KUALA LUMPUR, March 8 (Bernama) -- The national rugby squad have commenced early preparations this time around after becoming whipping boys to Hong Kong and South Korea in the Premier Division of the Asian Rugby Championship (ARC) last year.
Head coach of the Bunga Raya 15s, Mohd Farid Syazwan Abu Bakar said that they plan to hold at least six training camps before this year's ARC, scheduled for early June.
The team, currently undergoing the first phase of centralised training at Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI), Tanjung Malim, will also face local club Barbarians in a friendly match tomorrow evening.
"This camp is to address the weaknesses identified based on the team's performance in 2023. We also aim to play two test matches against national teams, who are still trying to confirm or prepare their respective squads," he said via a video clip.
Mohd Farid Syazwan stated that the competition in the top division of this year's ARC is expected to be fiercer compared to last year, especially with the addition of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) team this edition.
"The UAE team has expatriate players and naturalised players from Fiji. However, we are confident with the local talents identified, we will try our best to support the team this time," he said.
He added that the coaching staff have called up six new faces to the Bunga Raya 15s squad this time, while retaining 24 players from the previous edition and recalling five former players who were not in the squad before this.
According to him, player assessments were based on the 2023 King's Cup which ended last November and the recent Corporate Super Rugby Championship (CSR).
The national squad are scheduled to kick off their ARC 2024 campaign against South Korea in Incheon on June 2, followed by hosting Hong Kong (June 8) and facing UAE (June 21) in Dubai.
In the previous edition, the Bunga Raya 15s squad suffered defeats of 3-27 to South Korea and 9-88 to defending champions Hong Kong in the tournament participated by three teams using a league format.
-- BERNAMA
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