Fijian winger Jiuta Wainiqolo says his side are relishing the chance to face England this Saturday and put right some of the mistakes made in last weekend’s defeat against France.
The 24-year-old, who won gold with the sevens side at the Olympics in Tokyo two years ago, feels that the occasion may have got to some of the players in Fiji’s relatively young squad as they were beaten by the upcoming tournament hosts.
Wainiqolo plays his domestic rugby for Toulon in France, and was therefore better exposed to the atmosphere Fiji faced than some of his compatriots, but he is confident that they will fare better against the Red Rose this week having had last week’s experience under their belt.
He has not received the call-up this weekend, but with eight of the Fiji side who played last week continuing from the last game, Wainiqolo is hoping problems have been ironed out during the training week.
“It’s a good test for us, we’re really looking forward to it,” he said. “We made a few mistakes in the last game against France, it was the first time that a lot of us had experienced a ‘big’ team.
“Many of the players that were picked last week had never experienced that kind of atmosphere, playing France in France with a big crowd.
“It’s good for us before we go to the World Cup and it’s another big game against England this week.”
England have not lost to Fiji in the seven fixtures the two sides have played dating back 35 years, and in the five games the two sides have played at Twickenham the island nation have always been beaten by more than 20 points.
But many will see this as Fiji’s best chance given the relative turmoil surrounding English rugby at the moment. Their captain Owen Farrell and only specialist number eight Billy Vunipola are both currently suspended for red cards they received for high tackles, and coach Steve Borthwick‘s tactics are facing heavy scrutiny with England having scored just four tries in their last five matches.
Although Wainiqolo is not promising a shock, and Fiji are very much focussed on getting the best possible performance for themselves at Twickenham, his teammates are not going to let England bounce back without a fight.
“There are a lot of issues going on with England, but we’ll just focus on ourselves,” he added. “Make sure we get those little things right: limit penalties with or without the ball and fix our accuracy.
“We can’t wait to face England, it’s been a long time since we played them and a lot of the boys are excited. There’s a lot being said by the fans here about their team, but we’re really looking forward to it.
“I don’t know if they’ll be a surprise this weekend, but we’ve been training really hard this week.
“We don’t want to give England any chance of an easy game, it’s a good test for us to prepare for the first World Cup game against Wales so we’ll give our best. I think it’ll be a good one.”
Fiji: Droasese, Ravutaumada, Nayacalevu, Radradra, Habosi, Muntz, Lomani; Mawi, Matavesi, Tagi, Nasilasila, Cirikidaveta, Tuisue, Tagitagivalu, Mata.
Replacements: Togiatama, Koroiduadua, Tawake, Mayanavanue, Miramira, Kuruvoli, Tela, Ravouvou
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