Earnest preparations for Asian Five Nations rugby

Earnest preparations for Asian Five Nations rugby

Chris Dhambarage

Sri Lanka’s road towards the 2015 Rugby World Cup Qualifiers will begin next month when they compete in a series of international seven-a-side tournaments starting with the first leg in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Sri Lanka’s rugby which has reached great heights in the recent past following their success in the Division One segment are targeting next years Asian Five Nations tournament where the winner and the runners-up will join the World’s top 20 teams in England for the coveted Web Ellis Cup.

As a preparation for the World Cup Qualifiers and the Asian Five Nations championships Sri Lanka will have four major seven-a-side tournaments lined up in which they are expected to play alongside some of Asia’s best rugby playing nations.

The Sri Lankan rugby team under the guidance and supervision of a high profile coaching staff headed by former England hooker Phil Greening will have their first assignment when they battle it out for supremacy on August 31 and September 1 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The Sri Lankan team will then travel to Thailand for their second leg of the Asian Sevens Series which will be worked off on September 21 and 22 in the beach resort of Bangsaen.

The third leg of the HSBC Asian Sevens Series will be staged on October 12 and 13 in Mumbai, India and the series will culminate with the final leg to be worked off on November 2 and 3 in Singapore.

While the SLRFU High Performance Manager Phil Greening will remain as the Head Coach until the World Cup he will also have the backing of Ryan Gibney (SLRFU Head of Strength and Conditioning), and Craig White (Former Head of Performance for the British Lions and current IRB High Performance Consultant) who are helping to set up the high performance department and build the national team.

This internationally acclaimed high performance trio will concentrate on the upcoming sevens series as well as the HSBC Asian Five Nations tournament giving Sri Lanka rugby the infrastructure and the professionalism to move forward and cement itself as one of Asia’s leading teams in three years time.

Meanwhile the Sri Lanka women’s rugby team will also have the opportunity to improve on their performances when they compete in two major Asian seven-a-side tournaments later this year.

They will first compete in the tournament in Thailand on September 21 and 22 followed by the second leg which is scheduled for November 8 and 9 in Pune, India.

Sri Lanka will also participate in the Under-19 Rugby Asiad which will be worked off from August 12 to 17 in Kaohsiung, Chinese Taipei and in the Asian Youth Games from August 17 to 19 in Nanjing, China.   

Sri Lanka Rugby Calendar for the year 2013/14

Tournament                             Date                            Venue

Under 19 Asiad                       Aug 12-17                    Chinese Taipei

Asian Youth Games                 Aug 17-19                    China

HSBC Sevens                           Aug 31/Sep 1               Malaysia

HSBC Sevens                           Sep 21/22                    Thailand

Women’s Asian 7s                  Sep 21/22                    Thailand 

HSBC Sevens                           Oct 12/13                    India

Singapore Sevens                    Nov 2/3                       Singapore  

Women’s Asian 7s                  Nov 8/9                       India

Dialog League (1^st round)       Nov 8 - Jan 12                         Colombo/Kandy                      

Dialog League (2^nd round)       Jan 17 – Mar 16          Colombo/Kandy

Clifford Cup (quarterfinals)     Mar 21/22/23              Colombo/Kandy

Clifford Cup (semifinals)         Mar 26/27                   Colombo

Clifford Cup (final)                  Mar 30                         Colombo