Safe to say that this season of the Rugby World Cup has been a rollercoaster of emotions for all of us.
It was a bit of a bummer that we lost in the Quarter-Finals against England, but the fact that we reached that far was such a big deal that we couldn’t help but feel proud of our boys.
They played exceptionally well and they displayed courage on a different level.
Being away from your loved ones to play on the world stage for your country is no easy feat so big shout out to the boys for this.
One man that helped catapult the Fiji Water Flying Fijians into the spotlight this RWC was none other than the coach himself, Simon Raiwalui.
He has captured the hearts of many Fijians by preparing the boys in a way that made us look at our national team with pride.
The improvement that the boys displayed on the rugby fields in France was the result of the hard work that Raiwalui has been putting in behind the scenes.
His twitter updates from France also helped remind us that the boys are only human and that our support means more to them than we would ever imagine.
It’s great to know that we aren’t the only ones that noticed the coach’s hard work as he is one of the nominees for Coach of the Year at the World Rugby Awards.
Mr Raiwalui is being recognized because when he stepped in as coach in February, he made a big impact on the team in such a short time that not only did we make it to the Quarter-Finals, but we also beat Australia for the first time in 69 years.
He isn’t the only Fijian to be recognized in the World Rugby awards with Vinaya Habosi being a nominee for Try of the Year and Reapi Ulunisau for Women’s 7s Player of the Year.
To see the full list of nominees, click here.
