes the Barbarians game because it is not a Test match).

Not bad for a newcomer, especially when only one of the Test matches (against Samoa) was played at home while the other nine Tests were away games.

Despite the 17-52 loss to Ireland yesterday morning, the Flying Fijians had played 10 Test matches this season. They won seven and lost three to the Tier One teams. The Fijians have scored 271 points  compared to the 261 scored by the oppositions.

The results are;

„ Fiji 20-12 Georgia

„ Fiji 5- 47 NZ All Blacks

„ Fiji 42-16 Samoa

„ Fiji 50-19 Tonga

„ Fiji 22- 3 USA

„ Fiji 41-17 Japan

„ Fiji 17-57 Scotland

„ Fiji 24-19 Wales

„ Fiji 33-19 Spain

„ Fiji 17-52 Ireland

At the start of his job as head coach, Byrne said it was a new challenge for him especially in negotiating with clubs of the Europe-based players over their release for national duties.

This was something he did not encounter while being the assistant (skills) coach of Scotland, Australia and the All Blacks when they won the Rugby World Cup in 2011 and 2015.

Byrne had to learn fast and try to make most of the time so the local-based Fijian Drua and Europe-based players had ample time to prepare together. There were hiccups along the way especially when the Flying Fijians had to play Scotland without their Europe-based players. Byrne, however, used the   opportunity to blood new players and give them the much-needed exposure.

This season was also important for Byrne since it was the start of the transitioning process where senior players who won’t be around for the 2027 Rugby World Cup are being replaced.

The timing of these changes is very critical so that it does not affect the team’s performance in maintaining its winning ways so that it becomes a major part of the Flying Fijians culture.

This season Byrne has added depth to the squad with the exposure of rising stars such as 18-year-old Seta Turagacoke, Vuate Karawalevu, Inia Tabuavou, Kitione Salawa, Meli Derenalagi, Mesake Vocevoce, Isaiah Armstrong-Ravula, Ponipate Loganimasi and the list goes on.

To end 2024 on a high note, the future indeed looks bright for the Flying Fijians as they take their well-deserved rest before focusing on the 2025 season.

Feedback: leonec@fijisun.com.fj