Lankan Sevens team go down fighting

Hopes for 2013 Rugby Sevens WC dashed:

Ranjeeva Seneviratne - Reporting from Singapore

The Sri Lankan Sevens team went down fighting to formidable South Korea by 12 points (1 goal, 1 try) to 19 (2 goals, 1 try) in the quarter finals of the Cup Championship of the HSBC Asian Rugby Sevens series final leg at the Singapore Cricket Club grounds yesterday after trailing at the breather. The Sri Lankans opened scoring when in the fourth minute Shenal Dias dashed through 50 metres to touch down under the post after receiving a pass from Nigel Ratwatte. Saliya Kumara converted.

The South Koreans hit back through a try by Kim Kunhui with Kim Won Yong adding the extra points. Just before the breather again Kim Diong Min scored for Korea with Kim Won Yong missing the conversion and South Korea led 12-7 at half time.

In the second minute after resumption Sri Lanka’s Saliya Kumara scampered through for a try from a five metre short tap. He missed the conversion and the score read 12-all. Two minutes before the final whistle South Korea’s Yu Min Yung scored near the post and Kim Won Yong converted to give South Korea a hard fought 19-12 win. The defeat dashed Sri Lanka’s hopes of qualifying for the 2013 Rugby Sevens World Cup and were relegated to the Plate Championship where they will meet Malaysia in the quarter finals. The Sri Lankans went into the game without the services of skipper Fazil Marija and Dinusha Chathuranga.

Earlier Sri Lanka had mixed fortunes in the Group D matches. They began their campaign with a runaway 52-0 win over lowly placed Indonesia and went down to mighty Japan 0-35. Tries by Saliya Handapangoda, Dinusha Chathuranga, Fazil Marija with Marija converting three of the tries gave the Lankans a 26-nil lead at the breather. Dinusha Chathuranga, Chula Susantha, Sayuru Anthony and Vishwamithra Jayasinghe crossed the Indonesian goal line in the second half with Marija adding the extra points to three tries to make it 52-nil at the final whistle.

The Sri Lankans contained the Japanese through some resolute tackling in the first half. Japan’s Fijian player Shioni Teapua scored both tries in the first half with Koji Wada converting both tries.

Sri Lanka lost a golden opportunity of reducing the deficit when off a move in mid field Srinath Sooriyabandara kicked a grubber but failed to collect the ball on the follow through and Japan led 14-0 at the breather.

The Japanese dominated the second half and scored three more tries through Yasuke Aramaki, Kenta Nakasoni and Sieone Teapua with Koji Wada converting all three tries to make it 35-nil in favour of Japan. In the other group matches Hong Kong beat Guam 48-07, South Korea beat Singapore 49-07, China beat Kazakhstan 26-14, Japan beat Indonesia 57-00, Philippines beat Guam 33-00, Singapore beat Thailand 22-14, Malaysia beat Kazakhstan, Hong Kong beat Philippines 29-12, South Korea beat Thailand 26-12, China beat Malaysia 22-19.