Tuimaba, Botitu to play today
France-based Aminiasi Tuimaba and Vilimoni Botitu are going to play in today’s PacificAus Sports Oceania Sevens tournament at the Queensland Country Bank Stadium in Townsville, Australia.
Fijian men’s 7s head coach Gareth Baber is confident that the players will fit into his programme and meet the expected requirements so that they could play.
Botitu and Tuimaba came out of the Sydney quarantine yesterday and were to take a flight to Townsville to join the team last night.
They had been given their training programmes and had been working on it while in quarantine.
“It was not an easy task getting them to Australia due to their club commitment but we’ve managed to get them here with the support of Fiji Rugby,” Baber told FRU Media. “The reality is that they are quality players and the last time they played for Fiji, they were voted into the Dream Team of the World Rugby Sevens Series.
“They have got to work hard to be in that position again and earn a sport in the national sevens team.
“I’m aware people have different opinions, but Botitu and Tuimaba have a proven record of their performance on the world stage.
“And the strength is that they have been in my programme and nobody else’s programme so I know what type of players they are” said Baber.
The tournament gives Baber the opportunity to use his 18-men combination during the three-days especially with the upcoming players to prove themselves against international teams.
“There is an agreement to use all the 18 players and potentially at one stage we will have 20 players and that was the whole plan.
“With Fiji, New Zealand also wanted to see if we can use the opportunity of international rugby before making further decisions on the Olympic squad” added Baber.