Abu Dhabi: Budding rugby players had the chance to learn from the best as the Fiji national sevens squad joined a group of Abu Dhabi schoolchildren for a training session at Zayed Sports City this week.
Pupils from Brighton College Abu Dhabi, British School Al Khubairat and young players from Abu Dhabi Harlequins had the honour as Fiji chose the venue as their training ground ahead of this weekend’s Emirates Dubai Rugby Sevens.
New Fiji coach Ben Ryan said: “This is a great opportunity for the players to get into the community and pass on some of their experience to young players who look up to them. They don’t get many opportunities to do things like this in Fiji, so it’s really nice for them and they really get something out of it.
“It’s also great for the kids. They get to meet these players that they’ve watched on TV and they love that.”
Ryan said his team is feeling confident ahead of the Dubai leg of the HSBC Sevens World Series.
“We’ve got great training facilities here at Zayed Sports City, so that’s really beneficial and we’re feeling good and relaxed. We’ve been working hard so we believe we’ve got a good chance,” he said.
Ropate Kauvesi, the team’s manager, said he has already seen improvements in his players since Ryan’s appointment as head coach.
“Ben has really improved the work ethic at the club and brought a stronger sense of discipline to the way we train. It is more organised now,” he said.
Ryan, plus skipper Osea Kolonisau and fellow players Jonah Tuitoga and Benito Masilevu, also got to relax ahead of the sevens event when they were invited to take a Seawings tour of Dubai.
“It was a fantastic experience and we thoroughly enjoyed it,” Ryan said. “We really appreciated the invitation, and Dubai looked beautiful from our cabin.”
The Emirates Dubai Rugby Sevens gets underway on Thursday with pool matches in the IRB Women’s Sevens World Series, and the start of the Invitation Tournament. Entry on Thursday is free.
The women’s tournament reaches its climax on Friday, when the men’s tournament gets underway ahead of its conclusion on Saturday. For more information log on to dubairugby7s.com
