The Fiji Rugby Union is expected to name the new Fiji 7s head coach to replace Gareth Baber by the end of next month.
Baber, who guided Fiji to gold medal victory at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, has parted ways with Fiji Rugby to further his career in 15s rugby.
He has taken up the position of skills and assistant attack coach of professional Scottish club Edinburgh.
Fijiana 7s coach Saiasi Fuli and Fijian 7s captain and double Olympic Games gold medallist Jerry Tuwai, have been tasked to mentor the Fijian 7s program until a replacement is named.
Fiji Rugby advertised the position of the Fiji 7s head coach last weekend. Its chief executive officer John O’Connor said the applications would close on November 13.
He said there would be a process of short listing and interviews which would then lead to negotiations. “We hope to complete that process by the end of November,” O’Connor said.
“We are also thankful that Gareth, who has agreed to mentor the 7s program from the United Kingdom via viber.
He will continue to have meetings with Saiasi, Jerry and his team right until his contract ends with Fiji rugby.” Baber’s term with Fiji Rugby has been brought forward by a month which now ends in November.
The 2022 HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series will commence with the combined men’s and women’s competitions from November 26-27. Some of the prerequisite for the Fiji 7s head coach are to have a minimum World Rugby accredited Level 3 coaching certification, have good understanding of sports science and its relevance to high-performance sports with any qualification in sports science to be an advantage; three years coaching experience at top-level competition and coaching at international level.
Some of the key responsibilities are to provide overall coaching leadership to the Fiji 7s team and to support other national elite teams and their respective coaches in the Fiji Rugby pathways, to assist in the creation of a team culture, performance, discipline standards and code of conduct that values the winning history and traditions of the Fiji 7s team, to evolve and co-ordinate overall game strategy and technical approach of the Fiji 7s team and assist in the Fiji Rugby 7s academy.
