SETEFANO Cakau is set to make his return in the Digicel Fiji sevens team after being named in the extended squad for the second leg of the HSBC Sevens World Series in Dubai and South Africa.
Head coach Alivereti Dere named the extended squad following the fitness test on Wednesday.
The former sevens skipper has retained four players from the victorious Fiji team at the Gold Coast 7s in Australia earlier this month.
Captain Levani Botia, Joji Ragamate, Ilai Tinai and Alipate Raitini, who missed the fitness test because of commitments with the Wardens team in Australia, are the ones retained.
Cakau, Isikeli Vuruna and Timoci Vakadranu, who played for Fiji in the 2011/12 series, are in contention to make a comeback in the national team.
Dere, who earlier revealed he would change the team after each leg, is sticking to his words and planning to take a relatively new side for the Dubai and South Africa 7s.
He had named three teams at the beginning of the season in order to rotate the players to give them enough recovery time after each leg.
"This was the initial plan from the beginning, because we noticed in the 2011/2012 World 7s series, that the players did not have enough recovery time because most of the tournaments were back to back," he told fru.com.
Dere also said the return of Cakau was vital as he was banking on senior players to motivate the young and new reps, who would make the team.
"These are a bunch of young boys that have been playing in the local provincial competition, Cakau and the senior players will be able to help mould the boys with a winning combination given their experience."
Fiji is the top seed in Dubai 7s, starting on November 30.
The side is pooled with Kenya, Spain and Scotland.
Extended squad:
Forwards - G Tube, T Vuadreu, S Cakau, T Vakadranu, L Botia, I Tukere, V Sokiveta, S Dawai, S Levula, P Nawavu, A Simolo, I Naiubi;
Backs: J Raqamate, I Tinai, K Taliga, S Lutu, J Stewart, N Wakaya, A Ratini, S Vuruna, P Vaciloa, M Bula, W Nagusu, J Tuwai