a day ago
Bridging rugby 'sizing gap' imperative, says Malaysia Rugby
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia Rugby (MR) is looking at ways to help physically strengthen national players and put them on a level playing field with their competitors.
MR head of talent development committee Shahizam Tukiran admitted that Malaysian players begin to lag behind their counterparts in terms of size, especially teams with Caucasian players, once they enter their late teens.
The national junior (under-18) squad did well to win Malaysia's maiden Asian School Rugby Sevens championship title in Hong Kong yesterday (Aug 10), beating China, Kazakhstan, Thailand and Singapore en route to the title.
The national under-20 squad also did well to finish third at the Asia Rugby Under-20 Championship in Bihar, India yesterday.
They beat China (28-17) and Uzbekistan (17-0) but drew with Kazakhstan (17-17) during the group stage and later lost to favourites Hong Kong (33-5) in the semi-finals before bouncing back to beat China (19-7) in the third-place playoff.
"We are pleased with both teams' performances. We have always done well in the Asia School Rugby tournament but had never won it prior to this," said Shahizam when contacted today (Aug 11).
"To finish third in the under-20 competition is also a positive sign for us as we have not won the tournament since 2013.
"The under-20 tournament, however, highlighted the fact that our players lag behind in terms of size, compared to other teams, once they reach that age (20).
"It (sizing difference) is not yet apparent in under-18 competitions but it is clear to see once they are about 20.
"We did well to score first against Hong Kong in the semi-finals but we could not hold them back once they began to use their physical strength to their advantage.
"In terms of skill, fitness and pace, I believe we are on par, or perhaps even better than other top Asian nations. We are just lacking in terms of size and that is something we have to work on."
Shahizam, who is also the head of MR's high-performance committee, said the national body is looking to work together with the Education Ministry, Higher Education Ministry as well as the National Sports Institute (NSI) to tackle the issue.
"We have to continue working together with all stakeholders to both identify players with good size and make sure they can physically achieve their full potential," said Shahizam.
"We have to continue monitoring our players once they leave school and enter university. We need to come up with programmes which ensures their physical development is continuous.
"For players who are still in school, it is also important to have the parents on board as their support is crucial when it comes to development."
Malaysia had won the Asia Rugby Under-20 title back to back in 2012-2013 when it was held in Johor during both years. The squad was coached by the revered former national head coach Wan Ibrahim Wan Chik.
