Lelean Memorial School is back on the national stage and aiming to build on a steady rise as it prepares to face Sigatoka Mission College in the Under-17 Fiji Secondary Schools Rugby league semi-final in Lautoka on Saturday. The Lelean Knights will meet the Sigatoka Mission Knights at Churchill Park with a 10.30am kickoff, in a match that marks a milestone return for the Methodist-run school.
Assistant principal Ulaiyasi Vakatawakoula said the run to the semi-finals is significant for Lelean and its wider community, noting the school last won the under-17 competition in 2018 and has largely been competing only at zone level since. “The last time we won the under-17 grades was in 2018. Since then, we have only been competing at the zone level,” Vakatawakoula said, adding that this year’s progression to the national semis shows clear improvement.
Vakatawakoula pointed to the players’ development over the past two seasons as evidence of that growth. “When they were in the under-15s, they lost in the quarterfinals. Now in the under-17s, they have come this far. That is an improvement on its own,” he said, crediting steady progress and a disciplined approach for getting the team this far.
Lelean have been preparing across physical, mental and spiritual lines, Vakatawakoula said, with prayer and spiritual readiness emphasised alongside traditional training. “We have been praying and doing our spiritual preparation. Those who stay focused spiritually, mentally and physically will come out victorious,” he added, stressing the importance of discipline. “If you lose discipline, you lose possession, you lose points, and eventually you lose the game.”
Their opponents earned their place in the semis with a convincing 30-14 quarter-final win over the Nasinu Panthers, a result Vakatawakoula acknowledged with respect. Despite Sigatoka Mission Knights’ form, he urged his players to remain humble and focused on execution rather than reputation.
Vakatawakoula has urged supporters, parents, old scholars and the Lelean community in the West to turn out in numbers at Churchill Park to back the side. The winner of Saturday’s semi-final will move on to the national final, keeping alive hopes within Lelean’s ranks of reclaiming the Under-17 title they last held six years ago.
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