Half a year without pay, appointing a ‘troublemaker’ and the Hong Kong Sevens: Ben Ryan on his Fiji odyssey – Part 2
Fiji’s Olympic gold-medal winning coach talks about his decision to leave England for Fiji and the obstacles he faced in the Pacific islands
Ben Ryan wanted to explore the rugby world beyond the cocoon that was England but Fiji was the last place he had in mind until a friend told him about an opening for a sevens coach. The risk factor in Fiji is a double-edged sword. You have no idea what kind of environment you are entering but one thing is for sure, you will have world-class players at your disposal.
In the end, that is what kept Ryan going.
What made you go to Fiji in the first place?
Good question. I was ready to leave England, and I talk about it in the book. It wasn’t my decision really. I had a job lined up and my mate told me that Fiji were looking for someone. To cut a long story short, I was offered the job and I didn’t know how much I was going to get paid, how long my contract was and who my bosses were and I’d never been to Fiji, but I said yes because I knew I needed to take a risk. It was one of those decisions where you are feeling very excited about what could be a new chapter and also sick in your stomach because you don’t know what you’re letting yourself in for, and I kind of learned that you’ve got to take leaps of blind faith sometimes and I knew I needed to. Luckily it all worked out and it’s the best decision I’ve ever made.
Was there ever a time when you felt “what am I doing here?”