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New Straits Times
a day ago
- Sport
- New Straits Times
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.
New Straits Times
21-06-2025
- Sport
- New Straits Times
Malaysia to host inaugural Searf Women's 15s Championship
PETALING JAYA: Malaysia will host the inaugural edition of the Southeast Asian Rugby Federation (Searf) Women's 15s Championship in Kuala Lumpur on Feb 1-7 next year. Malaysia Rugby (MR) council member Shahizam Tukiran said Malaysia has already started preparations to host the event which is set to feature three nations - Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines - for the first edition. Searf representatives from Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines signed a memorandum-of-understanding for the competition at the Cobra Club here today (June 21). "The objective of this competition is to provide competitive exposure at the international level to women players and strengthen talent development efforts," said Shahizam today. "We (Malaysia) offered to be the hosts of the inaugural edition and have already started preparation work together with the local councils involved as well as the Selangor Rugby Union (SRU)." SRU, who have been aggressively developing the women's game in recent years, is expected to provide the bulk of players for the national women's team together with other states such as Sarawak. Philippines Rugby president Ada Milby and Singapore Rugby council member Angelina Liu represented their respective unions during the signing ceremony today.
