Pasifika Sipoti in brief for 9 June

RNZ News

5 hours ago

The Fijiana women's rugby team kicked off their campaign at the Oceania Rugby Women's Challenge with a 59-5 win over Tonga in Sigatoka.
Photo:
Ridiqiulas Photography
The Fijiana women's rugby team kicked off their campaign at the Oceania Rugby Women's Challenge with a 59-5 win over Tonga in Sigatoka on Friday afternoon.
Defending the title at home, the Fijians took a 30-0 lead at halftime.
Fiji's head coach, Ioan Cunningham, expressed pride in his team's performance, particularly under the challenging ground conditions at Lawaqa Park.
He also praised the impact of the five debutants.
Tonga will meet Samoa on Tuesday in the second game of the tournament.
Meanwhile, in the Oceania Under-20 Rugby Challenge, the Fiji under-20s team retained their title for another year when they swept through the event undefeated.
Fiji will host Samoa and Australia in a tri-nation international boxing event at the FMF Gymnasium in Suva at the end of June.
FBC
reports the Fiji Amateur Boxing head coach Cam Todd confirmed a team of 30 boxers from Australia and a 10-member squad from Samoa will be competing.
The event will feature boxers in the 12 to 19-year-old bracket, in both the male and female categories.
Todd said the Australian team features several state champions and elite-level fighters.
Team Samoa are currently seeking more funding to make their trip possible.
Independent Boxing Samoa Incorporated president Tavui Mike Lemisio said while they have received assistance from the Samoa Olympic Committee and the Ministry of Sports and Recreation, it's not enough.
The
Samoa Observer
reported the team needs the funding to pay off their airfares, accommodation and other expenses.
Former New Zealand sevens and Hurricanes player Salesi Rayasi has been named in the Flying Fijians extended squad for upcoming international matches in July.
Rayasi, who played 50 games for the Hurricanes in Super Rugby, signed a two-year deal with French club Vannes last year.
Fijians' head coach Mick Byrne has named him in the squad to prepare for matches against the Wallabies and Scotland.
The squad includes Hawke's Bay scrum half Sam Wye, some players from the Fijian Drua team and a number of players playing in Europe.
The draw has been made for the FIFA under-20 World Cup which includes Oceania qualifiers New Zealand and New Caledonia.
OFC champions New Zealand are in group A, alongside hosts Chile, Japan and Egypt.
Second qualifier New Caledonia will make its tournament debut and face USA, France and South Africa in Group E.
The tournament, which will start in late September, will see matches played in four different cities across Chile.
The inaugural six-team Rugby Premier League 7s is set to debut in India from 15 to 29 June.
A number of international sevens stars have been named in the six franchise teams, including some from Fiji and New Zealand.
Rahul Bose, President of Rugby India, said the event will be a game-changer for rugby in India, and fans can expect nothing less than world-class rugby action that will inspire the next generation of athletes in the country.
The Fiji national women's football team scored a 3-1 win over Papua New Guinea in Port Moresby in the team's final international friendly.
FBC
reported PNG drew first blood through Marie Kaipu, who gave the home side an early lead.
But Fijian striker Cema Nasau scored a hat-trick to give her team the win.
Both sides now shift their focus to the 2025 OFC Women's Nations Cup, which will be held at the HFC Bank Stadium in Suva.