Devo Babaas win for fallen cop

The Devo Babaas team dedicated their Fiji Bitter Marist 7s tournament win to the late Police Constable Peniasi Racagi.

The Babaas beat Army Green 12-10 in the Cup fi nal at Suva’s National Stadium on Saturday night.

Team head coach Viliame Ratute said the late Racagi played for the club before he was recruited to the Fiji Police Force.

“Racagi is my fi rst cousin since our fathers are brothers and this win is for him,” he said.

“I’m really pleased with the player’s performance in the tournament.”

Ratute said it was a proud moment for their club to win the prestigious tournament despite only three days of preparation.

“We are so thankful and happy as this year marks the fi fth year for the tournament so winning it back-to-back is the icing on the cake,” he said.

“Before the Cup fi nal, I told them (players) to play their style.”

The Devo Babaas’ team missed several Fiji Bitter Series tournaments during the 2025/26 season due to hardships faced but rose up to the moment when it mattered most.

“We weren’t supposed to take part in the Marist tournament, but it was on Thursday when we paid our registration fees to take part,” he said.

“We were training to take part in the PNG (Papua New Guinea) SportsTok 7s tournament, but we are glad for this great achievement especially with the back-to-back win.”

Ratute added that their back-toback win is the testament of their hard work.

“Most of these players are off contract and they came back and are staying at home, so their lifeline is rugby,” he said.

“This is a platform for them to showcase their talent and they are thriving.”

Devo Babas is one of the successful grassroots team in the country winning six tournaments during the 2024/25 Fiji Bitter Sevens Series.

“We’re so thankful to our loyal supporters and this win is also dedicated to all the people of Bua,” he said.

The team will fly out to Port Moresby today to defend the PNG Sports Tok 7s tournament title.

Devo Babaas won $12,000 while Army Green settled for $6000.

In the women’s fi nal Sinukakala defeated Navy 19-12 to win the title and pocket $5000.

Devo Babaas Etuate Qalibau was awarded the best player award for the men while Sinukakala’s Eseta Vunitabua took out the women’s award.

Both players received $700 each.