Sri Lanka Rugby to host Asia Sevens third leg

By Shamseer Jaleel

Sri Lanka Rugby (SLR) the governing body will once again host the third leg of the Asia Rugby Sevens 2021 series on 25 and 26 September. The venue is yet to be confirmed but likely to be either at the Race Course grounds in Colombo or Nittawela. 

Meanwhile, the postponed Asia Rugby Fifteens will see Sri Lanka hosting the 2020 event in Colombo from 26-29 May. In this senior segment alongside hosts Sri Lanka, UAE, Philippines and Singapore will lock horns in the round robin encounters.

The postponed Under-19 Asia Rugby fifteens event will be worked off in Colombo during the month of November. Hosts Sri Lanka, Taipei, South Korea and Hong Kong will lock horns in this event. This will be the pathway for the Junior World Rugby Tournament 2022, with the champions will earn their berth for the JWRT. Sri Lanka Rugby President Rizly Ilyas, along with the Minister of Sports Namal Rajapaksa, himself a former national skipper in the oval-shaped ball game, is doing their best to organise the Club Sevens event in the early part of 2021 to kick off the games that were postponed due to COVID-19.

Asia Rugby confirmed the commencement of the year 2021 competitions with Hong Kong hosting the Asia Rugby Women’s Championship (ARWC) which was initially scheduled for 2020. The Women’s Rugby World Cup 2021 qualifiers will feature Hong Kong and Kazakhstan, with the winners awarded Asia’s direct spot into and placed in Pool B alongside Canada, USA and Europe 1.

Another highlight of the year will be the Asia Rugby Men’s Rugby Championship (ARMC) which is a qualification pathway tournament for the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France, with Japan already securing a spot after reaching the quarterfinals in the 2019 Rugby World Cup.

The winner of the 2021 ARMC will play Oceania 2 in a one-off game which will be hosted by the team with the highest ranking, with the winner securing a direct spot in the RWC 2023, and the loser going to the final qualification tournament.

The iconic Asia Rugby Sevens Series is scheduled over three legs, with the series being played in South Korea, China and Sri Lanka, from August to September.

The Asia Rugby Under-19 Men’s Fifteens Tournament, which was postponed from 2020 to 31 March 2021, will serve as the pathway to the Junior World Trophy 2021, featuring Chinese Taipei, South Korea, Sri Lanka, and Hong Kong. Taipei will host this event.