Dixon and Co. set for U-20 Sevens Rugby Championship 2nd leg in HK

By Shamseer Jaleel

Kevin Dixon and his 11 brave men put Sri Lankan Sevens rugby on the map and sounded a warning to leaders of Asian rugby like Japan, Hong Kong and South Korea that the country was no pushover. 

This win in Malaysia in the first leg puts Sri Lanka on top as they kick off the second leg of the U-20 Sevens Rugby Championship in Hong Kong on 12 and 13 August.

Sri Lanka beat Philippines, Thailand and the UAE before losing to Japan in a nail-biter. On the second day they outclassed hosts Malaysia 29-14 in one of the semi-final encounters before handing South Korea a 38-0 drubbing in the final.

Sri Lanka collected 14 points on the series table ahead of the final leg in Hong Kong. South Korea are second (12), Japan third (10), Malaysia fourth (8) and Hong Kong fifth (7). 

This is the first time that a Sri Lanka Under-20 outfit has won an Asian Sevens tournament. Sri Lanka is expected to fly the same team to Hong Kong on 10 August.

Omalka Gunaratne in attack mode in the final

Skipper Kevin Dixon evades by a South Korean player