Friday Nov 15, 2024
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Saturday, 23 August 2014 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Head Coach Setefano
Sri Lanka will kick off the Asian Sevens series 2014 in Hong Kong today when they lock horns with China (11.34 a.m.) and Chinese Taipei (2.44 p.m.) in the Men’s segment group encounters on the opening day at the Hong Kong Football Club in Happy Valley, Hong Kong.
Sri Lanka Women’s Sevens team will battle it out with Hong Kong (6.34 a.m.), China (10.06 a.m.) and Thailand (1.02 p.m.) in their group encounters at the same venue. The Sri Lanka Sevens team under dynamic leader, Fazil Marija, who is probably leading the side in his last Asian Series in Hong Kong, will be looking forward to better their rankings at the Asian Sevens circuit. Last year, Sri Lanka was placed behind Asian giant Japan and second placed Hong Kong. Hong Kong and Japan (the only representatives of the Rugby World Cup from 1987) have a professional approach to their game.
Sri Lanka Head Coach and former Fiji Sevens skipper and Western Warriors player Setefano Cakau said: “Our main aim is to end at number 1 or 2 in this Asian Sevens series. We had very good preparations for this tournament with the two local Carlton Seven’s tournaments and two more Carlton Super International Sevens tournaments.
“The boys had very good exposure in playing along with some top stars in World Sevens rugby. We had some outstanding IRB (Internal Rugby Board) recognised players such as DJ Forbes, Rakabula and Kaka. It’s amazing to see how these local lads teamed up with them and left their mark. Around 15-20 local players were outstanding,” he said.
He also stressed the importance of staying focused from tournament to tournament.
“We want to end on top and look forward to the next two important stopovers in Malaysia and China to stamp our class.”
Asserting that the support from the local spectators was “amazing,” Setefano also expressed admiration for the popularity of rugby in Sri Lanka: 
“It’s so great – rugby is a real passion here! I am enjoying being with these guys who are really committed to give their best to the game.”
Fazil told the Daily FT: “Players are in top form and we had a very good warm up with the Carlton Sevens. It’s up to the players to adjust to the top level. I am very confident of reaching the Cup Finals with the support of my players: a very well-balanced side.”
