Rotuma High School is set to return to the 2024 Crest Chicken Fiji Secondary School Netball Championship after a decade-long hiatus. According to Fiji Secondary School Netball president Navitalai Naivalu, the team must first compete in the maritime rally to secure a spot in the national competition, which will be held from August 21 to 23 at the National Netball Centre in Suva. He emphasized that there are no automatic qualifiers for the championship, with other schools such as Adi Maopa from Lau, Koro, Gau, and Kadavu also confirming their participation.
RHS manager Lorraine Wesley announced that the team will compete in the Under-17 division, consisting of 17 players. The journey to Viti Levu presented challenges, requiring the community to collaborate in fundraising the necessary $7,000 to participate in the annual netball event. Wesley highlighted their fundraising efforts, which included two kava barrels set up at the Itumuta community hall.
She expressed hope for the team to engage in friendly matches against Kalabu Secondary and Gospel High schools before the maritime rally on August 19 at the NNC in Suva. Wesley noted that while they have not finalized plans yet, communication with the two schools has begun.
All players on the Under-17 team are in Year 11, and Wesley acknowledged that they are entering the competition as underdogs. She described the experience as a valuable learning opportunity for the girls, emphasizing the importance of building their confidence and gauging their competitiveness. Wesley stated, “We’ll take it one step at a time. We never know, probably one or two of them will represent Fiji in netball in the future.”
She also encouraged RHS alumni to come out in large numbers to support the team during the tournament.