Sri Lanka misses out on finals berth at Asian 7s series in Malaysia

Tuesday, 9 September 2014 00:05 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

By Shamseer Jaleel The Sri Lankan Sevens outfit under Fazil Marija narrowly missed out on a grand final appearance in the Asian Sevens series in Malaysia, when Hong Kong edged them out 10-7 in the semi-final encounter. Hong Kong went on to win the Cup by defeating Japan 24-7 in the grand final. Sri Lanka settled once again for fourth position when they were defeated 26-14 by South Korea in the third place playoff. Hong Kong, who went on to win the second Asian Sevens, led the series with 24 points, followed by Japan (21), South Korea (21) and Sri Lanka (18) in the top four positions.

Sri Lanka defeated hosts Malaysia (28-7) in the Cup quarter final but the Hong Kong outfit was much stronger and fitter, as they were rock solid in defence as well as in attack. Sri Lanka was edged out 10-7 in the semi-final after Emori was yellow carded, which cost them the game and gave Hong Kong a one-man advantage. But in the third place playoff game, Sri Lanka looked exhausted as it was the third game of the day and the second within two hours.

The Koreans, who are aiming at a medal in this month’s Asian Games in Inchon, ran over the Sri Lankans to win 26-14, securing third place. Securing the kickoff ball was the major area Sri Lanka needed to overcome in order to get into the final. There is also a need for bigger forwards and two separate teams for sevens and fifteens, to give a much-needed break to the players. Sri Lanka skipper Fazil Marija said: “We were so close yet so far. We could have not only pulled off the Hong Kong game but also the final. Emori was yellow carded and a few decisions went against us, which was costly. But as a team we put in a brave effort and hats off to all the boys for giving 200% in this tournament. “We have lot of confidence and having a player like Emori and Soori playing at their best, I am sure we will want to end in the top two in the series in Beijing next month. We will concentrate on the Asian Games and we want to win a medal in South Korea.” Fazil ended by saying, the team is tired and wants to end the Asian Seven series on high. The Sri Lankan players will have rest for three weeks before the domestic season kicks off in mid November this year.

Japan or Korea will need to win the last leg in Beijing in October this year and hope that Hong Kong don’t finish third, if they are to prevent Hong Kong from being crowned as Asian Champions this year. But mathematical equations aside, Hong Kong look the most dominant sevens team in the region right now. For Sri Lanka, it was their second successive fourth-place finish, raising questions as to what needs to be done to break into the top three. The top three teams are certain of securing a berth at the Hong Kong Sevens in March, 2015. With Japan already being a core team in the HSBC Sevens World Series, two other teams from Asia will be eligible for the qualifying competition, to be held during the Hong Kong Sevens, in order to decide the core team status on the world circuit for the 2015/16 season.