Isoa Nasilasila of Fiji contends at the lineout during the Rugby World Cup France 2023 match between Australia and Fiji at Stade Geoffroy-Guichard on September 17, 2023 in Saint-Etienne, France. Photo: Pauline Ballet - World Rugby/World Rugby via Getty Images
Flying Fijians head coach Mick Byrne says he wants all players aiming to play for Fiji at the 2027 Rugby World Cup (RWC) to be on board from the Pacific Nations Cup this year.
He believes that the team will be near full-strength when they meet the Wallabies in Sydney in June and Scotland in Suva after that.
Byrne, who is currently visiting players in Great Britain and France, said he is concerned that the team will not have enough game time to test their combinations, ahead of the World Cup in Australia.
However, he is optimistic that, despite what he terms "a one-Super Rugby season calendar", the Fijians would be able to get all their top players, both local and overseas-based, ready for the RWC.
The former Drua mentor said they have a busy Test schedule from June this year to when the RWC kicks off, with the Flying Fijians expected to play around 25 Test matches.
Byrne said that this is hardly enough to test the team's combinations and systems as a team, although players would be competing for their respective clubs throughout the build-up period.
On the horizon is testing that combination against the Wallabies in Newcastle on Sunday, 6 July.
A week later, the team hosts Scotland in Fiji.
"We probably got 50 odd names that we are working through," he told reporters in a press conference from England over the weekend, as he worked on getting a squad for the Wallabies match.
"The players I am talking to at the moment are very keen to come and do that (play against the Wallabies).
"We will have all our Northern Hemisphere players available to be considered for selection as it is inside the World Rugby Regulation 9 consideration.
"Both Test matches, Australia and Scotland, we would expect all our Northern Hemisphere players for selection.
"There are some players in the Drua that are playing really good rugby and there are some players overseas, who are playing really good and they are currently in the squad.
"There might be some who missed last November because of injury who may be available.
"It is a difficult year, and every Test match is vitally important for us, and we have to win every Test match we play. It is important that we keep an eye on the World Cup as well."
Selesitino Ravutaumada of Fiji breaks forward on the ball ahead of Josh Adams of Wales during the Rugby World Cup France 2023 match between Wales and Fiji at Nouveau Stade de Bordeaux on September 10, 2023 in Bordeaux, France. Photo: Adam Pretty - World Rugby/World Rugby via Getty Images
The challenge for him and his coaching team, Byrne said, was working with players and getting them through their systems and team combinations as players ply their trade across about 10 different clubs around the globe.
He said the Wallabies and the All Blacks do not have that challenge, as their players are mostly all local-based with a few overseas-based players.
"Half of our players play in 10 different clubs," he said.
"For Australia, except for one or two players, [all] play inside Australia, and they can have two or three days. New Zealand bring in their players, and they have two or three days.
"I was with the Argentina coach this week, and they are bringing their players into camp, and we are looking at doing something like that towards the end of the year."
He said getting all the players on the same page, with a week to do that, is going to be a challenge playing against one of the best teams in the world in the Wallabies.
At the moment, half of the team is playing Super Rugby with the Drua and Byrne said they cannot take the players out of that competition to prepare for the Wallabies, until the competition ends.
The Europe-based players play for different clubs across the continent as well.
Byrne said their aim is to have all the players who want to be considered for the World Cup in for the Pacific Nations Cup (PNC) series, including players who are also playing in the French ProD2 competition.
Flying Fijian head coach Mick Byrne at the Aviva Stadium, Dublin during the November Tour of 2024. Photo: INPHO/Ben Brady Photo: ©INPHO/Ben Brady
"We are playing in three months time and we need to work through what that looks like," he said.
"Because there is not a lot of Test matches between now and the world cup, we need a consistent squad, or as close to a consistent squad we can get. We can't be chopping and changing from one tournament to one tournament.
"We trying to get as many as our players into the PNC this year and moving forward we have sort made it clear that we want all of our players for all our Test matches."
Byrne said he will have a stronger indication of where the players are at and their selection considerations in three weeks time, before they work on finalising details and name the squad in May.
