Who’s Hot and Who’s Not for the Women’s Rugby World Cup

 The Vodafone Fijiana XVs squad to the Women’s Rugby World Cup in England was announced at Tanoa International in Nadi last Saturday night.

Head coach Ioan Cunningham has made his pick on the women that can get the job done for us in England from August 22 to September 27.

The Welshman took up the job on February 25, this year after Moses Rauluni stepped down. He had been working closely with Fijian Drua women’s head coach Ifereimi Rawaqa and assistant coach Kele Leawere along with Alana Thomas, the head of the Women’s High Performance Unit. 

Cunningham for the past five months had worked with the Fijiana XV squad in their Test matches against the Australian Wallaroos, Tonga, Samoa and the United States (US) Eagles.

He has made a few surprising calls but it was to be expected especially when he had only six months to work on the World Cup team instead of the usual three-year appointment.

With the official announcement being done let’s take a look at five players who came out winners from the selection and five players who unfortunately lost out in this journey to play at the World Cup.

WINNERS

#1. Sulita Waisega: After a hectic 2024 season, the 21-year-old loose forward did not play this season due to a shoulder injury where she had to undergo major surgery. 

Waisega was undergoing rehab at the Fijian Drua homebase where she was being closely monitored. Her absence was felt by the Drua and the Fijiana XV. Now, she has been medically cleared and Cunningham needs her to add depth in the loosies department. 

#2. Mere Vocevoce: The 19-year-old winger has yet to make her Test debut. She caught the selectors’ attention while playing for the Fijiana 7s team in Dubai during 2024/25 HSBC SVNs. 

Vocevoce has never looked back since then as she put on the hardwork which led to her selection.

#3. Kereleyani Luvu: The elusive playmaker like Vocevoce is also yet to make her Test debut. She made her mark for the Fijiana 7s team during the Perth tournament of the HSBC SVNs. 

#4. Jade Coates: Congratulations to Jade for making the squad. She never gave up after she missed out of the 2021 World Cup due to injury. 

She has been one of the standout performers and leader for the Drua during the Super W competition and the Fijiana XV as well. This year, she played for Chiefs Manawa in the Super Rugby Aupiki season. 

#5. Rusila Nagasau: At the age of 37, she has proved that age is only a number. Nagasau captained the Fiji women’s rugby sevens team that won a bronze medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. 

From last season, many had written her off during the Marama Championship, where she was playing for Namosi. However, Nagasau put her head down and worked hard to prove critics wrong with her selection. 

LOSERS

#1. Salanieta Nabuli: The loosehead prop had been the power behind the Drua and Fijiana XV scrum this season. During the Super W competition, she was rated highly by Australian rugby writers as she made the Team of the Week more than once. 

One of the highlights of her performance was scoring the Drua’s winning try (21-15) against the Brumbies at Churchill Park, Lautoka, in their Super W clash on March 15. She fell out of favour due to disciplinary issues.

#2. Atelaite Buna: She was our rising star during the 2024 Super W season and the Fijiana XV international Test matches. This resulted in her being named the 2024 Drua’s Rookie of the Year. 

Buna was known for her speed, footwork, ability to slip past any gap and being spot on with her tackles. 

She copped an ACL injury and did not play this season where she was closely monitored at the Drua homebase. Buna opted out of the Fijiana 7s squad to focus on making the World Cup, which sadly did not happen.

#3. Luisa Tisolo: She was the Drua and Fijiana XV full-back known for her ‘big boot’. Tisolo is a reliable goal-kicker. She missed out on the Test match against USA and is now dropped from the World Cup squad. Was she injured or has she lost her spot due to disciplinary issues. 

#4. Vitalina Naikore: The star winger turned centre has been left out of the squad. Naikore played for the Drua in this season’s Super W. 

She also represented North Queensland Cowboys in the NRLW during the 2023/24 season before returning to play for the Drua in this season’s Super W. 

Like Buna, Naikore is a lethal finisher and a reliable goalkicker as well. 

#5. Sesenieli Donu: She was one of the standout centres during the 2021 World Cup in New Zealand. 

Donu made a comeback from an ACL injury after undergoing rehab for almost a year. She made her mark at the 2024/25 HSBC SVNs. 

The 29-year-old was one of the Fijiana 7s stars when they won the bronze medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. She surely would have made a difference if given the opportunity.