TEIVOVO.COM – FEATURE

The Fijian phenomenon

14 September 2000

From total obscurity nine months ago, Fiji sevens winger Vilimoni Delasau suddenly finds the rugby world at his feet. Jeremy Duxbury went to Sorokoba village to take a closer look at the player that has dazzled TV viewers around the globe with his lightning pace and sublime sidesteps.



On entering Sorokoba along the King’s Highway, we stopped and asked a group of young boys if they knew where Vilimoni Delasau lived. Daft question, really. With an excited and rather proud smile, the tallest boy turned to his left, pointed and counted... “One, two, three, four. Over there, behind the fourth mango tree.” They then whooped and shouted as they chased our vehicle down the lane to their hero’s house.

As villages go, Sorokoba hardly stands out as being unusual. A five-minute drive from Ba, it plays host to a few small shops on the main road and many acres of rolling farmland. Some 50 households lie scattered either side, and tucked away up a back road is Ratu Filimoni Vukinamualevu Memorial School, where Delasau was a student from kindergarten through to class 8.

The village rugby team train on the school field, which also seems to serve as a meeting point for all the youths in the area at dusk.

Delasau, who turned 23 in July, blends in with the rest of the team. He grew up with these kids, so despite his current status as one the world’s most exciting sevens players, he’s still one of them. The only visible difference is the pair of new Mizunos on his feet – most of the others still wear their first and only pair of boots, some are barefoot, while one trudges around with a boot on his left foot but nothing on his right.

The goalposts appear to be three or four lengths of four-by-two nailed together and stuck in the ground. Neither end’s posts has a cross bar.

As the session gets under way, a typical village scene unfolds: a farmer, ambling past with half a dozen cows, stops to watch a while; up by the classrooms, a couple of goats ninny away, and two dogs yap at a girl riding past on her bicycle.

After huddling for a short prayer in the middle of the pitch, Delasau leads the stretching exercises before the boys get itchy for a practice game.

He then strolls around at the back, not looking to exert too much energy, but he occasionally puts his foot on the pedal when he wants to get around an opponent.

The Sorokoba village team

Distinct style
The cassava farmer has a very distinct running style: when he accelerates, he lowers his hips a couple of inches, puts his head down and juts out his elbows. Approaching full pace, he lengthens his stride, straightens his back and puffs out his chest. It’s an image that rugby fans at home are now very used to.

His elder brother Rusiate Waqatabu, who is also at the practice session, runs with a similar technique. But Delasau’s larger frame and broader shoulders give him the power to shake off tacklers.

Rusiate claims to be faster over 100 metres, and Delasau nods in agreement. “Yeah. He probably is. We’ve always been competitive within the family. But you need to look out for my younger brother Aporosa (Waqatabu), because he is fast as well as big.”

Dels with brother Rusiate Waqatabu

The third of four brothers who all play wing, Delasau admits he has always wanted to be the best at everything he does.

“I wasn’t bad academically either,” he says. “I passed form six and seven at Tavua College, but in my heart I wanted to play rugby.

“These last few months have been like a dream for me. Initially, I just wanted to play for Fiji, but when I got there, I wanted something more.”

And more is what he got. His two wondrous tries in the Wellington Sevens final against New Zealand almost defied belief. In the first half, he left Jonah Lomu for dead and jinxed past Eric Rush and Caleb Ralph all in the space of a few metres. Then as a coup de grâce in the second period, he took on the entire New Zealand team and won.

Before the trip to Wellington, where he would mark Lomu, Delasau prepared himself mentally.

“I’ve thought about it, and I think I can take him,” Delasau said before leaving Fiji. Brave talk perhaps? Talk that threw up memories of England winger Tony Underwood’s rash comments before the 1995 World Cup semi-final.

But less than a minute into the match, Delasau literally tore the shirt of Lomu’s back.

“I hated it when everyone in Fiji talked so much about Lomu and Cullen,” he recalled afterwards. “I wanted to show them that I could do better. I know he’s strong... Oh, Lomu’s a very strong fellow... so I knew I had to learn something to beat him... if not, he would kick your arse – he’ll kick you out of the game! So, I did it... and I did it in style!”

Forward at first
As a youngster, Delasau played prop until his school coach, Suliasi Dauniyasawa, realised he was the fastest in the team and moved him into the backline.

The perfection in his sidestep comes from hours upon hours of practice after studying tapes of his two idols Noa Nadruku and Christian Cullen.
Such are the facilities in the area that Delasau’s early weight training involved running up a hill carrying a large rock. And at 1.90m and 93kg, he still has room to put on more weight.

“I don’t think my upper body’s very strong. I’m heavy from the waist down, that’s why they can’t bring me down in the tackle. We village boys have strong legs!”

Delasau's form in the IRB series, where he finished top try scorer with a remarkable total of 82, saw him selected in Greg Smith's Epson Cup squad. He made his debut against the US Eagles in Apia, then played against Canada and set up two tries against Italy on his home ground at Churchill Park.

He has since signed a contract with French club Stade Montois, who play in Mont-de-Marsan, just south of Bordeaux, turning down an offer to play for Otago Highlanders in the Super 12.

Dels and his many cousins

Return support
So how is all this fame going to change Delasau and Sorokoba?

“Well, of course, I want to look after my family. But the village doesn’t change. When I come back from overseas, I try to help the younger boys, assisting them with their sidesteps and encouraging them. There’s a lot of talent in this place.”

And in turn, the whole village supports their star.

“When we played in Wellington, they all sat in front of the TV and watched. If the other players didn’t pass the ball to me, they would scream, ‘Hey! Give him the ball, give him the ball!’”

Come the World Cup Sevens in Argentina next January, it’ll be a chant heard in many other villages around Fiji too.


Vilimoni Delasau profile