Sea Games doubt leaves MR waiting

national sevens squad will have to wait until November to know whether they will continue to receive funding from the government.

Malaysia Rugby (MR) honorary secretary Jamaluddin Salim said it will largely depend on whether the sport is included in next year’s Philippines Sea Games.

The national team — who were able to train full time from January to August thanks to financial assistance from the National Sports Council (NSC) — created history by winning the Sea Games title for the first time at last year’s edition.

At the recent Indonesia Asian Games, they finished fifth.

Rugby sevens, however, was not included in the initial list of sports by the Philippines for next year’s edition.

“We filed two separate appeals in July to have the sport included in the Sea Games,” said Jamaluddin recently.

“One was sent via the Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) and the other was a joint appeal from Asean countries which was submitted to the Philippines Olympic Council via their rugby union.

“We met with our Asean counterparts at the Indonesia Asian Games last month. We are optimistic our appeal will be successful and that rugby will be included in the Sea Games.

“We, however, have to wait until the Sea Games Federation (SGF) meeting in November before it can be confirmed.

“If it is included then we will receive support from NSC and probably start the (preparation) programme early next year.