Tonga hoping for overseas boost to sevens squad Featured
30 April, 2016. The Tonga Rugby Union wants to recruit players and coaching staff from offshore to boos their chances of qualifying for the Olympic sevens competition.
The Kingdom qualified for the upcoming repechage event in Monaco after finising second at the Oceania Championship in Auckland last year.
A new-look squad were knocked out in the quarter finals of the World Series qualifier in Hong Kong earlier this month, just weeks after head coach Andy Katoa was removed from his job.
Tonga huddle together during the Oceania Sevens.
The interim chair of the Tonga Rugby Union, Fe'ao Vunipola believed the sevens team performed well, considering the circumstances, and said they will do everything possible to put the strongest team on the park in June.
"We're looking at maybe bringing a technical advisor to help with our sevens - if we can afford one. I think the bonus is a lot of our overseas-based players are available and willing to help us, which we will do everything that we can do to bring them over, because we know they can push the standard and give us a better chance of qualifying."
The Manu Samoa sevens team will also contest the Rio qualifier in Monaco while Samoa and Cook Islands are involved in the women's repechage in Dublin.
Both Tonga and Samoa will be at the final Olympic sevens qualifier in June.
RNZI
