Despite a defeat, it was a weekend to remember fro Malaysia in the men’s Asia Rugby Championship.
Losing 30-24 to Hong Kong meant that they earned a first-ever bonus point in the top tier of Asian rugby, and put in a performance that will go down as one of their finest.
Hong Kong are ranked 24 places higher than Malaysia, but on another day the result could have been different.
Brad Mika’s side had ‘struggled’ in their first two matches with Korea but following the performance against Hong Kong, anticipation is high ahead of their final match of the Championship at Bukit Jalil Stadium this Saturday.
“I am very very proud of the boys,” said Mika.
“Our last two weeks against Korea we struggled to stick to the process but we saw that when you fall in love with the process it is surprising how far you can go.
“We spoke about belief and I am sure some of the boys surprised themselves with how far they could go, especially against the much higher ranked side like Hong Kong.”
Malaysia will host Hong Kong for the return leg on Saturday, and Mika is calling the Malaysian fans to head down and support his side.
Take your hats off for this epic try from @malaysiarugby! What a performance as they lose 30-24 to Hong Kong @worldrugby pic.twitter.com/mmRmYzuctA
— Asia Rugby (@asiarugby) June 15, 2019
“Firstly, I would like to thank the Malaysia people for all their support so far,” added Mika.
“I hope we made them proud last week. Despite the score it was a win for me, so hopefully we can see more support for us in Bukit Jalil.”
The match will be streamed live on Asia Rugby’s Facebook page.