Former national 15s rep and Fiji's tighthead prop in the 1987 World Cup Sairusi Naituku believes that the FMF Flying Fijians have achieved a result that is far greater than what they did 20 years ago in New Zealand.
Speaking to Village Sports, Naituku said that rugby has changed a lot since they first reached the quarterfinals in 1987.
Naituku added that the first World Cup was one of the toughest tournaments for them as the first coup occurred just a few months before the World Cup and it was left to the players to stand up to take on the challenge.
The Natabua High School teacher recalls one of the most painful memories of the 1987 Rugby World Cup that was against France in the quarterfinal when fullback Severo Koroduadua lost the ball when he was heading to the try line as a try would have meant a place in the semifinal.
In the quarterfinals, Australia plays England at 1am Sunday and at 7am New Zealand takes on France.
On Monday at 1am, Fiji takes on the Springboks while at 7am Argentina plays Scotland.
2007 Team Greater Than 1987 Side
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