Crusaders’ Fijian connection

WHETHER it’s a plastic bottle or a coconut or anything that resembles a rugby ball, the chances are if you throw to a group of young Fijian boys, their natural instinct is to play rugby. Indeed the black shorts, white jersey and coconut tree emblem is synonymous with the ‘Land of Smiles’. Over the years, rugby pundits and commentators alike have said sevens rugby is the national sport of Fiji, but the reality is, rugby is the national sport of Fiji. Just ask Marshall Security Crusaders Fijian wing, Jiuta Tuni. The 21-year-old who played his first season in the premier league this year grew up on the island of Viti Levu.

“Every islander is imbued with rugby spirit. My earliest memory is playing backyard rugby with my brother and sister. My dad is an avid fan and he coached the sport as well. At school, though, I focused on soccer, it was always in the back of mind to play rugby,” he said.

Receiving your first national call-up is always a great honour, and for Jiuta it was no different. “I was extremely excited. I was selected for the final trails for the U20 team but I injured my knee and that forced me to miss out on selection. But that’s not stopped my dream to make the national squad,” he enthused.

For Jiuta, playing rugby is all about teamwork. “Trusting the guys beside you, that’s one of the most important lessons I’ve learnt at Crusaders. Team bonding is hugely important,” he said. While he’s been encouraged by his teammates to teach them the Haka, Juita said he hopes to export one of Fiji’s best keep secrets on the culinary side, the lovo (earth oven).

“It’s a very efficient way to cook large quantities of food at the same time. The first step in preparing a lovo is heating the rocks which will serve as the base for the lovo. Specially selected stones are placed in a hot fire and left to absorb the heat. When the rocks are sufficiently heated, they are pulled from the flames and placed in the bottom of a shallow pit.

“Next, chicken, fish and pork are tightly wrapped in a weave of palm fronds or banana leaves before being place in the bottom of the lovo pit lined with hot rocks. On top goes various root crops including dalo (the potato like root of the taro plant), cassava (the root of the tapioca plant) and Uvi (wild yam). It’s delicious, maybe I could show the locals that we aren’t bad at cooking either,” he joked.

While his goal is to return home to play for Fiji, no-one can deny his blistering pace and 97kg frame, which has helped terrorise rugby defences in the premier league.