Photo: Adam Pretty - World Rugby/World Rugby via Getty Images
The Flying Fijians want to record good performances against the three Tier 1 nations they will be going up against during the Northern Hemisphere tour to help leverage their cause.
Their first assignment is battling Scotland at Murrayfield on Sunday morning (Fiji and NZ time).
Head coach Mick Byrne said in a press interview that facing Scotland, Wales, and Ireland is a big opportunity for the team to do well and improve their ranking.
Wins will also see the side cement opportunities for more Tier 1 nations matches in the future.
Important for Byrne is getting good results, as World Rugby contemplate on giving Fiji the chance to play in the Rugby Championship against New Zealand, Australia, Argentina and the Springboks.
Following their dominance of the Pacific Nations Cup series in 2023 and 2024, many fans and commentators feel that the Flying Fijians deserve to be competing in the Rugby Championships.
"The big goal of this tour is to perform well on those big stages," he said as the team prepare for Scotland this weekend," Byrne said.
"You know, we're going to play Scotland in Scotland, Wales in Wales, and Ireland in Ireland, at three big stadiums.
"Some of our players are going to experience the biggest crowds. But the big one for us is performing well, putting our game together and performing in both attack and defence and set piece, and challenging ourselves against those good teams."
Mick Byrne Photo: Fijian Drua
Byrne has named a strong squad, which includes majority of the Fijian Drua, with some experienced hands like captain Waisea Nayacalevu, Semi Radradra and Josua Tuisova, who he said are finishing off their international careers.
With the 2027 Rugby World Cup as the ultimate focus, Byrne said roping in young squad members and giving them the opportunity to compete against top players is important.
"The thing with our with our program being an international program, is we get the opportunity to play players that are in form through the course of the year," he said.
"We also know that there's an end goal of the 2027 World Cup that we need to keep preparing for. And some of our great stalwarts of our team, great players for our team over the last few years, are coming towards the end of their careers.
"Some of our players have done three World Cups, so it's important that their legacy is held in high regard. And we're able to replace them with quality players. And to do that, we need to start looking at those young players coming through."
Nayacalevu, Radradra, Tuisova and Albert Tuisue are some of the experienced hands that are likely to miss out of the 2027 world meet.
Their experience is what Byrne needs for the current tour, to guide the younger players now being included, especially in the tough schedule against Scotland, Ireland and Wales.
Byrne said the success of the Pacific Nations Cup campaign his year is what they also want to build on.
With more Europe based players now available to join the Fijian Drua players in the squad, he said that excites him as he expects an exciting tour.
"I think it's great exciting times and we've had a good year," he said.
"We finished the PNC on a high, and the players have had a good breather. Our northern hemisphere players are doing well.
"Last weekend, a couple of our players performed very well, so that's great to see. It's exciting time and we come together again, and we've got four big games, where we play our tier one nations.
"We've got three six nations teams, which is excellent for us and puts us in great place for preparing for the World Cup in 2027 but just more importantly, just to be able to come together again to finish off the year on a high as a group of players, and it's just an exciting time for us all."
The Fijians left Fiji for Scotland last Thursday and are currently acclimitising to the weather and conditions there before their first game on Sunday.
Scotland, meanwhile, has named Sione Tu'ipulotu, a player with Tongan origin, as the first Pacific islander heritage player to captain the side.
