Marked for Seb Stacey
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad6 Dec 2027
He is 21, he is averaging 7.09, and older professionals have started passing to him in the difficult minutes. That last part is the real scouting report.
Squad6 Dec 2027
Seb Stacey in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Suva this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad6 Dec 2027
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Josua Raqamu and Suva agree another 1 years.
Squad6 Dec 2027
Everybody at Suva saw it before anybody said it, which is how this always goes. At 34 the decline is real and measurable — 3 points — and the only question left is how the club handles somebody it owes a great deal to.
Market6 Dec 2027
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Suva, another week without a signature from Bhavneet Singh.
The dugout6 Dec 2027
Mitieli Naiviro asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
The dugout6 Dec 2027
When it matters, Nischal Lal plays
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
Market6 Dec 2027
The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Jason Dau may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.
Market6 Dec 2027
Seb Stacey linked with a move away
The name of Seb Stacey keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Suva say nothing, which says plenty.
In brief
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Market
Bhavneet Singh runs his contract down
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Boardroom
Suva keep producing them
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Boardroom
The Suva board put their names to it
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad29 Nov 2027
A falling-out at Suva
Seb Stacey and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad29 Nov 2027
Suva are still strangers to each other
5 new signings in one window. Every one may be an upgrade and the side can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild the verdicts never mention.
Boardroom29 Nov 2027
Belts tighten at Suva
The accounts are being read more closely than the results. Wages before ambition is the order of business now, and the manager has been told so.
Squad29 Nov 2027
The formation has left Thomas Howland behind
Every shape has positions in it and this one does not have his. Suva will either change the shape, change his job, or change his club, and he is waiting to hear which.
The dugout29 Nov 2027
Tuimasi Cama gets picked when it counts
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Tuimasi Cama is on it.
Market29 Nov 2027
The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Peniasi Rotidara may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad22 Nov 2027
Not a month, not a run of form — a whole season of being the best 21-year-old anybody in this division could put on a pitch. This is the honour that gets mentioned for the rest of his career.
Squad22 Nov 2027
An individual honour is a strange thing in a team game, and the best of them are never argued with. He has had the sort of year that ends with his name being read out, and Suva have had the benefit of it.
Market22 Nov 2027
Only the photograph left for Tuimasi Cama
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Tuimasi Cama will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Suva the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad22 Nov 2027
Words exchanged at Suva
Seb Stacey and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad22 Nov 2027
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Raneshwar Goundar commits to Suva for another 3 years.
The dugout22 Nov 2027
Nobody at Suva will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
The dugout22 Nov 2027
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
Market22 Nov 2027
Suva shop where it costs nothing
Thomas Howland signs, and the fee column stays empty. Deals like this look small in July and clever by March — or they are never mentioned again.
Market22 Nov 2027
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Suva, another week without a signature from Thomas Howland.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match15 Nov 2027
Suva refuse to drop out of the race
Position 3, 30 points, and the result everyone checks first is now theirs. The word is still not being said around the ground, which is how you know everyone is thinking it.
Squad15 Nov 2027
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Ramzan Khan and Suva agree another 3 years.
Squad15 Nov 2027
A falling-out at Suva
Nischal Lal and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
The dugout15 Nov 2027
Seb Stacey knocks on the manager’s door
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Seb Stacey trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Market15 Nov 2027
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Simione Nabenu signs something — a contract at Suva or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Market15 Nov 2027
The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Lorima Batirerega Junior may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad8 Nov 2027
He is 20, he is averaging 7.09, and older professionals have started passing to him in the difficult minutes. That last part is the real scouting report.
Squad8 Nov 2027
Josua Raqamu in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Suva this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The dugout8 Nov 2027
Seb Stacey knocks on the manager’s door
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Seb Stacey trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
The dugout8 Nov 2027
Nischal Lal has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Suva will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Market8 Nov 2027
Seb Stacey linked with a move away
The name of Seb Stacey keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Suva say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad8 Nov 2027
Joeli Ranitu joins up with his country. Suva lose him for the window and would like him back in one piece.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match18 Oct 2027
Suva refuse to drop out of the race
Position 3, 30 points, and the result everyone checks first is now theirs. The word is still not being said around the ground, which is how you know everyone is thinking it.
Squad18 Oct 2027
Words exchanged at Suva
Rishal Shankar and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad18 Oct 2027
At 37, 3 points below where he was, and a body that has started charging interest. It happens to all of them and it is still the hardest paragraph on this page.
Market18 Oct 2027
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Simione Nabenu signs something — a contract at Suva or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Squad18 Oct 2027
Questions about Ramzan Khan on the training pitch
The standards have slipped, and in a building where everybody watches everybody it has not gone unremarked. This is how a player loses a place before he loses one.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad11 Oct 2027
A season average of 7.09 at an age when most of his year group are still in the youth team. Suva know what they have, and so, by now, does everybody else.
Squad11 Oct 2027
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Neerav Goundar commits to Suva for another 3 years.
Squad11 Oct 2027
Seb Stacey in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Suva this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The dugout11 Oct 2027
Neerav Goundar asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
The dugout11 Oct 2027
Nischal Lal has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Suva will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Squad11 Oct 2027
The formation has left Aarron Grewal behind
Every shape has positions in it and this one does not have his. Suva will either change the shape, change his job, or change his club, and he is waiting to hear which.
Market11 Oct 2027
Seb Stacey linked with a move away
The name of Seb Stacey keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Suva say nothing, which says plenty.
Market11 Oct 2027
Suva have made Neerav Goundar available for transfer. A career at this club is over in all but paperwork.
Market11 Oct 2027
3 months left and the two sides are nowhere near each other. Every week this drags on takes money off what Suva could get for him.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad4 Oct 2027
A falling-out at Suva
Seb Stacey and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad4 Oct 2027
16 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
Squad4 Oct 2027
“The easiest signature of my career.” Josua Raqamu and Suva agree another 1 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Loan watch4 Oct 2027
“I watch every Suva game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Lautoka runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
Squad4 Oct 2027
Kavaia Rawaqa slips down the pecking order
The demotion a club never announces and a dressing room always notices. Kavaia Rawaqa is further from the side than he was, and the reason will not be given until he asks.
Boardroom4 Oct 2027
Suva counting the cost
The accounts make uncomfortable reading. Wages first and ambition second is the order of business at Suva now.
Market4 Oct 2027
“We are a long way apart, and pretending otherwise helps nobody.” Neither side is close, and the calendar is not on the club's side.
The dugout4 Oct 2027
Neerav Goundar knocks on the manager’s door
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Neerav Goundar trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
The dugout4 Oct 2027
Clubs make promises constantly and the page usually only hears about them when they are broken. This one was honoured, and the dressing room noticed that faster than any supporter did.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market27 Sep 2027
Tuimasi Cama has one foot out of the door
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Suva they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Squad27 Sep 2027
Nischal Lal in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Suva this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The dugout27 Sep 2027
The manager makes an example of Seb Stacey
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match20 Sep 2027
Suva are in among the leaders
Position 3 and 30 points on the board. Nobody at the ground will say the word out loud yet, and everybody at the ground is thinking it.
Squad20 Sep 2027
Tempers go at Suva
Josua Raqamu was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The dugout20 Sep 2027
Seb Stacey knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Suva, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Squad20 Sep 2027
The system has changed and his position has not. A footballer can improve his form; he cannot improve the manager’s formation, and that is the whole of the problem.
Market20 Sep 2027
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Simione Nabenu signs something — a contract at Suva or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Market20 Sep 2027
“There is a gap, and pretending there is not helps nobody.” Neither side has moved, and the calendar is working for exactly one of them.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market13 Sep 2027
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Suva, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad13 Sep 2027
He is 20, he is averaging 7.09, and older professionals have started passing to him in the difficult minutes. That last part is the real scouting report.
Squad13 Sep 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Suva this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The dugout13 Sep 2027
When it matters, Nischal Lal plays
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
Squad13 Sep 2027
The formation has left Sheldon Mackay behind
Every shape has positions in it and this one does not have his. Suva will either change the shape, change his job, or change his club, and he is waiting to hear which.
Market13 Sep 2027
Seb Stacey linked with a move away
The name of Seb Stacey keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Suva say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad13 Sep 2027
A new face in his position, and Kavaia Rawaqa suddenly has to win back what he thought he owned. Suva have promised nothing — clubs rarely do at this stage.
Market13 Sep 2027
4 months remain and no agreement is close. Every week without a signature costs Suva money.
Market13 Sep 2027
Suva shop where it costs nothing
Nicholas Galea signs, and the fee column stays empty. Deals like this look small in July and clever by March — or they are never mentioned again.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad23 Aug 2027
15 days out for Patrick Matai after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Suva will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Match23 Aug 2027
Suva up to position 3
30 points on the board and a place in the leading group. Nobody at the ground is saying the word out loud yet.
Transfer targets23 Aug 2027
A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. Suva have done the hard part with Nadi, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.
Squad23 Aug 2027
Tempers go at Suva
Seb Stacey was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Transfer targets23 Aug 2027
Suva asked and Nasinu said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
The dugout23 Aug 2027
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Squad23 Aug 2027
Amitesh Krishna falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout23 Aug 2027
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Suva, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Market23 Aug 2027
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Simione Nabenu signs something — a contract at Suva or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad16 Aug 2027
22 days out for Patrick Matai after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Suva will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Market16 Aug 2027
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Suva, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad16 Aug 2027
At 20, Salesitino Caucau is already the best thing here
An average of 7.09 in a first team he is several years too young for. Suva have something, and by now the whole division has noticed.
Squad16 Aug 2027
Seb Stacey in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Suva this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Transfer targets16 Aug 2027
The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.
Squad16 Aug 2027
A row about effort at Suva
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Josua Raqamu was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout16 Aug 2027
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Peniasi Rotidara trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
The dugout16 Aug 2027
When it matters, Nischal Lal plays
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
Market16 Aug 2027
Seb Stacey linked with a move away
The name of Seb Stacey keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Suva say nothing, which says plenty.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Transfer targets9 Aug 2027
Suva asked and Nadi said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Squad9 Aug 2027
Tempers go at Suva
Nischal Lal was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The dugout9 Aug 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Seb Stacey, and the manager let it.
Squad9 Aug 2027
“The easiest signature of my career.” Josua Raqamu and Suva agree another 1 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Squad9 Aug 2027
Words at Suva training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Rishal Shankar is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Squad9 Aug 2027
28 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market2 Aug 2027
Only the photograph left for Tuimasi Cama
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Tuimasi Cama will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Suva the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad2 Aug 2027
Rishal Shankar falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Squad2 Aug 2027
Words exchanged at Suva
Josua Raqamu and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad2 Aug 2027
A place in the month's best eleven for Nishal Sharma
Four or five weekends of consistency, judged against everybody in the division doing his job. Nishal Sharma has come out of that comparison in the side, and Suva have had the benefit of every one of those afternoons.
The dugout2 Aug 2027
Seb Stacey asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
Market2 Aug 2027
“We are a long way apart, and pretending otherwise helps nobody.” Neither side is close, and the calendar is not on the club's side.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad19 Jul 2027
At 20, Salesitino Caucau is already the best thing here
An average of 7.09 in a first team he is several years too young for. Suva have something, and by now the whole division has noticed.
Transfer targets19 Jul 2027
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Nadroga have kept their man, and Suva go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Squad19 Jul 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Suva this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad19 Jul 2027
Words at Suva training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Rishal Shankar is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout19 Jul 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
The dugout19 Jul 2027
Nischal Lal gets picked when it counts
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Nischal Lal is on it.
Market19 Jul 2027
Seb Stacey linked with a move away
The name of Seb Stacey keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Suva say nothing, which says plenty.
The dugout19 Jul 2027
Josua Raqamu knocks on the manager’s door
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Josua Raqamu trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Market19 Jul 2027
6 months remain and no agreement is close. Every week without a signature costs Suva money.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match3 Jul 2027
The wait goes on for Suva
5 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
The dugout5 Jul 2027
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Suva may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Market5 Jul 2027
Only the photograph left for Tuimasi Cama
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Tuimasi Cama will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Suva the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad5 Jul 2027
Words exchanged at Suva
Seb Stacey and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad5 Jul 2027
Seb Stacey is the division's best young player this month
At 21 he has spent a month being better than everybody his age in the league, which is a different and harder thing than one good afternoon. Suva will try very hard not to make too much of it.
Squad5 Jul 2027
A row about effort at Suva
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Josua Raqamu was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Transfer targets5 Jul 2027
Nadi have been asked whether they would lend him. Loans are agreed quickly or not at all, and this one will be one or the other by the weekend.
Boardroom5 Jul 2027
Intake day at the Suva academy
5 arrivals, an average age nobody would call a squad, and a set of parents being shown around a building their sons will spend more time in than at home. The scouting has already happened; today is only the paperwork.
Squad5 Jul 2027
Seb Stacey named in the team of the month
A month is long enough that nobody gets in by accident. Seb Stacey is in the division's best eleven for it, which is a quieter compliment than an award and a more reliable one.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match28 Jun 2027
Suva up to position 3
26 points on the board and a place in the leading group. Nobody at the ground is saying the word out loud yet.
Match26 Jun 2027
4 matches without a win for Suva
The run now stands at 4, and the questions being asked around Suva are no longer polite ones.
Squad28 Jun 2027
Tempers go at Suva
Seb Stacey was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The terraces28 Jun 2027
He is 21 and the ground already sings his name, which is a thing that happens to local boys and almost never to signings. Everything from here is measured against an affection he did nothing to earn except be from here.
Squad28 Jun 2027
Rishal Shankar falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout28 Jun 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
The dugout28 Jun 2027
The view from the dugout
“We did not lose. Some weeks that is all you get, and I would rather have the point than not.” Maleli Drudru chose the glass-half-full version of 0‑0; the supporters left with the other one.
Match26 Jun 2027
Nil-nil, and few chances worth the name. Tailevu Naitasiri came to defend and left with exactly what they came for.
Looking ahead28 Jun 2027
He used to wear the other shirt. On Saturday he plays against Rewa in this one, and whatever he says this week about it being just another game will be untrue.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match16 Jun 2027
The cup run ends for Suva
1‑2 against Nadi, and the road stops here. Cup exits are quick deaths — no second leg, no next week, just the league from now until May.
Squad21 Jun 2027
18 days out for Isikeli Tuyaga after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Suva will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Squad21 Jun 2027
At 20, Salesitino Caucau is already the best thing here
An average of 7.09 in a first team he is several years too young for. Suva have something, and by now the whole division has noticed.
Squad21 Jun 2027
Words exchanged at Suva
Nischal Lal and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
The dugout21 Jun 2027
Seb Stacey gets it from the manager
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Squad21 Jun 2027
A row about effort at Suva
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Rishal Shankar was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout21 Jun 2027
The manager’s verdict
“I am frustrated, honestly. We did enough to win and we did not win.” Maleli Drudru was not hiding it after 0‑0, and nobody in the Suva dressing room was either.
The dugout21 Jun 2027
When it matters, Nischal Lal plays
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
Match19 Jun 2027
Suva and Lautoka cancel each other out
Nil-nil, and few chances worth the name. Lautoka came to defend and left with exactly what they came for.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad24 May 2027
11 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.
Player ratings24 May 2027
2 goals, and the second was the one that settled it. Marked 8.48, and he could have had a third with better luck at the near post.
Squad24 May 2027
At 20, Salesitino Caucau is already the best thing here
An average of 7.00 in a first team he is several years too young for. Suva have something, and by now the whole division has noticed.
Match22 May 2027
Suva get the job done against Labasa
A 2‑1 win over Labasa, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Squad24 May 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Suva this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The terraces24 May 2027
The crowd has taken to Seb Stacey
At 21 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.
Player ratings24 May 2027
Both jobs done by Joeli Ranitu — 7.65
A midfielder is measured on whether the team functions when he is on the pitch, which is nearly impossible to see and completely obvious in retrospect. 10 actions, 7.65, and a manager who will not be substituting him again in a hurry.
The dugout24 May 2027
The manager makes an example of Bhavneet Singh
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Squad24 May 2027
A row about effort at Suva
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Amitesh Krishna was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
In brief
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The dugout
The view from the dugout
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Boardroom
Suva counting the cost
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The dugout
Seb Stacey knocks on the manager’s door
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad17 May 2027
A knee injury of the worst kind for Kavaia Rawaqa
17 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Suva lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Squad17 May 2027
A falling-out at Suva
Seb Stacey and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Match15 May 2027
Nadi take the points off Suva
Beaten 0‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Player ratings17 May 2027
Successful dribbles: 18. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad17 May 2027
Rishal Shankar falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Loan watch17 May 2027
Jason Dau wants to come home
“I did not go to Lautoka to sit and watch. I want to come back to Suva and fight for my place.” 3 appearances in 17 matches say the rest.
The dugout17 May 2027
The view from the dugout
“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 0‑2 defeat, delivered by Maleli Drudru to a room that had heard them before.
The dugout17 May 2027
The manager makes an example of Nishal Sharma
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
The dugout17 May 2027
Seb Stacey asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad10 May 2027
Kavaia Rawaqa damages knee ligaments — 24 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 24 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Market10 May 2027
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Suva is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Squad10 May 2027
Words exchanged at Suva
Seb Stacey and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad10 May 2027
Rishal Shankar falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Match8 May 2027
Late, late show earns Suva a point
Minute 91, against Nasinu, and a goal that felt like a win to everybody who had stayed. It was a draw. Nobody leaving the ground will describe it as one.
Match10 May 2027
Halfway: Suva sit in position 4
15 points at the turn. The first half of a season is a promise; the second is a bill, and the town is about to find out which of the two this one was.
Match8 May 2027
Suva share the spoils with Nasinu
A 2‑2 draw with Nasinu leaves the dressing room somewhere between relief and regret.
The dugout10 May 2027
Half-satisfied: Maleli Drudru on the draw
“There are things I liked and things we will be doing on Tuesday until they are right.” 2‑2, and a manager who had already decided what Tuesday looked like.
The dugout10 May 2027
Kavaia Rawaqa asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad3 May 2027
A knee injury of the worst kind for Kavaia Rawaqa
32 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Suva lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Player ratings3 May 2027
Successful dribbles: 25. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad3 May 2027
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Salesitino Caucau commits to Suva for another 4 years.
Squad3 May 2027
A falling-out at Suva
Nischal Lal and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Match1 May 2027
Rewa take the points off Suva
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
The dugout3 May 2027
The manager makes an example of Seb Stacey
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Squad3 May 2027
At 20 he was better than everybody his age in the division for four weeks running, which is harder than one good afternoon. Suva will try not to make too much of it.
The dugout3 May 2027
The view from the dugout
“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 0‑1 defeat, delivered by Maleli Drudru to a room that had heard them before.
The dugout3 May 2027
Seb Stacey is still paying for one afternoon at Suva
Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad19 Apr 2027
Kavaia Rawaqa damages knee ligaments — 46 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 46 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Player ratings19 Apr 2027
A brace, and Salesitino Caucau takes the afternoon — 8.66
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Salesitino Caucau provided it, and the 8.66 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
Match19 Apr 2027
Suva up to position 3
11 points on the board and a place in the leading group. Nobody at the ground is saying the word out loud yet.
Squad19 Apr 2027
6 saves: Seb Stacey was the team
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 6 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
Squad19 Apr 2027
“The easiest signature of my career.” Rishal Shankar and Suva agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Match17 Apr 2027
It finished 2‑1, and it was Salesitino Caucau’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to Suva.
Squad19 Apr 2027
A falling-out at Suva
Rishal Shankar and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Loan watch19 Apr 2027
Jason Dau wants to come home
“I did not go to Lautoka to sit and watch. I want to come back to Suva and fight for my place.” 3 appearances in 13 matches say the rest.
The dugout19 Apr 2027
The view from the dugout
“We controlled it. There were spells I did not like and we will look at them, but the group showed me something.” Maleli Drudru, on a 2‑1 win that he was already picking apart on the walk to the press room.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad29 Mar 2027
A knee injury of the worst kind for Kavaia Rawaqa
68 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Suva lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Squad29 Mar 2027
A falling-out at Suva
Seb Stacey and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad29 Mar 2027
Everybody saw it before anybody said it. At 34 the numbers say 3 points down on what he was, and the question for Suva is how to handle a man they owe a great deal.
Squad29 Mar 2027
Words at Suva training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Amitesh Krishna is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Boardroom29 Mar 2027
Belts tighten at Suva
The accounts are being read more closely than the results. Wages before ambition is the order of business now, and the manager has been told so.
The dugout29 Mar 2027
The manager makes an example of Apisai Sesewa
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad22 Mar 2027
75 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Suva lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
The dugout22 Mar 2027
Apisai Sesewa: that is not what I was promised
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Suva have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad22 Mar 2027
Seb Stacey in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Suva this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match20 Mar 2027
A bad afternoon for Suva against Nadroga
0‑2 to Nadroga, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Player ratings22 Mar 2027
Ramzan Khan beats them one at a time
Successful dribbles: 17. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.
Loan watch22 Mar 2027
“I watch every Suva game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Lautoka runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
The dugout22 Mar 2027
The view from the dugout
“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 0‑2 defeat, delivered by Maleli Drudru to a room that had heard them before.
Squad22 Mar 2027
Amitesh Krishna falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Squad22 Mar 2027
Salesitino Caucau is the weekend's best young player
At 20 he is being measured against the rest of the division's kids and coming out in front. The senior version of this award is where the club would like this to lead.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad15 Mar 2027
A knee injury of the worst kind for Kavaia Rawaqa
82 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Suva lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Match13 Mar 2027
A 2-goal lead gone for Suva
It is a specific kind of quiet, a ground watching a winning position dissolve. Labasa kept coming because nothing stopped them, and Suva will be asked about the last half hour all week.
Player ratings15 Mar 2027
No sign of nerves from Salesitino Caucau at 20 — 7.69
The hardest thing about being 20 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Salesitino Caucau did not need any: 7.69, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.
Market15 Mar 2027
Tuimasi Cama has one foot out of the door
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Suva they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Squad15 Mar 2027
A falling-out at Suva
Nischal Lal and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
The dugout15 Mar 2027
The manager makes an example of Simione Nabenu
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Squad15 Mar 2027
Rishal Shankar falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Match13 Mar 2027
Suva and Labasa take a point apiece
It finished 2‑2, and it somehow always looked like it would. One of those afternoons where the table moves less than the tempers.
The dugout15 Mar 2027
A promise honoured for Ramzan Khan
It is not much of a headline and it is the reason players believe the next promise. Suva told Ramzan Khan something would happen and then it happened, which in this industry passes for remarkable.
In brief
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The dugout
The view from the dugout
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Squad
A Suva teenager takes the young player award
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Player ratings
Ramzan Khan runs at them all day
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad8 Mar 2027
Kavaia Rawaqa damages knee ligaments — 90 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 90 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Squad8 Mar 2027
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Kavaia Rawaqa and Suva agree another 2 years.
Boardroom8 Mar 2027
5 academy graduates step up at Suva
Senior shirt numbers handed to boys the coaches have known since they were twelve. Most will not make it and all of them have already done the hard part.
The terraces8 Mar 2027
Suva supporters have found a favourite in Seb Stacey
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 20-year-old it feels ownership of. Seb Stacey has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.
Market8 Mar 2027
One of our own: Malakai Jale joins the Suva first team
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Malakai Jale is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
Market8 Mar 2027
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Laisenia Kumar has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
Market8 Mar 2027
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Ilaisa Sauturaga has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
Market8 Mar 2027
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Sakaraia Tiko has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
Match6 Mar 2027
Suva get the job done against Nadi
A 1‑0 win over Nadi, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad15 Feb 2027
The knee: Kavaia Rawaqa out for 111 days
111 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Suva lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Market15 Feb 2027
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Suva is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Squad15 Feb 2027
Words exchanged at Suva
Rishal Shankar and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad8 Feb 2027
A knee injury of the worst kind for Kavaia Rawaqa
118 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Suva lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Squad8 Feb 2027
Words exchanged at Suva
Seb Stacey and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad8 Feb 2027
The medical room confirms 34 days on the sidelines for Bhavneet Singh, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad1 Feb 2027
The knee: Kavaia Rawaqa out for 125 days
125 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Suva lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Market1 Feb 2027
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Suva have lost him in all but the paperwork.
Boardroom1 Feb 2027
Window shuts: 4 in, 1 out at Suva
The deadline has passed and the squad is the squad. 4 arrived, 1 left, and everything else printed about this club last month was a rumour that stayed one.
Transfer targets1 Feb 2027
The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Nadroga keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
Squad1 Feb 2027
“The easiest signature of my career.” Seb Stacey and Suva agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Market1 Feb 2027
He left as a boy and has come back still knowing where the away end is. Most signings have to be explained to a town; this one needed a photograph and nothing else.
Squad1 Feb 2027
A falling-out at Suva
Seb Stacey and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Transfer targets1 Feb 2027
Suva asked and Lautoka said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Squad1 Feb 2027
Rishal Shankar falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.