Super W 2022: The quiet entry of the Fijiana Drua

In 2020, the Fijiana sevens women axed their way through the Tokyo Olympics competition, winning bronze. Internationally this move was a quiet statement with loud implications.

The Fijiana sevens team proved they were a force to be reckoned with under the direction of coach Saiasi Fuli. In Fiji suddenly women who played rugby were taken very seriously.

Online a flurry of activity took place, and disdain turned into a new kind of respect. Rugby pundits suddenly switched their attention to our rugby women.

Being the only female co-administrator of rugby league and rugby union online forums, I purposely sat back and watched. It was so good to see, especially when the men of Fiji redirected the discourse for women in the sport. Things shifted after decades of enduring ridicule, physical punishment, separation, body shaming, forced decision between league or union, sarcasm and disrespect.

It is an understatement to say that women who choose to play rugby suffer. But the narrative switches like it always does when there is suffering. Suffering bears resilience, strength and courage. This is what our women are accustomed to. The axe-grinding already began in the lead up to the Olympics.

After the excitement settled, in late November last year Fiji Rugby Union CEO John O’Connor announced that the FRU were in the middle of negotiations to enter a Fijiana Drua team into the Super W competition in Australia. On 15 February the Drua ever so quietly entered the country, carrying on their shoulders a great responsibility, being the first women to represent their country in the Super W competition. There was hardly any media coverage regarding their arrival back home or in Australia.

The team arrived in the country with uncertainty and with few resources and no major commercial sponsorship. When asked about their needs, an insider said that the women did not have rugby boots, sports bras or training gear. While other women’s teams in the competition were getting accustomed to their kits, the Fijiana women had little to nothing.

This sparked a discussion on ABC radio’s Pacific Beat program. Key Fijian women sports commentators interviewed spoke about a behind-the-scenes donation to the team to address their immediate needs.

Formidable former Fijian Drua coach Senirusi Seruvakula and assistants Michael Legge and Inoke Male, based in Runaway Bay, Gold Coast, went straight into focused preparation. On Saturday, 19 February, with their first preseason game against the Queensland Reds, Fijiana Drua made a statement: 34-20. Surely they’re the team to watch in the 2022 Super W competition. And if they come your way, go out to cheer them – we all know the Australian community loves the story of the underdog.