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Fiji coach Simon Raiwalui steps down after World Cup exit
By Josh Raisey
Fiji head coach Simon Raiwalui has confirmed that he will not look to extend his contract with the Fiji Rugby Union beyond the end of this year.
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The former Fiji lock made the announcement on X on Tuesday just two days after his side were narrowly beaten 30-24 by England in their World Cup quarter-final meeting in Marseille.
The 49-year-old only took charge of the Flying Fijians in February this year after former coach Vern Cotter resigned. With less than nine months with the team, he took them to a World Cup quarter-final, beating Australia for the first time in almost 70 years. Prior to the World Cup, he also presided over Fiji’s first ever win over England when they won 30-22 at Twickenham in August.
He wrote on X: “Well I guess it is time to make it official, specifically what the next cycle will look like for Fiji Rugby… I will not be seeking an extension of employment with FRU past 31st December. Thanks again to the players, staff & all the supporters, it has been quite a ride!”
Well I guess it is time to make it official, specifically what the next cycle will look like for Fiji Rugby…I will not be seeking an extension of employment with FRU past 31st December. Thanks again to the players, staff & all the supporters, it has been quite a ride! 🇫🇯🇫🇯🇫🇯
— Simon Raiwalui (@SimonRaiwalui) October 17, 2023
Following Fiji’s loss at the Stade Velodrome on Sunday, Raiwalui said that he “couldn’t be prouder” of his squad.
“The pride’s never gone away,” he said. “It’s there from the beginning until the day I die. These boys are family. Pride doesn’t disappear.
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“The joy is there. For 15 weeks these boys have worked hard and we will celebrate that. We’re hurting now in terms of the result but I couldn’t be prouder of this group in terms of what they’ve put in. They’ve built something for the next generation of Fijian rugby players. They’ve laid a foundation.
“We’re hurting at the moment and it will hurt for a long time because it was something we had built and we thought we could go further. The belief in the team has always been there. I’m bursting with pride.”
Joe Rococco
What a shame such a waste of such an inspirational person, hopefully rugby Fiji can convince him to stay on, so good for the game in so many ways.Davej
I sincerely hope that he is not lost to rugby. I watched his post match conference and he just came across as true class- emphasis was placed on both the quality of the rugby player and the quality of the human being. Of course his coaching ability is plain-
the Fijian team’s performances were testament to that.
I hope World Rugby offers him a job in development. His perspective will help the game become bigger and better.
Eddie Jones enters the chat
I'll bet that Foster and Joe Schmidt will take over.
That would be pretty cool. I hope they get a great new coach. It’s a bit sad that their current one is going though.
What a Godsend he was for Fiji, and what a remarkable job he did in such a short period of time. Gutted that he's not looking to renew terms