By Brian Hightower

The USA Stars men’s team finally ran out of juice at the Mana Whey Fiji Coral Coast Sevens, wrapping up the two-day tournament with a 29-0 loss to local team Sigatoka River Safari Henibua in the Bowl Semifinals in Sigatoka, Fiji, this past Saturday.

The invitational U.S. side beat Hong Kong 19-14 in the morning quarterfinal match, with tries from Wisconsin’s Chase Jollie, former Fiji sevens and 15s rep Semeli Koniferedi, and German national team player Ben Ellerman. 

Of significant note to collegiate rugby fans in the U.S. is that Hong Kong's lineup featured Cal standout Russell Webb in his first appearance for the national sevens team.   

Trouble In Paradise

Victories do not come easily at Lawaqa Park, especially for visiting teams. The Stars got two and, more importantly, were able to get some of their young up-and-comers into some really uncomfortable situations. Oklahoma football convert Najee Bissoon, for example, got a crash course in the illusion of space on the corner and the closing speed of Fijian wings. He’ll be better for it.

While the Stars' tournament run ended in the Bowl Semifinals, Police won the Cup final in a 34-7 whitewash over last year’s champ, First Light Taveuni. The star of the show was Sakeo Railoa — remember that name. He’s the little brother of Virimi Vakatawa, with more size, speed, and attitude.

Evaluating The Stars

It’s hard to put the sevens talent here into perspective. Some examples? OK, let’s consider the team that beat the USA Stars in the Bowl Semifinal, Sigatoka River Safari Henibua.      

The SRS team, just devised a month ago to help the local youth, is comprised of boys from the Sigatoka River basin. The region's villages are so remote and its infrastructure is so nonexistent that the main mode of transportation to school, other villages, and the nearest road is to grab a five gallon bucket and start floating. The buckets line the river banks during school hours like bikes in racks, waiting for the final bell and an afternoon float back home. 

And in these far reaches, there is rugby talent… just floating downriver. I’d say they were a training away from the Cup rounds.

Loaded Lineups

Cup semifinalist McDonalds Saunaka had three Olympic gold medalists on its roster — Vatemo Ravouvou, Kitiona Taliga and Masivesi Dakuwaqa — plus 6-foot-6 “Offload King” Pio Tuwai for good measure. They were not even among the favorites! They lost to Ratu Felise in pool play and barely made it into the Cup round.

Don’t Be Surprised

Ratu Felise Rugby Club is situated just above the beachside paradise of Namatakula and the villages of Lote Tuqiri, Tevita Kuridrani, and Nemani Nadolo. They are all related, by the way. Think of those three as a sevens front row! That’s just one family in one village.

There are 1,200 villages in Fiji.

Talent You've Never Seen

Former Fiji sevens coach Ben Ryan was a guest here this weekend. When I asked him about the hidden pockets of talent on Fiji’s 333 islands, he said, “There are players on the remote islands that have never even been seen that could probably walk on to the national team tomorrow.”

Former USA sevens team captain Brian Hightower represented his country in sevens and 15s and has been a commentator and writer on the game in several outlets around the world.