SOUTH KOREA BEAT MALAYSIA IN ARC OPENING MATCH

South Korea overcame a hard fighting Malaysian team to claim a 27-3 opening win in the Asia Rugby Championship. The Koreans were tested throughout the match at the IIUM Saidina Hamzah Stadium near Kuala Lumpur on Saturday.

Despite taking an early lead with a try by Yongheung Chang, South Korea were stunned by some dangerous attempts by the home side. After failing to score on the first penalty, Fairuz Rahman finally gave Malaysia the much-needed points with his second spot kick.

Although the score was narrowed down, South Korea remained focused on taming the menacing Malaysians. After a couple of good buildups and the sinbin of a Malaysian player, the Koreans were in the driving seat. Kimin Kim and Geon Lee tries gave South Korea a comfortable 20-3 lead at the break.

The Korean players showed more confidence as they returned for the second half. It took them just about two minutes to get another try from Jeongwook Hwang. Kimin Kim made no mistakes to deliver the conversion points.

The win gave South Korea a morale boost ahead of their next match against Hong Kong. Meanwhile, Malaysia displayed a very good fighting spirit despite missing many key players.

RUGBY ASIA