Singapore men’s rugby team rout Thailand 30-8 in Unions Cup

The annual 15-a-side tournament from June 29 to July 5 also features Chinese Taipei.

The Singapore men’s 15s team last competed at the 2019 Asia Rugby Division 1 Tournament in Taiwan, where they were beaten 29-21 by the Philippines in the final.

Buoyed by a crowd of about 700 supporters at the Jurong West Stadium, the Singaporeans were just happy to be back on the pitch in a 15s side.

Captain Russell Wong, 31, told The Sunday Times: “Elated is the word, man, I’m really happy. We were very excited to play and it’s even better to get the win in front of the home crowd. It’s pretty amazing and an honour to wear the shirt.”

While 15s rugby has a proud tradition here, the sport worldwide has also transitioned to the faster-paced and more dynamic seven-a-side format, which features at the Olympics.

But Wong believes the essence of the 15s format should be preserved.

He added: “In sevens, you typically have a lot of fitter and slimmer guys but in 15s you have a lot of scrums. So you will get taller and bigger guys playing. It’s a game for all shapes and sizes, that’s what’s so special about 15s.”

Wong was among a handful of players picked from the national team’s sevens programme. He hopes to use his experience to nurture a new batch of younger players with more than half the national squad aged 25 or under.

National coach Suhaimi Amran, who took over in 2021 during the Covid-19 pandemic, said: “We are willing to sacrifice experience for youth development. This tournament provided us with the opportunity for a reset.

“It’s tough because we’re starting from ground zero, but we hope to inspire young kids who aspire to be part of the 15s national team.”

For now, the Unions Cup is the only international tournament for the national 15s team, but Suhaimi noted that a regular “Causeway challenge” event with neighbours Malaysia could be on the cards.

Ahead of their clash with Southeast Asian rivals Thailand, Wong set the tempo by giving an impassioned team talk before the players stepped onto the field.

Singapore came out flying as Sean Andriesz opened the scoring with a try in the 18th minute before Wong added one of his own with the last play of the first half for a 12-0 lead.

Although Thailand came roaring back with a penalty kick and try early in the second half, the Singaporeans responded with two more tries – by Andreisz and Sean Er – and two penalties.

Full-time national serviceman Andreisz, 20, said: “It was just adrenaline and a great honour scoring in my home country. We all just wanted to give our all.”

Next up on July 5 is Chinese Taipei, who play Thailand on July 2. Chinese Taipei are ranked 11 rungs below the world No. 55 hosts.

Andreisz added: “Chinese Taipei is going to be a physical game. One thing we have to work on is our rucks. We’ve got to be better organised and have better rucking speed and strength.”

Ervin Ang

The Straits Times

Asia News Network