The current fitness and performance of the national women’s seven-a-side (7s) rugby squad are unsatisfactory despite having undergone centralised training for almost three months at the National Sports Council.
This was confirmed by head coach Nik Safuan Ismade Nik Man based on the results of tests conducted on his charges on Sept 15.
He said this was expected because of the absence of any tournament during this period.
“Since there have been no tournaments, the coaching staff have adopted the existing training programme by strengthening ‘basic foundation’ aspects in general and specific during this General Preparation Phase (GPP) period.
“The focus in training now is more on improving fitness and basic skills where the need is very critical in the preparation of athletes as most of the players in the squad are still new at the national level,” he said in a statement today.
He said the players were also given classes on the rules and regulations of the game to give them a better understanding.
He said two test matches scheduled for the second week of November and the first week of December had to be postponed because most of peninsular Malaysia has been placed under the Conditional Movement Control Order from Nov 9 to Dec 6. — BERNAMA
