The second leg of the Asia 7s concluded at the SCG Muang Thong stadium in Bangkok. Japan was victorious thumping Korea in the final 45 – 07 but Sri Lanka once again could only manage 4th place in the circuit.
The Tuskers finished day one with a convincing win over Chinese Taipei 36 – 00 but they lost to Hong Kong in the second match 33-14. However, day two saw a perfect start as they overcame in a grueling contest with the China. In the semifinal the Tuskers lost badly against the Koreans and yet again in the 3rd / 4th place play off they lost to Hong Kong.
Captain Fazil Marija was concussed during the semifinal and he missed out the last match in Bangkok. Coach Mat Turner stated to ThePapare.com “We gave away the ball too much and silly off-loads and basic errors all those we can fix.” He further added “In the semifinals we went out of page which let us go out of shape and ended up losing that game” He also said that Tuskers had to focus on the mental side of the game and especially not to jump away from their team plan when they play against Hong Kong.
Cup quarterfinal – Sri Lanka 14 – 07 China
A stunning performance by the Tuskers early morning. Neither team scored until the 4th minute. China winger went past Richard Dharmapala in the left flank after controlling 80% ball possession in the first 5 minutes. Tuskers had a few chances, sending the ball left to right but only managed to go to the opposite 22m once and the chance went begging.
HT Sri Lanka 00 – 07 China
The defense was excellent by the Tuskers in comparision to the day one. In the second half Srinath Sooriyabandara fed the ball from a 22m scrum to the skipper. Captain Marija stepped up with lovely footwork and passed 3 defenders to try under the post. Marija and Ranjan were replaced by Kanchana Ramanayake and Dinusha Chathuranga.
Anurudda Wilwara after poor time on day one, was incredible in this match as he made three superb tackles on his opposite number. Kanchana’s fresh legs made some yards and an off load found Sooriyabandara who made a side step to go under the post for a commanding lead. China had the ball in control for the last 30 seconds, but once again Tuskers showed good defense as the loose ball was kicked in to touch by Ramanayake which looked a little naive as the Chinese could have picked the ball and scored.
Cup semifinal – Sri Lanka 00 – 27 South Korea
Disappointingly, yet again the consistency of the performance was not there by the Tuskers. They went in to a lot of contact but could not win the ball from the ground. Korea on the other hand were too strong, as strong as the boiling temperature of that afternoon. They did not allow the Tuskers a single try and went to the half time with a 12 – 00 lead.
Shehan ‘Lema’ Pathirana, and Sudarshana Muthuthantri stepped up with some good tackles but Sri Lanka could not inspire the attacking gear. Korea went on to score three more tries to meet first leg champions Japan in the final.
3rd / 4th play offs – Sri Lanka 07– 33 Hong Kong
Once again Sri Lanka were unable to match the Hong Kong team and made so many errors as they could not sustain the pressure in defense. After Hong Kong scored the first try Sri Lanka hit back with a scintillating try by iron man Anurudda Wilwara, who made a 80m dash after smashing his opposite number. From then Hong Kong took full control as the Tuskers made error after error. Hong Kong went to half time with 14 – 07 and then scored three more tries at the end of the game to seal the fate for Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka team’s coach sharing his ideas with ThePapare.com
Captain Fazil Marija speaks to ThePapare.com
