TACKLERS READY FOR NON-CONTACT ACTION
MR call up 20 men for national training
MALAYSIA Rugby (MR) have proposed 20 players to begin training when the door of the National Sports Complex reopens to all national athletes beginning Sunday.
MR honorary secretary Amrul Hazarin Hamidon disclosed that the players are under the 2026 Asian Games project squad, who are targeted to win a medal at the Nagoya Games.
He disclosed that the squad are prepared to conduct training in a non-contact manner as is required under current regulations.
“MR welcome the Sports Ministry's decision to allow full time training to resume. There should be no problems with the strict standard operating procedure (SOP) in place,” said Amrul.
“We have submitted 20 names to the National Sports Council (NSC) for their approval and are awaiting a response from them.
“The team will train in small groups which are easier to manage and the coaches will have an adjusted programme for the players considering that all training will be done without contact.
“We do not have any major tournaments confirmed so far this year but it remains important that our players return to training as we have outlined a long term development plan for them.”
After initially allowing athletes under the Road to Tokyo (RTT) programme to begin training earlier this month, the Sports Ministry on Saturday confirmed that the athletes under the Podium and backup programmes will now also be allowed to resume training.
These athletes will return to their training bases in stages beginning Sunday. All the athletes, officials and support staff involved will have to undergo a swab test upon arrival and will then be quarantined for two days until their test results are available.