By Otis Duffy

This week I met Gospel Primary School’s rugby sevens team. 

Talking to them just before they were about to hit the field, the Fijian rugby team from Suva said they were freezing their toes off because of the stormy and windy weather. 

When I asked the team captain Semisi Sokovagone how he felt about the weather in New Zealand, he said: “It’s very cold. There is a very big difference from Fiji.”

He told me his team was keen to win every single game they were going to play at the Zespri AIMS Games. 

Semisi said the AIMS Games is “a really good and amazing opportunity for us”.

“Rugby is about having fun and making family and friends.”

He was excited about the rest of the tournament and when I asked how well the team was going to play, he said: “Hopefully a 10 out of 10 if our whole team tries our best.”

I can relate to how they might be feeling arriving in a different country. It reminded me of when I took a school trip with Mount Maunganui Intermediate to Japan this July. 

I felt a bit overwhelmed and a bit jet-lagged and the weather was so hot. I definitely felt very homesick for a few days, especially at the end. The Fiji team seems to have a different mindset and are more focused on the opportunities they have been given. They looked really confident on the rugby field. 

If I was their tour guide I would show them the Mount, the skatepark, Rotorua and the beach. But, if I took them to the beach then for sure they would think it was winter even if it was summer. New Zealand water would be like snow to them. 

What I have seen is the Fiji team mixing well with the New Zealand players, smiling and laughing with the other teams. I hope Semisi Sokovagone, Ilaisa Baivatu and their teammates have a good time in New Zealand.

It was really cool to interview a group of people from a different country. If they were from my school, I would probably be friends with them.

- Otis Duffy is a Year 8 student at Mount Maunganui Intermediate.

Article added: Wednesday 03 September 2025