9 Feb 2013

Sport: After a week of silence Fiji Sevens get chance to respond on field

7:42 am on 9 February 2013

After a week of criticism and debate following their worst ever Wellington tournament, the Fiji Sevens team will finally get their chance to respond today.

The traditional giants failed to qualify for the Cup quarter finals in Wellington and have slipped to fourth in the overall standings.

Vinnie Wylie reports.

"Since arriving in Las Vegas, the team has refused all interview requests after a media ban was put in place at the request of CEO Manasa Baravilala. The team has come under heavy criticism for their performances at Westpac Stadium, where they fielded five new caps and were guilty of a number of errors. Their first chance at redemption in Las Vegas is against Wellington champions England this afternoon and they also face Scotland, who beat them a week ago, and Portugal on day one."

Meanwhile Samoa will begin the defence of their Las Vegas title against Spain before testing encounters against hosts the USA and Australia.