Sri Lanka to lock horns with Chile and Hong Kong

Sri Lanka sevens outfit under Dhanushka Ranjan will kick off the World Series Qualifier with a game against South American champions, Chile at the Hong Kong Stadium today. Kick-off is scheduled at 10:58 a.m. Sri Lankan time. Later in the day they will play the Asian Sevens champions and hosts Hong Kong which will be a physical battle. This game will be played at 2:20 p.m. Sri Lankan time.

Sri Lanka outfit who touched down in Hong Kong last Sunday got ample time to settle down and train for the last three days under New Zealand Head Coach, Peter Woods who is testing at this tournament. The boys are in good shape for this tournament and adjusting to the local conditions in no time. After an average performance at Borneo sevens in Malaysia Sri Lanka is expected to perform well which will give them a good foundation for the Asian Rugby sevens 2017 which will be worked off in three countries later this year.

Sri Lanka have hardly played against Chile in the sevens format of the game. The only representation the Islanders have is at Junior level meeting the South American champions in the Under 20 Youth Rugby world Cup in 2001. Hong Kong will be always tough to beat specially playing in front of their home crowd. In the Asian Sevens last year Sri Lanka ended as second best to Hong Kong.

Ranjan who led Sri Lanka to number 2 position at the Asian Sevens 2016 told Daily FT: “We will use this tournament for the much needed preparation for the Asian Rugby Sevens 2017 which will be worked off in Hong Kong, South Korea and Sri Lanka later this year. Playing in the World Series qualifier is a great opportunity for Sri Lanka to gain experience in the World arena. We are mixed with youth and experience and with the new Head Coach Peter Wood we have learnt a lot how to approach each game on a positive manner.”

Supporting staff includes former Sri Lanka sevens skipper Inthi Marikar as the High Performance Coach and Nic Globe as the Trainer of the outfit.

Pool E- Germany, Tonga, Uganda, Jamaica

Pool F- Hong Kong, Chile, Sri Lanka, Namibia

Pool G-Spain, Papua New Guinea, Uruguay, Guyana

April 7 (today)

Sri Lanka vs Chile                10:58 a.m.

Sri Lanka vs Hong Kong   2:20 p.m.

April 8

Sri Lanka vs Namibia        7:58 p.m.