Move On, Ben
Former national rugby 7s coach Ben Ryan may have his reasons for not supporting Fiji Rugby Union’s bid to host one of the World Rugby Sevens Series tournaments.
This week, the Englishman posted on social media his reasons on why hosting the tournament will not work for this country and even quoted the cost of the bid. Ryan did not rest there. He even claimed that people who are paid to work on the bid were behind the Fiji International (golf event), where it incurred losses worth millions of dollars.
All these allegations were made without Ryan providing any substantial proof.
It’s true that Ryan is entitled to his opinion but a show of maturity on his part would have gone a long way. The true motive behind his posting is only best known to him. The FRU has handled the situation professionally. The team at Rugby House were more focused working on the bid along with other important matters rather than to be sidetracked by such posting.
In their response, FRU has clarified that the figures quoted by Ryan in terms of the cost of the bid has been ‘greatly exaggerated’ and are NOT factual.
It has also made clear that all costs associated with the promotion of the bid on local television and radio stations have been met by those stations at no cost to them. This is a show of support for the bid.
We do value Ryan’s contribution to sevens rugby in the country and the cherished memories of winning our first Olympic Games gold medal at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2016.
The FRU had wanted him to stay but Ryan turned down the offer and left our shores to pursue his dream as a XVs coach. He had high hopes after Olympic glory that he could fulfil his dream but somehow things have not worked out for him in fifteens rugby.
For Ryan, it’s best for him to move on with life and focus on his consultancy contract with the French 7s team. He should leave matters pertaining to Fiji Rugby alone as no amount of posting or outbursts from him will change anything.