Sri Lanka to host Asia Rugby Under-19 Top 4 in December

Sri Lanka Rugby (SLR), which was to host the Asia Sevens series second and third legs, will now host only the Asia Rugby Under-19 Top 4 among Hong Kong, Taipei, South Korea and Sri Lanka, it has been revealed. This event will take place in Colombo at the Racecourse Ground from 5-13 December.

SLR lost out on hosting the Asia Sevens due to the pandemic. South Korea will host the first leg in Incheon on 4 and 5 September, while the UAE events will host events on 19 and 20 November (second leg), and 25 and 26 November (third leg).

The AR Under-19 event will see Hong Kong coming in as the defending champions and a strong contender for the Junior World Rugby Tournament (JWRT) Division 1 Asian berth for 2022. This event is scheduled to take place in Europe during June 2022, though the host nation is yet to be named.

Meanwhile, the Sri Lanka Schools Rugby Association will need to organise a XVs event with Health and Sports Ministry approval in order to get the pool of players ready by at least by August 2021 so as to adequately prepare for this event. The top team will book a JWRT berth while the team coming fourth will be demoted to Division 1 in the AR for 2022. The Sri Lanka Under-19 outfit won the 2019 Division 1 event in China to gain qualification for this Top 4 event. Viper (jnr.) Gunaratne coached the outfit, with Rajiv Perera and Rohitha Rajapakse assisting him on tour. (SJ)

Fixtures 

5 December

Sri Lanka vs Hong Kong, Taipei vs South Korea

9 December

Sri Lanka vs Taipei, Hong Kong vs South Korea

13 December

Sri Lanka vs South Korea, Hong Kong vs Taipei