Sri Lanka to host Asian Sevens in Oct.

Friday, 9 January 2015 02:21 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

By Shamseer Jaleel For the first time in its history Sri Lanka will host the Asian Sevens tournament in Colombo on 10 and 11 October at the Race Course grounds in Colombo. According to the Asian Rugby Football Union (ARFU), the three-leg tournament will take place in China, Thailand and Sri Lanka. This year’s rugby calendar will kick off on 28 February and 1 March when six men’s and women’s teams lock horns in Malaysia.

The top three Asian rugby teams in the region - Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea - play in the Asian Fifteens tournament in a home and away basis. The Division I tournament will see Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Singapore and Kazakhstan locking horns, with the winner getting promoted to the top in 2016. This will be worked off on 3, 6 and 9 May with the host country yet to be announced by the ARFU. The local inter-club league and knockout competitions ending in early April will give the Sri Lankan 15 side ample time for preparation for this tournament. The Division II tournament will take place between Taipei, UAE, Malaysia and Thailand while India, Pakistan and Uzbekistan will battle it out in Division III. The Asian Sevens Series 2015 will kick off with the first tournament taking place in Shanghai, China on 5 and 6 September with 12 men’s and eight women’s teams taking part in it. The second leg will be worked off in Thailand on 26 and 27 September. The final leg will be played in Sri Lanka on 10 and 11 October. International Sevens rugby was introduced to Sri Lanka by the Kandy Sports Club when they introduced the Singer Sri Lankan Rugby Sevens in 1999 and continued until 2007. This was the brainchild of former Royal scrumhalf Malik Samarawickrema. The Asian rugby calendar will conclude in the senior category when Hong Kong hosts the ARFU Olympic Qualifier, which will see 16 teams doing battle on 7 and 8 November.