The Fiji Bitter Nawaka 7s has expanded its field to 100 teams this year — up from 88 — in a deliberate move to give more community-based sides a shot at the spotlight, tournament director Jeff Tamata announced on Tuesday. The boost in entries, he said, reflects a renewed focus on the event’s original purpose: supporting grassroots rugby in Nawaka and surrounding districts.
“From 88 teams, we have moved up the number of teams to a hundred. We’re going back to the main reason of our tournament which is helping grassroots teams,” Tamata said, noting that the 12 additional places were filled by grassroots sides. He stressed the organising committee did not want to close the door on smaller clubs that approached organisers late but were keen to compete.
Tamata added that accommodating late entries from smaller teams is not a new practice for the Nawaka 7s. “It’s not new, it has always happened in previous years. Teams would ask in the last minute and we would always accommodate,” he said, underlining the tournament’s tradition of flexibility to ensure wider participation.
The expanded Nawaka 7s begins this Friday and will be broadcast live on FBC TV, giving the newly included community teams a rare opportunity for national exposure. Organisers expect television coverage to raise the profile of homegrown talent and attract attention from selectors, sponsors and wider rugby audiences who follow Fiji’s rich sevens tradition.
The decision to widen the draw comes amid a broader push across Fiji’s domestic sevens scene to deepen talent pathways and bolster community competitions. In recent months other regional tournaments have also highlighted grassroots development in their planning and formats, seeking to create bridges between village sides and more established clubs. Nawaka’s enlargement is the latest practical step in that direction, organisers say.
Logistical adjustments were required to accommodate the extra teams, from scheduling additional pool matches to ensuring playing and warm-up areas met demand. Tamata did not detail the full fixture list but said the committee worked closely with volunteers and local stakeholders to finalise arrangements in time for the weekend kick-off.
For the small-town clubs now included in the field, participation represents more than a weekend of rugby: it is an entry point into the national conversation around sevens, a chance to test players against tougher opposition and a platform to attract support. With live broadcast and a larger tournament slate, Nawaka 7s organisers say this year’s expansion should strengthen the competition’s role as a grassroots incubator within Fiji’s sevens ecosystem.
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