There’s been a restructure over summer at Merrylands with Sailosi Tagicakibau shifting to the Director of Rugby role and working across both grade and colts moving forward. 

Tagicakibau will still be keeping a close eye on first grade though and thinks the Two Blues need to go back to playing to their strengths in 2026. 

Overview with Sailosi Tagicakibau: 

“A lot of hard work has gone in over summer to get us to this position, and there’s been a lot of sacrifices over the last few years at the club,” Tagicakibau told Rugby News. 

“We are extremely thankful for the ongoing support of Wayne Mar and Merrylands RSL who supported the club through the tough times and continue to support the club as we drive towards an exciting new future.

“We’re still not the finished product, but we’re going in the right direction. 

“In saying that, we were pretty disappointed with our first grade performance last year. I think that’s probably my most disappointing season to date since I’ve been at the club.

“I expect us to be competitive and pushing for the top six. I think we’ve been doing that most years since I’ve been at the club but we don’t want to be stagnant. We want to take a step forward into finals footy.

“We’ve got a good core group with the Suesue brothers and Latrell (Smiler-Ah Kiong) returning. I want to make sure that we give them every opportunity to take their next step by improving our rugby program, improving our coaching staff, and also bringing in the right people with the same mindsets.

“We’ve got Patrick Fa’apoi leading our defence, our head coach Travis Church running set piece and former Two Blues captain Dan Faleafa as line out coach, which we’re really excited about. 

“My role has changed and I’m now overseeing the whole club as Director of Rugby. When I first came into my role, my main focus was around our first grade because that’s the main team of the club.

“We’ve gone in the right direction and taken massive steps forward since 2022 after COVID, and our competitiveness across the grades has improved overall.

“I think for us, the next step is to focus on our pathways and development, making sure that we have those young colts graduating into a grade program.

“In the past, our colts program hasn’t been the most attractive — I’d be lying if I said it was. 

“But we are working hard to change that so that young men from western Sydney have a pathway to pursue rugby without leaving the area. I’m confident we’re heading in the right direction. 

2025: 9th

Ins: Rodney Iona (MRL), Liam Lord (West Harbour).

Outs: Ryan Connolly (retired), Paula Waqa, Cam Scott (England), Hosea Saumaki, Manasa Rokosuka (Brisbane), Kaynan Tua (NZ), Felix Kalapu (Japan), Leo Carella, Josh Hickey (retired), Liam Udy-Johns (England), Jaycob Matiu (Wollongong), Nic Snyman (NZ), Tim Lilomaiva (France), Christian Sanele (Hunter Wildfires), Tavite Gadeisuva (Subbies), Johnny Connolly (retired), Zak Hickey (retired), Ruka Asai (Norths). 

What style of rugby will we see from Western Sydney this year? 

“I’m still heavily involved with first grade — I’m the attack coach and I’ve set the game model for our club,” the coach said. 

“A big part of that is playing to our strengths and what we’re traditionally known for. We’ve got one of the most successful Shute Shield Sevens programs, we like to throw the ball around and we’ve got big, physical bodies.

“We’re going to play an attacking brand of rugby. I think we stepped away from that a bit last year and played more conservatively due to the makeup of our group.

“But we’ve worked really hard in the preseason to make sure that we’re fit enough to last through games. Our S&C coach Emily Wilson has done a fantastic job. 

“We’ve also worked hard on our defence and our contact areas but a massive focus has been getting fit enough to both play our brand and defend for long periods, because that’s what you need to play this expansive game.”

Player(s) to watch: 

“I think Rilloy Suesue is going to take another step forward this year,” Tagikacibau predicted. 

“He’s been at the club and been a leader for a few years now, and he got his Samoa debut at the end of last season and wants to be in that conversation again this year.

“Partnering up this year with Reece and Rodney (Iona), Rodney will help bring out the best in him and complement our five-eighths in how we play the game.

“I believe that we’ve got the best version of Rodney. He’s come in with a level of calmness and experience that our club hasn’t had.

“Being a five-eighth, he comes with a wealth of knowledge — understanding how to play the game, what works, and helping players and coaches constantly improve. I’m really looking forward to seeing how he leads the team.”

Who will Two Blues play in this year’s grand final? 

“I think we will play Sydney Uni. They’ve recruited really well this year and they’ve got new coaches as well.

“There’s been a lot of movement in the recruitment space for Sydney Uni, which hasn’t traditionally been the case. They’ve heavily invested in their player base.

“I think with John (Manenti) there, they’ll be well drilled at a professional level. I’m looking forward to our round three matchup against them to see where they’re at.

“We’ve got a good history of playing well against Uni, and if we can play well against them in that game, it will set us up for the rest of the season.”