Volcanoes rule Asian Sevens in Thailand

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Volcanoes bested Asian rivals Singapore, Malaysia, China and Kazakhstan then toppled host Thailand to capture the top purse in the Plate Division of the HSBC Asian Sevens Series Thailand leg in Bang Sean, Pattaya last weekend.

The Volcanoes finished second in their pool behind the top-ranked Japanese on the first day but fell to the Koreans in the quarterfinals of the Cup Division on the second day, placing them in the Plate Division, where they faced the Kazakhs in the semifinals.

After trailing 10-0 at halftime, the Volcanoes rallied to win the match, 14-10, to arrange a finals showdown with the Thais.

The Phl took a 10-7 lead at halftime but the Volcanoes played the second half down to just six men as Chris Hitch was sent off with a yellow card. Thailand cashed in on the mismatch with a try and conversion which gave them the lead but Hitch, upon his return to the pitch, made up for his earlier mistake by scoring a breakaway try, giving the lead back to the Philippines, 15-14. The Volcanoes scored another try, this time by Sean Lynch and conversion by Holgate, ending the match at 22-14 for the Plate trophy.

“The Thailand 7s has seen an improvement in the Volcanoes rankings for 2013. Although some of our top players were unavailable due to commitments in Japan, the team showed that we can win at the Asian Championships.” said Volcanoes coach Matt Cullen.

The win augurs well for the team gearing up for the series’ next two legs and the Asian Games in 2014.

“Our boys showed a lot of heart and determination to finish the tournament by winning the Plate Division, despite having a few injuries. But the most important game is the Cup Quarter Final on Sunday morning – we need to win that game to consolidate a Top 4 finish in each tournament,” said co-captain Oliver Saunders. “If we can do that, then we will have a solid ranking heading into the Asian games next year.”

The Volcanoes, meanwhile, will next vie in Mumbai for the third leg of the HSBC Asian Sevens Series next month before competing in Singapore in November for the tournament’s final stage.

A good ranking at the end of the year will put the Volcanoes in good stead for the Asian Games 2014 in Korea.