Bulldogs star in extension talks – FBC News
Bulldogs star back rower Viliame Kikau The Bulldogs are reportedly set to receive a big boost with star back-rower Viliame Kikau in talks over a two-year contract extension in the NRL competition to remain at Belmore. The Daily Telegraph reported the Bulldogs have held informal talks with Kikau about extending his stay at the club until the end of the 2028 season. The 30-year-old has been linked to a move to rugby union previously with several overseas clubs reportedly interested in his services. Article continues after advertisement Stream the best of Fiji on VITI+. Anytime. Anywhere.
Byrne backs Flying Fijians to fire up North – FBC News
[file photo] FIJI Water Flying Fijians coach Mick Byrne is confident his side will be in top shape when they face England in their opening Test of the Northern Tour. Byrne says the blend of Northern Hemisphere-based players and those from the Swire Shipping Fijian Drua provides the right balance of form, freshness and experience. He adds that while the European-based players are already deep into their club seasons, the Drua contingent have worked hard to maintain their conditioning after the Pacific Nations Cup. Article continues after advertisement “I’m really confident that when we present ourselves for the Test match week against England, we’ll be in as good a shape as we can be.” The Flying Fijians will face England, France and Spain over the coming weeks, with Byrne emphasizing the need to adapt to the cold and heavy conditions expected up north. He says the opening fixtures against England and France will demand physical dominance up front, while Spain’s style will test Fiji’s mobility and discipline. Byrne adds that the key focus will be understanding each opponent’s structure and ensuring Fiji impose their own brand of rugby across the tour. The Flying Fijians will open their November tour against England next Sunday on the 9th of November at Twickenham Stadium, kicking off at 5.40am. Stream the best of Fiji on VITI+. Anytime. Anywhere.
IDC finalists pooled together for Pacific Cup – FBC News
The pool draw for this year’s Pacific Community Cup has set up an exciting early clash between IDC finalists Rewa and Ba, who have both been grouped together for the tournament scheduled in New Zealand. Rewa, the reigning champions of both the Extra Supermarket Premier League and FMF IDC, will headline Group A, which also features Ba FC, along with AUFFI All Stars, NZFFI All Stars, and NZFFI Northshore All Stars. Meanwhile, Group B includes winners of the Extra Battle of the Giants, Labasa FC, western giants Lautoka FC, AUFFI Australia All Stars, Auckland All Stars, and USA All Stars. Article continues after advertisement Last year, Pacific Cup was played in Churchill Park, Lautoka where Rewa, Labasa, and Navua were knocked out in the pool stages, while Lautoka reached the semifinals but fell to the eventual champions, Auckland All Stars, who successfully defended their title. The tournament will be held from November 26 to 30 in Auckland, New Zealand. Stream the best of Fiji on VITI+. Anytime. Anywhere.
Vusu Raiders fired up for Melanesian Cup clash – FBC News
The Vusu Raiders are set to depart for Papua New Guinea tomorrow ahead of their Melanesian Cup match against Mount Hagen Wamp Nga. The team completed their dedication service yesterday and held their final training session this afternoon at the Ratu Filise Memorial School Ground. Strength and conditioning coach Selo Sanawa says preparations have gone well, with the players showing strong commitment and discipline throughout camp. Article continues after advertisement “We thank the players for the pride, commitment and sacrifice they’ve shown over the past eight days. The confidence among the group is high, and everyone is excited to play at Santos Stadium in Port Moresby.” Sanawa confirms the Raiders will have three training sessions in PNG before their 1pm Fiji time curtain-raiser against Wamp Nga, which will precede the Vodafone Fiji Bati’s clash with the PNG Kumuls. The team will be based at the Holiday Inn in Port Moresby. He also called on Fijians living in PNG to come out in numbers and support the boys on match day. Meanwhile, the Fiji Bati versus Kumuls match will be LIVE on FBC Sports at 5pm this Saturday. Stream the best of Fiji on VITI+. Anytime. Anywhere.
Taulupe Faletau: Wales lose veteran and call up Leicester’s Olly Cracknell
Forwards Keiron Assiratti (Cardiff), Adam Beard (Montpellier), Liam Belcher (Cardiff), Rhys Carre (Saracens), Ben Carter (Dragons), Brodie Coghlan (Dragons), Christian Coleman (Dragons), Olly Cracknell (Leicester Tigers), Rhys Davies (Ospreys), James Fender (Ospreys), Archie Griffin (Bath), Dafydd Jenkins (Exeter Chiefs), Dewi Lake (Ospreys), Alex Mann (Cardiff), Jac Morgan (Ospreys), Morgan Morse (Ospreys), Taine Plumtree (Scarlets), Nicky Smith (Leicester Tigers), Danny Southworth (Cardiff), Gareth Thomas (Ospreys), Freddie Thomas (Gloucester), Aaron Wainwright (Dragons). Backs Josh Adams (Cardiff), Jacob Beetham (Cardiff), Rio Dyer (Dragons), Dan Edwards (Ospreys), Jarrod Evans (Harlequins), Kieran Hardy (Ospreys), Joe Hawkins (Scarlets), Louie Hennessey (Bath), Max Llewellyn (Gloucester), Reuben Morgan-Williams (Ospreys), Blair Murray (Scarlets), Louis Rees-Zammit (Bristol Bears), Tom Rogers (Scarlets), Callum Sheedy (Cardiff), Ben Thomas (Cardiff), Nick Tompkins (Saracens), Tomos Williams (Gloucester).
Baller League CEO Felix Starck assesses success of brand before season two
Baller League may be doing many things right. After starting out in Germany in 2023, it expanded to the UK and is preparing to launch in the USA. But Starck conceded there is “room for improvement in every department”. Several incidents of violence marred the opening UK season, with manager AngryGinge left with scratch marks on his neck following a fight between players from SDS and Yanited during matchday seven. The Yanited manager later said he had been “gripped up and kicked” while in the middle of a melee on the pitch. That incident came a week after former Premier League defender Joleon Lescott, who appeared as a guest player, was almost wrestled over the advertising hoardings during an altercation with Wembley Rangers’ Domingos Pires. On matchday five, Troy Deeney was sent off for charging into a player from FC Rules the World with his forearm raised. “We’re a very soft society these days but this is sport, this is emotion,” Starck said. “If two roosters get in a room they are going to fight and we have 250 roosters, so they are going to fight. “We had whole talks [after incidents], we don’t discuss publicly what we did but we took measures to make sure things like this don’t happen again.” Unlike the Premier League, Baller League is not regulated by a governing body and therefore sanctions are processed by its internal disciplinary commission. Baller League took action after tensions boiled over again on the penultimate matchday of the regular season, when Trebol FC’s Amine Sassi appeared to kick an opponent in the head as they lay on the floor – handing out a one-match suspension. “Baller League upholds a strict zero-tolerance policy for this kind of behaviour and will continue to enforce it consistently,” the organisation posted at the time., external
Namosi hungry for Marama Cup title – FBC News
File Photo Since the beginning of the Marama Cup season, Namosi manager Etonia Taivoce believed that their side had what it took to make it to the final once again. After beating Nasinu during in the semi-final over the weekend, Namosi will feature once again in the final for the third consecutive year. Despite having a slow start to the season, losing to Nasinu and a few other teams in the first few rounds, Taivoce kept reminding the players to hold their heads head and keep fighting. Article continues after advertisement “There was a lot of challenges throughout the way, things hast been easy for us. From the start, I just kept telling the players to be strong, we even lost to Nasinu before and we’ve lost a few other games during the season. But we didn’t back down, despite all of that, I still knew the girls had what it takes to get this far.” He says their perseverance over the past few weeks shows the grit and determination this squad has, and he is adamant they have what it takes to take out this year’s title. They will face Suva in the final this weekend at the HFC Bank Stadium in Suva, and you can watch the action live on FBC Sports. Stream the best of Fiji on VITI+. Anytime. Anywhere.
Monnapule WHO? Orlando Pirates fans forget about Saleng
Monnapule Saleng left Orlando Pirates under a cloud. However, they’ll miss him much less than was previously expected. New signings Oswin Appollis and Tshepang Moremi are both Bafana regulars. Saleng’s future at Pirates beyond his loan spell at Orbit College appears bleak. Moremi’s purple patch comes at a good time, too, softening the blow of Champions League heartbreak. Orlando Pirates still interested in young left-back? Moremi is now a key player for Orlando Pirates and South Africa These days, one goal is inevitably enough for Pirates to win matches, because of their ability to keep clean sheets. Tshepang Moremi’s sixth-minute strike was enough to seal all three points against Polokwane on Wednesday night. The 1-0 win meant it’s now six clean sheets on the bounce in the Betway Premiership. Moremi now has six goals in 13 appearances across all competitions, including a match-winning brace off the bench against Stellenbosch in the MTN8 final. These goal-scoring antics will only enhance his chances of playing a prominent role at the World Cup 2026. Moremi was on the bench for Bafana as they claimed a 3-0 win over Rwanda to send them to next year’s showpiece in the Americas. Life after Saleng at Pirates Monnapule Saleng’s exit from Pirates turned into a bit of a soap opera. The club’s refusal to name the winger in matchday squads in the calendar year 2025 was clear evidence that relations had broken down. Saleng was the PSL Player of the Year in 2022-2023 after a dazzling campaign where he scored 15 goals and supplied 11 assists in 30 matches across all competitions, including 11 goals and eight assists in just 22 league matches. However, his stock has steadily declined ever since, and in 2025-2026 Pirates loaned him out to his former club, Orbit College. He’s only scored one goal in nine matches across all competitions. The blow of his exit has been considerably softened by the arrivals of Moremi and Oswin Appollis. These are now two key Bafana Bafana players. Champions League heartbreak for Orlando Pirates The Sea Robbers have been dumped out of the CAF Champions League at the preliminary stage by minnows Saint-Éloi Lupopo. Abdeslam Ouaddou’s men won the second leg 3-0, but went out on penalties. There was also no shortage of controversy, with Lupopo’s Dieumerci Mukoko Amale winning no admirers in Sowrto with his antics and histrionics. Who is Dieumerci Mukoko Amale?
Dakuitoga praises young players after creating history – FBC News
Qualifying for the 2026 Rugby League Women’s World Cup is a historic achievement for the Fiji Bulikula, but what makes it even more impressive is that 12 players made their international debut during the International Rugby League Women’s World Series. Head coach Joe Dakuitoga highlighted that this success was achieved with a predominantly young and inexperienced squad, with most players aged just 19 and 20. Despite several senior players being sidelined by injury,Dakuitoga says the young players rose to the challenge and delivered an outstanding performance throughout the tournament. Article continues after advertisement “If you look at the squad, most of our senior players were injured like Taina Naividi, Losana Lutu, our captain Talei Holmes. But we had other players there who were injured, but I thank the younger players who put their hands up and rose to the occasion.” The Bulikula secured their place in the World Cup after defeating Nigeria 62–4 in the World Series final this morning, marking a dominant finish to their campaign and a proud moment in Fiji’s rugby league history. They’ll play in the World Cup with the Bati in Australia next year. Stream the best of Fiji on VITI+. Anytime. Anywhere.
Mexico City Grand Prix result: Oliver Bearman impresses in Haas
Oliver Bearman may be a rookie in Formula 1 but he is already proving to be an exceptional talent – even if he does still have to pinch himself over who he is competing with. “I never thought I would be racing against Max [Verstappen] in real life, but I guess some things change,” said the 20-year-old after a brilliant drive at Sunday’s Mexico City Grand Prix saw him secure fourth place, his best-ever finish in F1. But Bearman didn’t just race with Verstappen, he produced some bold and impressive driving that even the four-time world champion would have been proud of. He even kept his cool in the latter stages of the race when he was being hunted down by Oscar Piastri, who started the day as championship leader and needed to pass Bearman to ensure he left Mexico in that position. But instead Bearman held on, with Piastri’s fifth-place finish and victory for his McLaren team-mate Lando Norris meaning the latter now leads the standings by one point with four races to go. Based on this showing, it is not unreasonable to predict that Bearman could one day be in the same position as fellow Brit Norris and challenging for titles. For now, however, he is just happy to be competitive with much more experienced drivers. “Definitely a crazy race,” he said. “I’m a bit lost for words – at one point we were looking at the podium. I was bringing it home with a lot of nerves. “At the end, P4 is a great result and we got both cars in the points. We really needed that good result, so I’m really, really happy. “It was a crazy race. Good lap one – stayed out of trouble, just about. Then the incident with Max and Lewis [Hamilton] – I managed to benefit from that as well.”