The Fiji Rugby Union (FRU) board of trustees plans to retain Osea Kolinisau as the coach of the Fiji 7s team for the upcoming rugby sevens season. This confirmation came from FRU interim chair Peter Mazey when questioned about Kolinisau’s future with the team.
“Yes, of course. I’m very much in favor of having Fijian coaches, and I know there has been a lot of discussion about that,” Mazey stated.
Kolinisau took over the team in March after calls to replace Ben Gollings, following Fiji’s failure to secure a tournament title in the World SVNS Series. With just four months remaining to prepare, Kolinisau imposed stringent fitness standards for all players, including Jerry Tuwai.
The changes implemented by Kolinisau were reflected in the players’ performances, and the FRU does not want to lose a leader of his caliber. “We will be having that discussion with Oscar. His family still lives in America. The contract is just after the Olympics.”
“I really have to thank Oscar; he stepped in at a very late stage, and I think the changes made by the Trustees have proven to be the right decision. The team Oscar assembled, including his coaching staff, was excellent. It was great having Gareth Baber on board. It was also interesting to see that the last two Olympic coaches were also supporting him,” Mazey added.
Kolinisau, who captained the Fiji 7s team to their gold medal victory at the 2016 Rio Olympics, received assistance from former Fiji 7s star Setefano Cakau at the recent tournament. He focused on the team’s fitness with the help of strength and conditioning coach Ian Gibbons, consultant Naca Cawanibuka, and the reliable guidance of 2020 Fiji 7s gold medal-winning coach, Gareth Baber.