BIRMINGHAM, July 29 — The national rugby squad was clearly outclassed by world champions South Africa as they lost 0 - 46 in their opening seven-a-side rugby match in the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games today.
The squad, coached by Mohd Saizul Hafifi Md Noor, did not stand a chance at breaching their rivals’ defence at Coventry Stadium, falling behind 0 - 22 in the first half of the match. Although the Bunga Raya squad tried their best to score in the second half, the world champions were simply too good.
Mohd Saizul Hafifi admitted that the loss had been expected, but the team had their best chance of scoring in the first half.
“But when we attacked, we lost possession of the ball. Our players also failed to match the fast game played by the South Africans. But the performance they gave should give them confidence in future matches,” he said.
The national squad will take on Scotland in their second Group B match tonight (local time, early morning Malaysian time), before wrapping up their group action against Tonga on July 30.
In the 2018 Gold Coast edition, the Bunga Raya squad were eliminated early on after losing to Papua New Guinea (5 - 31), Scotland (0 - 41) and South Africa (0 - 43).
— Bernama
