The Kaiviti Silktails are a semi-professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

football club from

Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...

and currently based in Sydney. They compete in the

NSWRL The New South Wales Rugby League (NSWRL) is the governing body of rugby league in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory and is a member of the Australian Rugby League Commission. It was formed in Sydney on 8 August 1907 and was ...

Ron Massey Cup The Ron Massey Cup (formerly known as the Bundaberg Red Cup and Jim Beam Cup) is a semi-professional development level rugby league competition in New South Wales (NSW), Australia, run jointly by the New South Wales Rugby League (NSWRL) and the ...

, and will advance to the Knock-On Effect(KOE) NSW Cup in 2023. The Silktails will be a predominantly Under-23 side from 2022 onwards.

History

The

had first endorsed a bid team from Fiji led by

Petero Civoniceva Petero Civoniceva ( (Thee-vo-nee-thee-vah); born 21 April 1976), is a Fijian-Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1990s, 2000s and 2010s. A Queensland State of Origin and Australian international representa ...

early in 2014 to have a team compete in the 2016 NSW Cup competition. The bid received endorsement from the

Fiji National Rugby League The Fiji National Rugby League (FNRL) is the governing body for rugby league in Fiji. They are based in the capital Suva.http://www.rlif.com/member-nations/fiji History The FNRL were founded in 1992 and have been full members of the Rugby Leagu ...

in 2018. In June 2019, it was announced that the Kaiviti Silktails would enter the

in 2020, with promotion to the

New South Wales Cup The NSW Cup, currently known as the Knock-On Effect NSW Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a rugby league competition for clubs in New South Wales. The competition has a history dating back to the NSWRFL's origins in 1908, starting off as a reserve ...

in 2021.

Brandon Costin Brandon Costin (born 23 June 1972) is a former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1990s and 2000s. He initially played under the name Brandon Pearson. He played for the Huddersfield Giants, Canberra Raiders, South Sydney Rab ...

, coach of the Fijian national team, was announced as head coach. The Silktails won their opening match of the 2020 season 40–16 against the

Windsor Wolves The Windsor Wolves are a rugby league team based in the town of Windsor, New South Wales. The club fields both junior and senior teams in the Penrith District Rugby League competitions. The club has fielded teams in semi-professional, New South ...

in Lautoka. The season was subsequently cancelled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

Wes Naiqama Wes Naiqama (born 19 October 1982) is a Fijian Australian former professional rugby league footballer who last played for the London Broncos in the English Championship. He won 14 caps for the Fiji national rugby league team. He primarily playe ...

was named head coach in June 2020. The Silktails remained in the Ron Massey Cup in 2021, remaining in Australia for the duration of the season due to the

, and playing their home matches at Mascot Oval. During their round 1 bye, the team played a trial match against the Mascot Jets, winning 46–16. Their round 2 match against the

Blacktown Workers Sea Eagles The Blacktown Workers Rugby League Football Club, also known as Blacktown Workers Sea Eagles, are an Australian rugby league football club based in Blacktown, New South Wales formed in 1962. Since 2017 they have had a side in the NSW Cup, as th ...

was postponed due to

inclement weather Weather is the state of the atmosphere, describing for example the degree to which it is hot or cold, wet or dry, calm or stormy, clear or cloudy. On Earth, most weather phenomena occur in the lowest layer of the planet's atmosphere, the tr ...

Stadium

The Silktails were scheduled to play all 10 of their home matches in 2020 at Churchill Park,

Lautoka Lautoka () is the second largest Local government in Fiji, city in Fiji. It is on the west coast of the island of Viti Levu, in the Ba Province of the Western Division, Fiji, Western Division. Lying in the heart of Fiji's sugar cane-growing r ...

. In 2021, the team will play all of their home matches at Mascot Oval,

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

Players

Current squad

Squad for season 2022. *1. Ratu Jilivecevece () *2. Timoci Bola () *3. Osea Natoga () *4. Filimoni Paul () *5. Paula Valisoliso () *6. Mosese Qionimacawa () *7. Sunia Naruma () *8. Apakuki Tavodi () (c) *9. Penaia Leveleve () *10. Meli Nasau () *11. Inoke Vasuturaga () *12. Manasa Kalou () *13. Ponipate Komai () *14. Simone Cakauniqio () *15. Samuela Yalisaya () *16. Timoci Bola *17. Manoa Satala *18. Watasoni Waqanisaravi *19. Manoa Vilikesa *20. Manueli Levaqai *21. Sirilo Lovokuro *22. Kilione Cagilevu *23. Rusiate Baleitamavua *24. Jonathan Roseman *25. Iobe Taukeisalili *26. Viliame Tutuvili *27. Sitiveni Ravono *28. Mosese Qionimacawa.

References

External links