The final round of the ARFU JWRT qualifier will kick off at 2.30 p.m. on Saturday 27th September at the Race Course grounds.
The host Sri Lanka are in a struggle where if they lose to the Chinese Taipei in their final match they will be relegated from division one. Taipei team showed a great comeback against Korea with a stunning 28 – 07 win after going down in their first match to Hong Kong 44 – 05.
Sri Lanka played with a good moral against Korea in their first match but the visitors edged past the hosts 31 – 28 where the loss was a bit hard to swallow for the home team. After the disappointing loss Sri Lanka took on the tough opponent Hong Kong. It was a frustrating second half as the defense was pathetic, despite the deficit was only 3 points during the lemons as the score stood 07 – 10. It did not take too long for the Hong Kong team to score tries in quick succession where they ended the full time with a 32 – 07 victory.
Therefore, the final match against Chinese Taipei is not only a must win game but it is also something to be pride for the junior Tuskers to remain in the division one so that they can compete in the same level next year. Taipei certainly has a slight advantage having played both their previous matches in the heat of 2.30. In addition to this Korean team also felt the heat against Taipei after playing their first match with Sri Lanka at 4.30
Nevertheless, “it is entirely not the weather for the boys it is about the game plan and executing on the field without silly mistakes both in defense and attack. They have to be discipline and not giving too many penalties for the opposition. There will be also few changes expected in the starting lineup” said Nilfer Ibrahim the coach.
Tzu Fan Chien, the Taipei centre three quarter and the fly half Po Wei Huang the play maker, will be the biggest threats for the Tuskers. They played a game of a warrior against the Koreans and also with a great understanding between the #10 and #12. On the other hand Omalka Gunarathne the Sri Lankan #8 was astounding as expected but as a team Tuskers has to exploit his valiant effort in to points. Furthermore, the forwards has to be agile and show their mobility and strength while the three quarters needs to send the ball to wingers but first without any knock on’s.
Meanwhile, Hong Kong stands in a comfort zone after two out of two victory, even if they lose to Korea in their last game will not stop their promotion to play in Portugal next year in the Junior World Rugby Trophy (JWRT). In fact Hong Kong played as the host nation last year in the JWRT but was demoted after losing to USA. Georgia and Tonga.
If Sri Lanka overcomes Chinese Taipei it will be a relegation battle between Korea and Taipei. As a result Korea will somehow need to win over Hong Kong to remain in division one.
