The Sri Lankan under 18 women’s team which participated in the inaugural Asia U-18 sevens tournament held in Dubai put up a gutsy performance to finish 4th in the tournament.
The squad which comprised of 12 young Lankan lasses from around the Island took wing for this iconic tournament making history as the first Under 18 girls’ team to take part in a tournament from Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka lost to Kazakhstan 00-31 and Hong Kong 00-24 (the eventual finalist) and was disappointed after losing out to the neighboring Indian team 00-24. However they managed to turn the tide and came back strongly to beat Uzbekistan and UAE in the final two games 14-5 and 19-5 respectively earning them the 4th place in the tournament.
It’s an outstanding achievement by the young team that took wing to Dubai as this performance will surely drive and encourage the growth and the development of women’s rugby in Sri Lanka especially at the school level.
Team was captained by Nimesha Wijeywardane of Dehiowita National School and coached by Thanuja Weerakody. Inthi Marrikkar Sri Lanka Rugby high performance director who has been instrumental in uplifting the quality of the national teams overlooked the proceedings of the team and claimed that experience and the exposure these young women received at the tournament will give them confidence to continue to serve the country with valor.
