Rotuma High School is set to return to the Crest Chicken Fiji Secondary School Netball Championship in 2024, after a decade-long absence. Fiji Secondary School netball president Navitalai Naivalu stated that RHS must first compete in the maritime rally, scheduled for August 21-23 at the National Netball Centre in Suva, to secure a place in the national championship. “There are no automatic qualifiers,” he explained, noting that schools from various regions, including Adi Maopa from Lau, Koro, Gau, and Kadavu, have confirmed their participation.
RHS manager Lorraine Wesley announced that the school will be competing in the Under-17 division, comprising a team of 17 players. The community faced challenges in fundraising the $7,000 required to participate in the event. Wesley highlighted their fundraising efforts, which included hosting two kava barrels at the Itumuta community hall.
She expressed hopes for her team to engage in at least two friendly matches against Kalabu Secondary and Gospel High schools before the maritime rally on August 19 at the NNC in Suva. “Our principal has been coordinating with the two schools, but we haven’t received confirmation yet as we just arrived,” Wesley said.
All players in the U17 team are currently in Year 11. Wesley acknowledged that they would be entering the competition as underdogs, emphasizing that the experience will be valuable for the girls. “We have our expectations, but we’ll see how the girls perform in terms of confidence and exposure, as it’s their first time playing in front of other schools,” she stated.
She added that the rally would serve as a beneficial platform for the players to build their confidence and evaluate their competitiveness. “We’ll take one step at a time, and we never know, maybe one or two of them will represent Fiji in netball in the future,” Wesley remarked. She also encouraged RHS alumni to attend and support the girls during the competition.