{"id":102523,"date":"2025-08-28T17:06:36","date_gmt":"2025-08-28T17:06:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/102523\/"},"modified":"2025-08-28T17:06:36","modified_gmt":"2025-08-28T17:06:36","slug":"were-all-human-beings-we-all-have-feelings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/102523\/","title":{"rendered":"‘We\u2019re all human beings. We all have feelings.’"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Fiji<\/a> would have loved to just focus on rugby in the second week of the 2025 Women\u2019s Rugby World Cup<\/a>. But they could not.<\/p>\n

In the wake of their 65-7 loss to Canada<\/a> last Saturday, the team have instead had to pick themselves back up after swathes of abusive online comments questioned their efforts and desire in York.<\/p>\n

Three-year veteran of the Fijiana XV, Asinate Serevi<\/a>, has spent much of the week trying to pick up her teammates with a clash against Scotland<\/a> in Manchester on Saturday quickly approaching.<\/p>\n

\"VideoTop 50 Women\u2019s Rugby Players \u2013 montage<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve picked the world\u2019s Top 50 women\u2019s rugby players for 2025! View the list now<\/p>\n

View Top 50 Now<\/a><\/p>\n

\"VideoTop 50 Women\u2019s Rugby Players \u2013 montage<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve picked the world\u2019s Top 50 women\u2019s rugby players for 2025! View the list now<\/p>\n

\u201cThis hit home for us because we knew how much work we had put in as a team,\u201d Serevi said. \u201cAll the blood and tears.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re not just here to represent our families, but everyone back home. The comments that were being said, from people at home, it was a lot to take in. We\u2019re all human beings. We all have feelings.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis week we\u2019ve talked about putting social media to the side and knowing we\u2019re here for rugby and we want to play with skill and talent, not with emotions.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the wake of these comments the Fijiana\u2019s social media pages released a video to display the team\u2019s unity and included a message from 19-year-old wing, Michella\u2019e Stolz, to her teammates:<\/p>\n

\u201cI know the game may not have gone the way some of you wanted it to go. Losses sting sometimes more than we let others see. I\u2019m proud of the heart you carry. Because I know that heart is something not everyone has.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd I need you to hear me. A scoreboard cannot measure the value of this team. Win or lose, your worth does not change. You\u2019re more than a result. We may have lost on paper, but when I looked into that field at each of you, I didn\u2019t see losers. I saw warriors. I see fighters. I see people who refused to give up. And that makes me proud in a way no words can fully explain.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo lift your heads. This is not the end of our story. It\u2019s only the beginning. It\u2019s just a page in a bigger book. And I believe that God has written greatness ahead of us. And as your teammate, as your sister, as your family, I am beyond grateful to stand alongside each of you in this truth.\u201d<\/p>\n

A kind of homecoming<\/p>\n

In some ways this World Cup is a bit of a homecoming for Serevi.<\/p>\n

Daughter of Fijian legend, Waisale<\/a>, the 30-year-old lock forward has lived in Aldershot and could be seen in the embrace of the aunt she used to stay with at full-time at York Community Stadium.<\/p>\n

That reunion has added to the sense of the occasion at the tournament. And also underlined the influence of family present throughout the squad.<\/p>\n

Because if it were not for her father\u2019s guidance, Serevi may never have pulled on a Fiji shirt at all.<\/p>\n

A standout rugby player during her time at Central Washington University, she made her debut for the USA Women\u2019s Eagles<\/a> in 2016 against Canada in the Super Series. For the next three years she lived and breathed representing the USA.<\/p>\n

Her final game for the USA came in 2019 when she came off the bench in a 53-14 loss to France<\/a> at the conclusion of the Women\u2019s Rugby Super Series. After that, the future was uncertain.<\/p>\n

\u201cDad reached out to me and asked if I was done playing,\u201d Serevi said. \u201cI was like, I don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n

So enamoured by her time in red, white and blue, Serevi took time over her decision of whether to switch international allegiances to the country of her birth.<\/p>\n

Eventually the notion of pulling on the same white jersey that her father has become synonymous with and to embark on a new journey with the then-brand new Fijian Drua Women in 2022, it added up to the perfect opportunity.<\/p>\n

She made her debut against Canada in a 2021 Rugby World Cup<\/a> warm-up match and started against England\u2019s Red Roses<\/a> in the two teams\u2019 tournament opener.<\/p>\n

\u201cI knew it was going to be different for me to represent Fiji and put on that jersey,\u201d Serevi said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was different because I\u2019d watched my dad put on that jersey. I\u2019ve watched a lot of my family members put on that jersey and seen how happy it makes the people of Fiji. I wanted to be part of that too.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s when it hit home and I realised I did want to go home, see if I could make this team knowing how much it meant to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Every moment in England will be savoured a little more by the 30-year-old. With a degree in law and justice and an eye on what the future may hold, she admits that this tournament could well be her last.<\/p>\n

\u201cGoing into this World Cup, I\u2019m thinking it might be my last one,\u201d Serevi said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThinking of how much I\u2019ve done, representing the USA and Fiji, I think I\u2019m happy and just want to be able to end this World Cup on a high.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust see what we\u2019re able to do and just create a lot more memories with this group of players.\u201d<\/p>\n

Taking on Scotland<\/p>\n

To take on Scotland, Fiji head coach Ioan Cunningham has made four changes to his starting side.<\/p>\n

One of these changes is enforced after 2024 Olympian Ilisapeci Delaiwau<\/a> was ruled out of the tournament with a hand injury sustained against Canada. She is replaced on the right wing by Alowesi Nakoci<\/a> and Michella\u2019e Stolz has been installed on the left wing.<\/p>\n

In the centres Verenaisi Ditavutu will partner Josifini Neihamu instead of Ema Adivitaloga<\/a>. The half-back partnership of Setaita Railumu<\/a> and Salanieta Kinita<\/a> remains intact.<\/p>\n

There is just one change in the starting forwards pack as Vika Matarugu<\/a> swaps places with Tiana Robanakadavu<\/a>. Both Keleni Marawa<\/a> and Karalaini Naisewa<\/a> are named as front-row replacements, while Carletta Yee<\/a> and Sulita Waisega<\/a> are also in line for their first appearances of the World Cup.<\/p>\n

After her try-scoring exploits Kolora Lomani<\/a> is set to join the action from the bench again, as will Kelerayani Luvu<\/a> and Adi Salote Nailolo<\/a>.<\/p>\n

There is no place for Serevi among the 23. Even so the 30-year-old has been hard at work preparing her teammates to take on a Scotland side with knockout rugby in their sights.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope the girls have flushed everything that we\u2019ve done last weekend, and we\u2019ve learned from our mistakes,\u201d Serevi said.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Head-to-Head <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Last 1 Meeting<\/p>\n

Average Points scored<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know we are way better than we were last weekend. We\u2019re reminding the girls to play with their talents and not with their emotions.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know from working with these girls the past four years the potential they have, the strength they have and what this team is capable of doing.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis week I have just been reminding them that they need to back themselves up. Be confident. Have fun.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can get so caught up in playing at a World Cup, the biggest stage, and remembering we\u2019re here to have fun with the talent God blessed us with.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fiji Line-Up vs Scotland<\/p>\n

1 Loraini Senivutu<\/p>\n

2 Bitila Tawake<\/p>\n

3 Vika Matarugu<\/p>\n

4 Jade Coates<\/p>\n

5 Mereoni Nakesa<\/p>\n

6 Nunia Daunimoala<\/p>\n

7 Alfreda Fisher<\/a> (C)<\/p>\n

8 Manuqalo Komaitai<\/p>\n

9 Setaita Railumu<\/p>\n

10 Salanieta Kinita<\/p>\n

11 Michella\u2019e Stolz<\/p>\n

12 Josifini Neihamu<\/p>\n

13 Verenaisi Ditavutu<\/p>\n

14 Alowesi Nakoci<\/p>\n

15 Litiana Vueti<\/p>\n

Replacements<\/p>\n

16 Keleni Marawa<\/p>\n

17 Karalaini Naisewa<\/p>\n

18 Tiana Robanakadavu<\/p>\n

19 Carletta Yee<\/p>\n

20 Sulita Waisega<\/p>\n

21 Kolora Lomani<\/p>\n

22 Kelerayani Luvu<\/p>\n

23 Adi Salote Nailolo<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Fiji would have loved to just focus on rugby in the second week of the 2025 Women\u2019s Rugby…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":102524,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[567],"tags":[64,63,760,85],"class_list":["post-102523","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-rugby","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-rugby","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102523","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=102523"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102523\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/102524"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=102523"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=102523"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=102523"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}