‘Selection rift behind poor show’

Pakistan Rugby Union denies reports.

LAHORE:

The poor performance of the national rugby team at the Asian 5-Nation Division III tournament has raised speculation that an internal rift over selection within the Pakistan Rugby Union (PRU) led to the team’s dismal show.

However, The Express Tribune has learnt that the squad was missing some key players due to strong differences that had arisen on selection matters, which led the PRU to field a second-string team. The selection of 12 players from Islamabad was on the cards. However, they withdrew protesting over the exclusion of a senior player from their city, confirmed a national team player.

“We were missing some experienced campaigners,” the player told The Express Tribune. “The players selected did their best but weren’t able to get promoted to Division II.”

The PRU, however, asserted that various players had withdrawn due to job commitments while the rest of the selection was made on merit.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 28^th, 2011.