Asian Under-19 Results

On the first day of the Asian Under-19 Championship being held at the Haigen People's Liberation Army Training Centre in Kunming China, the hosts enjoyed a big and encouraging win over Malaysia.

China are hosting their first big tournament ever and it doubles as a qualification for the IRB's Under-19 Championship in Durban, South Africa, in March/April 2005. Japan have already qualified, leaving the way open for one more Asian side in Division B.

Before the tournament China's coach, Zheng Hongjun, expressed the hope that his team would end sixth. They went into the tournament unseeded and in the first round on Sunday walloped Malaysia who are seeded sixth. The win suggests the possibility of even better things for Asian newboys. They now play fourth-seeded Chinese Taipei.

The seedings are:

1 Japan
2 Korea
3 Thailand
4 Chinese Taipei
5 Sri Lanka
6 Malaysia
7 Hong Kong
8 Singapore.

India, China, Kazakhstan and Arabian Gulf are unseeded.

Day 1 Results:

China vs Malaysia, 48-0
Hong Kong vs Kazakhstan, 8-0
Japan vs Thailand, 46-9
Korea vs Chinese Taipei, 43-0
Singapore vs Arabian Gulf, 14-14
Sri Lanka vs India, 46-5

Monday is a rest day. Matches resume on Tuesday. Matches will also be played on Thursday with the finals on Sunday.

Day 2's fixtures:

Japan vs Singapore
Korea vs Hong Kong
Thailand vs Sri Lanka
China vs Chinese Taipei
Arabian Gulf vs Malaysia
Kazakhstan vs India