Australian rugby legend Glen Ella joins Fiji.

Glen Ella said he would rather be coaching Fiji than any other team in the world. These are big words and even bigger when they come from a living rugby legend as he is. The good news for Fiji is he has just started a role that will see him oversee the 7s and fifteens teams, the role is as an attacks coach and mind setter. Aiding head coach Illy Tabua the combination of the duo looks set to make Fiji fly.

In 1994 Glen was the assistant coach of the Wallabies, he selected Illy Tabua as a young man to be in his Hong Kong 7s team, it is here that there relationship started and continued on to the Rugby World Cup in 1995. Thinking back on Illy as a player, Glen’s face squeezes up as he expresses how ferocious his tackles were, this type of medicine is exactly what he hopes will rub off on the Flying Fijians. “Getting past the advantage line is where Fiji need to get to, once there no team in the world is capable of doing the damage Fiji can with their strike power.”  “Fijians are friendly people, they need to get rid of the friendliness the minute they get on a field and tear teams apart for the full 80 minutes. If they get this mind presence right, they are capable of beating anyone!”

Watching Glen at work he is a modest man, very observant as you would expect and very switched on. He is not shy of work either, he carts the tackle bags about the pitch as well as water bottles and even clears up after the Fiji team train, all great team qualities and disposing of any super star status. After today’s Fiji 7s team training in Suva Glen is in awe of the abundance of talent, “the ratio of amazing athletes is so superior to Australia, I have never had the chance to coach this much talent”. "They are total naturals in the attack & anyone of them can run, this instinct can’t be taught it is in them”. He is a happy man in his new role and his last comment will excite many rugby lovers, “no one has seen the real Fiji yet!”