Meli Laddpeter 
The Fiji Baby Pearls Invitational Tournament is providing head coach Simone Nalatu with a valuable opportunity to test different combinations as the team continues its preparations for the 2025 Netball World Youth Cup.
The week-long tournament began last night at the Vodafone Arena in Suva and features two Baby Pearls squads, Kikau and Kacau, going up against visiting Australian clubs.
With less than three months remaining for the World Cup, Coach Nalatu is focused on identifying the most effective on-court combinations, refining team chemistry, and solidifying tactics ahead of the global competition.
“Look, we need variety going to a tournament like the World Cup, we need to make sure that we got multiple players who can play multiple positions but can also offer something different defending on who the opposition is. At the moment its up for grabs, across all positions, but we are going to look for variety across the team.”
The visiting teams are South Coast Blaze and NSW Fiji Davui, the latter made up of players from the Fijian community in Australia.
Day two of the tournament kicks off at 5:30 p.m. with Baby Pearls Kacau taking on NSW Davui, followed by Baby Pearls Kikau against South Coast Blaze at 7:30 p.m.
Tickets are available at the Vodafone Arena gates in Suva.
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