Eighteen-year-old Viliame Ratu has gone from playing for Cuvu College in the Vodafone Super Deans to making his Skipper Cup debut for defending champions Malolo.
The Rukurukulevu villager from Nadroga came off the bench as a replacement fly-half in Malolo’s quarterfinal loss against Naitasiri over the weekend.
Although he played for less than 10 minutes, Ratu says he’s grateful for the opportunity.
He says he never expected to play for Malolo this year and is thankful for the chance to share the field with players from both sides.
‘This year I trusted God to open doors for me so I can better myself and improve but I never imagined a big opportunity was in my path, and to share the field with Fiji’s best from Naitasiri and Malolo is just amazing’.
Malolo coach Rupeni Nasiga says he first noticed Ratu while helping Cuvu College during the Deans competition.
Article continues after advertisement
After giving him a run with Malolo’s under-20 side, Nasiga brought him into the senior team to build his confidence.
Ratu, a fan of All Blacks great Dan Carter, says he had trusted God to open doors for his rugby career, but did not imagine an opportunity like this would come so soon.
The Skipper Cup semifinals will be held on Saturday with Tailevu hosting Nadroga in Suva, while Nadi faces Naitasiri at Prince Charles Park. Both matches kick off at 3 p.m.
Meanwhile, in the Subrails Marama semifinals, Suva will meet Nasinu at 1 p.m. on Saturday at HFC Stadium and Nadi will take on defending champions Namosi at 1 p.m. at King Charles Park.
Fans in Fiji and overseas can watch the action live on pay-per-view through VITI+.