Women's rugby

The competition will be contested by the Fijiana XV (Fiji), Cassowaries (Papua New Guinea), Manusina XV (Samoa) and Fuifuilupe (Tonga).

The first-place team will qualify in WXV-Tier 2 and the second placed team for WXV-Tier 3.

The event will also serve as a platform for Pacific players to be selected for the Oceania Women's Combine in August this year, in which the selectors will identify potential players to join Australia's Super W teams on a PacificAus Sports' scholarship.

The Wallaroos performance was full of errors, while the Japanese success was based on some outstanding defence.

Both sides scored two tries with Australia having the chance to steal the result late in the game but normally reliable goal kicker Lori Cramer missed a penalty attempt in the 77th minute.

The result will improve the world ranking for the Japanese who are currently ranked 12.

The Japanese also beat Fiji 28-14 earlier in the series.

The 12-team tournament which was due to be held this year in Auckland and Whangarei was postponed due to Covid-19.

The new dates mean the tournament will be extended from 35 to 43 days, meaning all teams will have a minimum of five rest days between matches in align with the approach recently approved for the men's competition.

The extension of the tournament window also allows for a revamped tournament format that will see all matches take place on Saturdays and Sundays with no overlap.

The landmark decision, taken by the Rugby World Cup board earlier this year, reflects the growing popularity of the women’s game globally through World Rugby’s transformational women’s strategic plan.

With interest and participation in the women's game continuing to climb, World Rugby has recognised that the increasing competitiveness in women’s international rugby.

This, in turn, has led to the World Cup being expanded, providing the opportunity for more teams to prove themselves on the biggest stage.

The Oceania Rugby Women’s Sevens Championship kicked off in Suva on Thursday with all eyes on qualification for Tokyo 2020. But for Vanuatu, history has already been made.

Vanuatu were led out by captain Rachelle Tari at ANZ Stadium as the small Pacific Island nation made its debut in international women’s competition against Fiji.

A 48-0 defeat against the hosts - and favourites to secure their place at next year’s Olympic Games on Saturday - followed, however, success for Tari and her team-mates over the next few days will not be measured on the pitch.

The Oceania Rugby Women’s Sevens Championship kicked off in Suva on Thursday with all eyes on qualification for Tokyo 2020. But for Vanuatu, history has already been made.

Vanuatu were led out by captain Rachelle Tari at ANZ Stadium as the small Pacific Island nation made its debut in international women’s competition against Fiji.

A 48-0 defeat against the hosts - and favourites to secure their place at next year’s Olympic Games on Saturday - followed, however, success for Tari and her team-mates over the next few days will not be measured on the pitch.

Queensland, NSW, ACT, Victoria, and Western Australia will all be represented in the 15-a-side, six-week league, with a final to be played in April.

The announcement came on the same day Rugby Australia outlined its plans to bid for the 2021 Women's Rugby World Cup.

"I am really proud and excited about this competition launching next year and what this means for the game in Australia," Wallaroos captain Shannon Parry said.

The Fijiana were denied a famous victory against reigning World Series and Olympic champions Australia in the playoff for bronze at the inaugural Kitakyushu Sevens in Japan.

Fiji led 12-0 half-time and 17-7 midway through the second half but conceded two tries in the final four minutes to go down 19-17.

Captain Ana Maria Roqica and Miriama Naiobasali were both named in the Kitakyushu tournament Dream Team, while Naiobasali was the second highest point-scorer over the weekend.

Fiji's only other semifinal appearance on the World Series was in Guangzhou in April 2014.