Fijian Drua seeking ‘chief hype officer’ for Whangārei match v Blues

The Fijian Drua may have just advertised the most enticing job opportunity for any sports fan as they need a chief hype officer for two days when the team faces the Blues next month.

The job description states that they’re looking for someone to “whip our fans into a frenzy” and can “ensure the roar of our fans will leave the Blues trembling in their little football boots”.

Fijian Drua lock Isoa Nasilasila is calling on the new hype officer to try to turn that away-game atmosphere into a positive one for the team.

“Here (Fiji) we get a lot of energy from the crowd so when we get to Whangārei in February, you will really bring the best out of us.”

“Bring heaps of energy for the boys.

“When the crowd is cheering for us, getting behind us for all the little breaks, big tackles, you know, it just gets everyone up.”

Hooker Zuriel Togiatama hopes that this turns full-time to keep that support growing outside of Fiji.

“It’ll prime the boys a lot better, especially going to those overseas games knowing that we’ve got a strong Fijian community wherever we go.

“So we don’t always have to just rely on playing in Lautoka or Suva to get energy that gets us up for a game.

“It would make us feel a bit more relaxed and a bit more at home.”

This opportunity even has the players intrigued by a potential career away from playing.

“If it becomes a full-time job, I’ll retire,” says prop Haereiti Hetet.

In terms of who the players think would be best at the job in their team, all three players were quick to name Peni Matawalu and Te Ahiwaru Cirikidaveta as the best candidates.

This opportunity was one of the dream jobs advertised on Trade Me to encourage Kiwis to look for a job they will love, including the likes of a "Wicked Wing Taste-Tester" for KFC and a "Social Meow-dia Specialist" for Petdirect.

Data released by Trade Me shows this is the most popular time of year for New Zealanders to look for a fresh start, with most job listing views occurring over the last week of January 1 with 1.6m viewings. Trade Me Jobs’ highest-ever day of web traffic was on January 24, 2023, which saw more than half a million views of job listings in a single 24-hour period.

Trade Me Jobs sales director Matt Tolich believes a fresh year tends to mark a fresh start for many Kiwis.

“This is a mixture of the new year representing a new start and is an optimistic time for job-hunters. Along with a potential sense of frustration for those returning to a workplace which they may no longer enjoy after the summer break.”

Tolich will refrain from applying for this job even though he is a rugby fan.

“I am unfortunately a Blues supporter. So I might be the worst Fijian Drua hype person, but I know there’d be awesome candidates out there who are really, really passionate.”

He also hopes other Super Rugby teams follow the Fijian Drua’s great initiative and implement its own chief hype officer.