HANGZHOU: The national men’s 7s rugby team lived up to expectations when they reached the quarter-finals today, courtesy of a 24-7 win over the Philippines in a Group A match at the Hangzhou Normal University.
This is despite the Malaysian rugby team, nicknamed Hisbiscus, losing their second group match – 7-40 – to Hong Kong at the same venue later in the evening.
Hong Kong notched their second Group A win when they trounced the Philippines 43-5 to advance to the last eight as group winners.
In tomorrow’s last eight, Malaysia will face Group B champions South Korea, who clinched bronze in the 2018 edition in Jakarta-Palembang, Indonesia.
South Korea had disposed of Malaysia 40-5 at the same stage in the 2018 edition.
Meanwhile, the other quarter-final matchups here will see defending champions Hong Kong taking on Taiwan, 2018 edition silver medallists Japan facing the United Arab Emirates and China squaring off against Singapore. – Bernama
