THE national rugby squad are now just two matches away from securing an immediate return to the Asia Sevens Series after qualifying for the semi-finals of the Asia Rugby Sevens Trophy in Jakarta yesterday.
Placed in Pool D with only Laos for company meant Saizul Hafifi Md Noor’s charges had to play the minnows twice. And as expected, it was not an issue for the reigning Sea Games champions.
The national team did not concede a single try as they downed Laos 36-0 and 56-0 at the GBK Rugby Field in Senayan to book their spot in the final-four today.
Malaysia will play Mongolia, who defeated hosts Indonesia 19-12 and Uzbekistan 19-0 in Pool A, for a spot in the final, which will also be played today.
The other semi-final pits Thailand and Singapore, who are Malaysia’s traditional rivals.
Thailand downed Afghanistan 28-5 and Bangladesh 20-5 to win Pool B while Singapore topped Pool C with wins over India (27-12) and Brunei (50-0).
Malaysia Rugby honorary secretary Amrul Hazarin Hamidon said Malaysia will have little room for error in the knockout stages of the tournament today but is confident they can finish the job.
Only the winners of the second-tier tournament will earn promotion to the top-flight sevens series next season.
“I think the boys are showing good form and are beginning to gel well as a team,” said Amrul yesterday.
“It is important for them to continue tomorrow with a positive mindset as they will be facing tougher teams.
“Only the winners will go through to the Sevens Series, so we have to be careful and avoid making mistakes.”
Assuming that Malaysia do beat Mongolia in the semi-finals today, the final, either against Singapore or Thailand, will be a sneak preview of what could be the final of the Philippines Sea Games this year on the condition that neither are utilising naturalised players, which is allowed in the trophy competition.
Malaysia are fielding an all-local squad in Jakarta. The inclusion of seniors such as Siddiq Jalil, Wan Izzuddin Ismail, Anwarrul Hafiz Ahmad and Ameer Nasrun Zulkefli proves that they mean business.
The national team management’s decision to field a young squad for the sevens series last year, in a bid to bleed young talent for the future, backfired as Malaysia finished last in the tournament.
They were subsequently relegated from the top flight for the first time since 2009.
The first-choice squad had done well prior to that, winning the Sea Games gold for the first time in 2017 as well as achieving a commendable top-five finish at the Indonesia Asian Games last year.