Nasinu skipper Nasoni Mereke revealed that his desire to feature in Premier Division tournaments was the motivation behind their 2-0 win over Savusavu in the second promotion leg on Sunday.
Mereke said the players showed their hunger in the match to feature in the Premier Division after spending a year in the Senior Division.
“We’ve worked really hard to get back to Premier and we know being in the senior division wasn’t easy because we just played league games.”
“The team really wanted promotion because we are eager to play in the tournaments next year. We miss playing in the major tournaments and that was something that encouraged the players to give their all and make sure we qualify.”
“The last time we played in a major tournament was the Fiji FACT at Lawaqa Park in Sigatoka last year and then we got demoted later that year. When we saw top teams play in the Fiji FACT and BOG this year, we promised ourselves that we would give our best in the promotion matches to reach that stage.”
The veteran striker, while acknowledging the team’s effort, said they have shifted their focus on defending the Senior Inter District Championship this year.
“It’s a great feeling to know that we will be back in the Premiers next year and the boys are thrilled,” a joyful Mereke said.
“The competition was tough in the Senior category but I’m glad that we managed to escape from there.”
“This is not the end for us. The big task on our shoulder is the IDC and as the defending champs we’ve got to start preparing for our title defence.”
“We know the level of competition in tournaments is much different, especially knowing we will again be playing against last year’s finalist Tavua.”
“A lot of improvements are needed in the team and we hope that our injured players recover so that we bounce back to training and are well-prepared ahead of the tournament next month.”
The 2023 Courts Inter District Championship will be played between 10-15 October at the HFC Bank Stadium in Suva.
