From snow to Almaty, Mongolia blend experience and youth for Central competition

Mongolia rugby will take on Kazakhstan on Wednesday in the second match of the Asia Rugby Championship Division III Central competition.

Despite being the favourites due to their World Rugby ranking, hosts Kazakhstan will not underestimate Mongolia.

A lot of their preparation for this tournament has been in the snow so the conditions will certainly be a little different, but that is not deterring their captain Dashdendev Austin Gansukh.

“In terms of our preparation, we have our annual snow rugby event which is played between February and March, so as soon as this finished we put together our squad,” said Gansukh.

“Unfortunately we had some issues with injuries and obviously the weather affects us but we are excited to be here.”

Playing at the Stadium of the First President in Almaty, all four teams competing in the tournament will be aiming to reach Saturday’s final.

For Mongolia, they have a balanced team and their match with Kazakhstan alone will be one to savour.

“We are trying our best and have a balanced team in terms of experience,” added Gansukh.

“There are some young players coming in from the club level and also some more experienced players.

“For a lot of our players it will be a great experience and opportunity and to play against Kazakhstan will be a great opportunity especially as a growing rugby nation for us coming up against a side as prepared as Kazakhstan.”

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