BEING a member of the Fiji rugby team is a great privilege for many young boys who would consider their stroke of luck a blessing from the Almighty. Whichever way we may perceive the origins of our blessings, Barbarians lock forward Ioane Naivalurua Junior believes that the opportunity was God-given to use his talents and play the sport he has fallen in love with. At first, Naivalurua did not involve himself in sporting activities because his mum preferred that he focus more on school work rather than sports. The first sport he really got knee-deep in was basketball when he was in Form Seven at Yat Sen Secondary in Suva. Playing for the Warriors basketball team made him realise his potential in becoming a great sportsman and after being introduced to rugby in 2008, Naivalurua has not turned back. He played for the Duavata Club in Naitasiri in 2008 and is now in the Nadi Airport team. With just three years of rugby experience under his belt, he took off at an astonishing speed to further his sporting possibilities without losing focus of his tertiary studies. Last year he graduated from the University of the South Pacific with a Bachelors Degree in Economics and Tourism studies. Now working for Tourism Fiji in Nadi, Naivalurua decided it was time he lived his dream of wearing the Fiji rugby jersey. Naivalurua's exceptional performance on the sporting arena is no surprise. He comes from a family of sportsmen - his father, who is the Prisons Commissioner and President of Basketball Fiji, Brigadier General Ioane Naivalurua, was also an exceptional rugby player in the 1970s for Marist. Junior initially aimed to be in the Warriors team but was dropped in the final trials for the Pacific Rugby Cup. He however was happy to have made it into the Barbarians team where he made his debut in professional rugby under the guidance of Peniasi Uluiviti. He said going against the Tongans and the Samoans was a great physical battle but added that the flair and team bonding within the Baabaas camp was great a contributing factor that assisted them when the crunch time came about. His team, however, fell to the might of the Warriors in the last battle phase on Fiji soil. This however has not dampened Naivalurua's aspirations to continue his discovery of his potentials on the rugby field and he says that he will continue his drive towards gaining the opportunity to don the Fijian jersey. "My future hopes are that I wear that white jersey one day, and play for Fiji. If work permits and if it is God's will for me to play, then I'll be there to play for Fiji, but in the meantime, I must continue to train harder and try and excel in some other parts of my game," said Naivalurua.

"My dream is to wear the Flying Fijians' jersey one day. That's an on-going process which I hope, some day, will be realised. "I'll try and play good and consistent rugby for Nadi and hopefully catch the attention of selectors," said hopeful Naivalurua. Now, Naivalurua is not all rugby-crazed, he is also basketball-crazed. When he started off in basketball in his last years at Yat Sen, he had no idea how far sports was going to take him. Amazingly the Taveuni lad made it to the national basketball team and took off to Samoa in 2007 for the Pacific Games where he and his team members snagged the gold medal alongside their women's team. He played centre and a power-forward in basketball was an asset because of his height and also his precision at shooting. Naivalurua is very close to his father, who is also his mentor. "My father has indeed played a major role in advising me about career and sports options," he said. "It's outside the rugby field that he has assisted me most by helping out and advising me with decisions and choices. "The importance of a back-up plan and qualifications to fall back onto in case I get injured has been a major point of emphasis from him to me. Pursuit of excellence, whether on the field or off it.

"Basketball in Fiji is growing, no doubt. Though it is still a minority sport, there is interest in the sport with lots of kids having some knowledge about the NBA and basketball stars. "The development programs that have been implemented by Lai Puamau and his team have been amazing and one which I must congratulate him for and his fine outstanding efforts. "The team that has been supporting him has also been great and hardworking." Although he has hung up his basketball sneakers, Naivalurua has no plans to hang up his rugby boots because he still has much to achieve. Only 26 years of age, the lock forward is likely to razzle and dazzle Fiji in the coming future whether on the field or off it. And since he works in the tourism industry he is likely to be very creative about it. All the way from the garden island of Fiji, Naselesele Village in Taveuni, the young man has cleared a great path which his two younger brothers and sister will no doubt follow.

Source: The Fiji Times Newspaper

Monday 19th July 2010