Samoa

In preparation for the 48th Forum Leaders Meeting, the Forum Officials Committee Meeting, the governing council of the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, will meet in Suva on 8 and 9 August preceded by the Smaller Island States Officials Meeting and the Pacific ACP Officials Meeting on 7 August, 20167.

A meeting of the Forum Foreign Ministers will also be held on 11 August 2017 in Suva.

The Smaller Islands States Leaders Meeting will be held in Apia on 4 September. This will be followed by the Pacific ACP Leaders Meeting.

For Tokelau, this is now underway with a special inception workshop held in Samoa, to plan implementation of the different activities.

With the Tokelau General Fono recently endorsing the Tokelau Climate Change Strategy – 'Living with Change' the protection of the ocean is featured as a high priority.

 Being part of the New Zealand Pacific Partnership on Ocean Acidification (NZPPOA) regional project to build resilience to ocean acidification is especially important for Tokelau and her community.

A deal hasn't yet been agreed but the Weekend Herald understands there is growing confidence among all parties that on Friday, June 16, the All Blacks will play Samoa in Auckland - with Tonga versus Wales as the curtain raiser.

The All Blacks are keen to play a meaningful contest before the first test against the Lions on June 24. They are conscious the Lions will have had six tough tour games before that first test, while the All Blacks will have had two weeks of training, but no opportunity to play.

There has long been criticism that countries such as Fiji, Samoa and Tonga do not face enough tier-one opposition outside of World Cups every four years and that this diminishes their chances of performing at their best in the global showpiece, where they have nevertheless made a significant contribution over the years.

This is something officials have tried to address in the new global calendar unveiled by World Rugby last week, but that doesn't kick in until 2020.

Fiji Warriors and Junior Japan both recorded bonus-point wins as the World Rugby Pacific Challenge 2017 came to a high-scoring conclusion at the ANZ Stadium in Suva.

Junior Japan doubled their tally of wins from the 2016 tournament with a 42-33 victory over Tonga A, before Fiji Warriors overcame Samoa A 48-25 to finish with a perfect record in the tournament.

Fuala Makisi became the second Japanese number eight after Tevita Tatafu in round one to score a hat-trick, while Fiji’s impressive Lepani Raiyala doubled his overall tally for the tournament with another brace.

Jelany Chilia was the pick of the bowlers, with 3 for 10, as Vanuatu dismissed Indonesia for 82 before the opening pair of Josh Rasu and Jonathon Dunn chased down their victory target in just 9.1 overs.

Samoa captain Ben Mailata starred with bat and ball in a seven wicket win over Japan.

The 32 year old claimed 5 for 27 as Japan were dismissed for 144 and then led the way with the bat, top-scoring with 58 not out from 52 balls, including five sixes, as the Polynesian side overhauled their target inside 26 overs.

The orientation sessions at APTC campuses in Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu on January 16 and 17, provided valuable information to new students on APTC facilities, student support services, regulations, and their responsibilities.

APTC is an innovative development program funded by the Australian Government, delivering internationally-recognised Australian skills and qualifications for a wide range of vocational careers for skilled workers across the Pacific.

New Zealand Rugby has two years to run on its contract with World Rugby, but it struggled to get 10,000 people each day into Westpac Stadium.

After 18 years of Wellington playing host, there's fresh calls to take the tournament to Fiji, the home of the Rugby Sevens Olympic champions.

The NZR General Manager of Relationships, Planning and Operations Nigel Cass says the tournament has been arguably the world's most successful but it's not as fresh as it once was.

The Blues announced yesterday they will host the Reds in Apia in June.

It will be the first Super match played in Samoa and coincides with Samoa's 55th Independence Celebrations.

Fifteen players the Blues squad have Samoan heritage, along with head Coach Tana Umaga.

Jerome Kaino, who was born in American Samoa, said the team was already looking forward to the game.

"We're really proud of that fact that we're pioneers to be able to take that game to Samoa - you know being the first franchise to take it there. And it's only fitting that we get to do that.

The Suva Sevens has a nice ring to it.

Former New Zealand sevens coach Gordon Tietjens, now in charge of the Samoan sevens team, has suggested taking the Wellington Sevens to the islands following their dire crowd numbers this past weekend.

He told 1News that a country like Samoa or Fiji would love to host a tournament on the World Rugby Sevens Series.

Just 18,000 out of a possible 70,000 are believed to have attended the annual Wellington event.