TIGERS UNITED

Hong Kong maintained their 100% record in Asia Rugby Championship Top Division and move into Rugby World Cup  qualification driving seat. They scored 13 tries to beat Malaysia 91-10 in the hunt for their first-ever Asia Rugby Championship Top Division title. Malaysia's dream of reaching the 2019 Rugby World Cup was over even before the match started, but Hong Kong are on the best form to be in Japan next year. It is Malaysia's biggest defeat in recent years and they were just no match to the favourites at Hong Kong Football Stadium. Hong Kong's head coach, Leigh Jones made 11 changes to his starting 15 and naming four debutants, and they did not give Malaysia an inch for the full 80 minutes. Tries by Conor Hartley , Jamie Lauder , Adam Fullgrabe , Jack Delaforce , Jack Neville , Jamie Pincott , Jamie Tsang , Max Denmark and Robert Keith made the game look easy for Hong Kong. Eleven successful conversions by Ben Rimene and one by Matthew Rosslee were more than enough

Thai hotshot Pavit Tangkamolprasert bounced back from a wrist injury after closing with a three-under-par 69 to claim a record sixth Asian Development Tour (ADT) title at the Betagro Championship on Sunday. The 29-year-old Pavit, who held a three-shot advantage heading into the final round thanks to a sparkling third round 62, traded six birdies against three bogeys to win by one shot with a 19-under-par 269 total at the Suwan Golf and Country Club . With this victory which also marks his first on home soil, Pavit now holds the most number of wins on the ADT , which was inaugurated as a gateway to the Asian Tour in 2010. He had shared the record with Chan Shih-chang after claiming his fifth title in Chinese Taipei in 2016. Thailand's Thitiphun Chuayprakong , playing in his first tournament following an eight-month injury-layoff, was hot on Pavit's heels, firing five birdies against a bogey in his opening 11 holes before nailing an eagle-birdie from 14 to tie the lead. Two

LIGA SUPER: KELANTAN 0 - NEGERI SEMBILAN 2 Kelantan struggles continued after they slumped to their eight defeat in Liga Super this season. Bottom place Negeri Sembilan took advantage at the Tunku Abdul Rahman Stadium in Paroi to claim an important win that sees them draw level on points with the team they beat. Alex De Moreas found the net for Negeri Sembilan in the 16th minute. In the 38th minute, Angel Guirado extended their lead with a well taken penalty. Although it is only their second win of the season, it is a good sign for the Jangs to bounce back into the competition. However, Kelantan suffered another setback after the midweek humiliation at the hands of Kuala Lumpur. Negeri Sembilan can now focus on their chance to get out of the relegation zone. RUGGER DISTRICT

LIGA SUPER: SELANGOR 1 - KEDAH 2 Kedah defeated Selangor 1-2 despite a late surge from the home side in the second half. The Red Eagles had lost at the same venue to Kuala Lumpur earlier in the season. Baddrol Bakhtiar opened the scoring for Kedah in the first half. Liridon Krasniqi doubled their lead by the after 7 minutes into the second half. Syahmi Safari pulled one back for the Red Giants in the 71st minute. Kedah hung on with the one goal advantage until the end of the match. The Red Eagles are one of the three clubs between third to fifth who are tied on 21 points. Selangor's miserable run in Liga Super could see them being demoted to the Liga Premier next season. The 33-time Malaysia Cup champions are just three points above the relegation zone, occupied by Negri Sembilan and Kelantan, at ninth on 11 points with 11 matches left to play. THE MATCH

Gareth Bale came off the bench to score twice, including one of the all-time great goals in a Champions League final, as Real Madrid beat Liverpool 3-1 in Kiev on Saturday to take the trophy for the third year running. Bale's jaw-dropping overhead kick in the 64th minute put Real 2-1 up moments after his introduction, following a dramatic start to the second half in which Karim Benzema gave Real the lead as a result of a Loris Karius howler. Sadio Mane had briefly restored parity, but Bale put Real in front again and then sealed the triumph late on with a long-range strike that the unfortunate Karius could only punch into the net. Jurgen Klopp 's and Liverpool's own evening was marred by the loss of a distraught Mohamed Salah to injury in the first half, the Egyptian coming off half an hour in having damaged his shoulder. This was not to be Salah's night, with Real allowing Zinedine Zidane to become the first coach ever to win the Champions League thre

Chinese Taipei defeated Thailand in their final match to claim the Asia Rugby Championship Division II title. Based on the World Rugby Rankings, Chinese Taipei were the favourites to land the title despite playing on a humid day in Pattaya. Both teams had defeated India earlier before coming into the decisive match.  Thailand did not went down easily, as they made the visitors to work hard until the end of the match. Akarin Thitisakulvit gave the hosts a good start in the final from a penalty. Che-Yu Sung gave Chinese Taipei the first try in the 19th minute to put them into the lead. Thailand responded with a try 10 minutes later through Vatcharakorn Vorachate to regain the lead. Thitisakulvit scored another penalty to extend their advantage, but Wei-Ming Ling got another try to keep Chinese Taipei just one point behind at the break. Both sides played solid games after the break. Sumet Thammaporn scored Thailand's second try with in the 60th minute. W

American John Catlin won his maiden Asian Tour title after carding a final-round three-under-par 69 to win the US$300,000 Asia-Pacific Classic on Sunday. The 27-year-old had a nervy start as he dropped two shots on his opening nine holes. However, he recovered when it mattered most, scoring birdies on holes 11, 13 and 14 before holding on for his maiden Asian Tour victory on a 16-under-par 272 total at the St Andrews Golf Club in Henan, China. Catlin, a two-time Asian Development Tour (ADT) who has earned his Asian Tour card by finishing third on the ADT merit list, took home a winner's purse of US$54,000. He has risen from 44th to 20th place on the Habitat for Humanity Standings. Thailand's Natipong Srithong  and Australia's Adam Blyth  share second place, two shots behind Catlin. Natipong shot six birdies during his flawless round, but it was a case of too little, too late. Blyth rued his bogey at the 10th, which took away his momentum in his chase for the ti

South Korea keep their Rugby World Cup dream alive with another win in the Asia Rugby Championship . The South Koreans beat Malaysia 67-12 in Incheon on Saturday after taking a 35-0 half time lead. Malaysia realised that it was almost impossible to beat the home team on their own pitch. South Korea were too strong for their opponents. Five tries by Seong Min Jang , Ho Bun Kim , Nam Uk Kim , Jae Bok Lee and conversions by Youn Hyung Oh in the first half were early signs that Malaysia will go home empty-handed. However, Malaysia showed more confidence after the break. Samuela Tamanisau delivered their first try just one minute after the match resumed, and Muhamad Amirul Aqil Kamsol scored for the conversion. The home side replied with two tries through Jeong Min Jang and Jeong Min Kim . In the 72nd minute, Mohamad Aiman Jamaluddin got a second try for the Hibiscus . However, South Korea were in complete control of the match as Jinhyeok Kim scored their eighth try

Marc Marquez won a third race on the trot for Honda as he claimed victory in the French MotoGP at Le Mans . It was a 38th win for the Spaniard in the series and extended his lead to 36 points at the top of the championship. Marquez romped to his third win on the bounce in the Grand Prix de France at Le Mans ahead of Danilo Petrucci and Valentino Rossi , benefitting from both pole man Johann Zarco and title rival Andrea Dovizioso crashing out early in the race. The results means Marquez now holds a 36 point lead just five races into the season. Jack Miller posted one of his best results in MotoGP with a fourth placing, hounding Rossi all the way home and only just failing to snag a spot on the podium. Zarco had the 105,000 home fans at Le Mans' Bugatti circuit dreaming of a rare French win after his record-setting pole 24 hours earlier, but the Yamaha Tech star slid out of contention on Lap 7. Zarco's premature exit left Marquez in control of a race that, aft

FA CUP FINAL: CHELSEA 1 - MANCHESTER UTD 0 Eden Hazard ensured Chelsea 's lackluster season ended on a high note by securing the F.A. Cup in a 1-0 victory over Manchester United in the final on Saturday. Days after raising doubts about his Chelsea future, Hazard netted from the penalty spot in the 22nd minute at Wembley Stadium after being brought down by Phil Jones. After lifting the Premier League trophy last season, Chelsea finished 30 points behind newly crowned champion Manchester City to finish fifth last week and out of the Champions League places. Victory for Conte , his first in a cup final meant Jose Mourinho finished his second season at United empty-handed, paying the price for an insipid first-half display and coming to life only after the break. United took until the 56th minute to register a shot on target when Marcus Rashford struck at goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, who later rushed off his line to block the forward. United did finish second in t

​ Blue Tigers from Johor won the Kuching 10's Rugby Tournament as they defeated UPM Angels 19-7 in the final. After finishing third at Badang 10's and Puteri 7's last year, the Blue Tigers showed huge improvements at Kuching 10's and produced convincing performances throughout the tournament. Founded in 2016 , Blue Tigers are currently managed by Azmi Ahmad and coached by Farid Rahman . They edged ATM Barbarians 10-7 in the semifinals to set-up the final showdown against the Angels, who thrashed Sukma Sabah 17-0 earlier. With former Malaysia Sevens players, Fairuz Rahman and Faridzal Ismail in the line-up, Blue Tigers were more balanced with experience to take their first championship. Sukma Sabah bagged the third place in in the Club category after beating ATM Barbarians 17-0 in the deciding match. Sibu Goldies clinched the Kuching 10's Veteran Cup as they defeated KK Sharks in the final. SHOAW beat Sibu U18 in extra-time to win the S

Hong Kong defeated South Korea 30-21 to remain unbeaten in the 2018 Asia Rugby Championship . The South Koreans gave a good fight before going down in a rain-drenched Incheon on Saturday. It's a massive win for Hong Kong according to coach Leigh Jones as his team moved to the top of the table with two away wins. Hong Kong took the lead with a well taken penalty by Matt Rosslee after four minutes into the game. South Korea replied shortly thereafter with a try by Jang Jeong-min , and Oh Youn-hyung scored the coversion to give his team a 7-3 lead. However, the Koreans conceded too many penalties in the first half to allow Hong Kong back into the lead. Lee Young-seung got a try late in the first half, before Rosslee's conversion made it 21-7 for Hong Kong right before the break. South Korea put themselves together and scored two converted tries after the match resumed to keep their chances alive. However, Hong Kong held on until the end before claiming a 30-21

Guam displayed superiority in rugby over China as the bagged the Asia Rugby Championship Division III. They cruised to victory after a 52-12 win in the final to claim the title. After a convincing 66-12 win over Brunei on Tuesday, Guam went into the final with a great form. Four tries by Chris Sgro put Guam on to the right track for the championship. They were 31-0 up just after the first 25 minutes into the final. China fought back in the second half with two tries by Xuzeng Wang and Ratu Totivi Rakainaviti Ralulu , but Guam were in complete control as they pulled away to victory. THE MATCH

LIGA SUPER: NEGERI SEMBILAN 1 - KEDAH 2 Kedah claimed full points in their Liga Super match against Negeri Sembilan at Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium in Paroi. The Red Eagles were flying high as they beat struggling Negeri Sembilan 2-1. Kedah opened the scoring in the 8th minute after Liridon Krasniqi beat Negeri Sembilan's goalkeeper. Just nine minutes later, Akhyar Abdul Rashid doubled the lead for his team. Negeri Sembilan tried to get back into the game in the second half. They missed a few chances but finally found the breakthrough in the 76th minute through Flavio Beck Junior . Kedah held on in the last 10 minutes and secured another away win to be at 6th place in Liga Super with 15 points. Negeri Sembilan suffered their 7th defeat of the season and remain at the bottom of the table.

Sweden's Malcolm Kokocinski secured an inspiring victory after closing with a six-under-par 65 to win by three shots for his first Asian Tour title at the AB Bank Bangladesh Open on Saturday. Kokocinski, a regular on the Asian Development Tour (ADT) where he leads the current Order of Merit , overturned a three-shot deficit after returning with his best efforts of the week to cap a winning total of 14-under-par 270 at the Kurmitola Golf Club . The 26-year-old Kokocinski, who is based in Thailand, takes home a winner's prize purse of US$54,000, courtesy of his breakthrough win on the Asian Tour, which also marked his second professional victory since joining the play-for-pay ranks in 2012. Overnight leader Jack Harrison of England endured two closing bogeys for a 71, settling for a share of second place with fellow Qualifying School graduate Ben Campbell of New Zealand, who carded a 69, in the US$300,000 Asian Tour event. American John Catlin capped back-to-back t

LIGA SUPER: SELANGOR 2 - JOHOR DT 2 Selangor threw away their opportunity to beat Liga Super leader, Johor DT (JDT) as they were held to a 2-2 draw in Cheras. The Red Giants were leading 2-1 after the first half, but Novillo Harry Christopher saved JDT with an equaliser in the second half. JDT were quick to take the lead just after two minutes into the game. Gonzalo Cabrera stunned the home side with a fine goal put his team ahead. Selangor responded aggressively and launched continuous attack. Saiful Ridzuwan Selamat brought the Red Giants back into the game with his goal in the 14th minute. Two minutes later, Rufino Segovia found the net to give Selangor the advantage until the break. JDT came on in the second half to avoid defeat. They went all out and Novillo got the equaliser for his team in the 67th minute. Both team took turns to find the winning goal but the match ended with a draw. The Southern Tigers remain on top of Liga Super with five poin

LIGA SUPER: NEGERI SEMBILAN 0 - JOHOR DT 4 Johor DT are on the right track to retain the Liga Super title after defeating Negeri Sembilan 4-0. The Southern Tigers gave the home side no chance in the match at the Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium on Sunday. Johor DT were looking for points in their trip to Seremban, to build bigger gap over other title challengers in the league. Gonzalo Carera scored a penalty in the 6th minutes to give his team the lead. In the 37th minute, Le'vere Cobing-Ong doubled their lead with another goal. Both sides went into the half time break with Johor DT leading 2-0. The match resumed and the Southern Tigers were quick to be back in business as usual. Safawi Rasid scored Johor DT's second penalty of the night in the 63rd minute, after being brought down by Aizulridzwan Razali in the danger area. Ten minutes later, Safawi found the net again with a curling strike to give his team a comfortable 4-0 away win. Johor DT remained on top

Korea's Sanghyun Park renewed his love affair with the GS Caltex Maekyung Open Golf Championship by winning the long-standing event again with a par at the third play-off hole on Sunday. Park, who won the event in 2016, had to go the extra distance to lift his sixth professional title after he carded an even-par-71 in the final round to force his way into a play-off with compatriots Yikeun Chang , Junggon Hwang and India's Gaganjeet Bhullar . Bhullar threatened to break the dominance of the Koreans at the GS Caltex Maekyung Open Golf Championship which has not welcomed a foreign winner since American Mark Calcavecchia emerged victorious in 2004. The Indian, who had earlier compiled a four-day total of one-under-par 283, was however the first player to bow out from the four-man play-off at the first hole. He conceded the hole after he knew his best effort could only be a bogey while the Koreans had easy par putt chances. Hwang was next to fall out of contention after

Marc Marquez took a stunning second win of the season, which is also his second win at Jerez in the Gran Premio Red Bull de España . The reigning world champion powered his Repsol Honda to the front and pulled himself away from some huge drama that then hit the race behind. Dani Pedrosa , Jorge Lorenzo and Andrea Dovizioso all crash out in an unbelievable racing incident at turn 6. Johann Zarco and Andrea Iannone came through to complete the podium. Lorenzo took the lead ahead of Pedrosa in second and Zarco in third as pole sitter Cal Crutchlow lost out off the line. Marquez remained where he'd qualified in fifth, with Alex Rins in sixth. Marquez was in a race of his own for the last eight laps after the Ducati pair, Dovizioso and Lorenzo collided with Honda's Pedrosa while fighting for second place. Lorenzo came across into the corner as Dovizioso went wide, colliding with Pedrosa and sending the two Ducatis into the gravel. Pedrosa was thrown high over his

Hong Kong kick-started their Asia Rugby Championship Top Division campaign with a convincing win over Malaysia at the National Stadium in Kuala Lumpur. The Dragons showed why they are the favourite to reach the 2019 Rugby World Cup by defeating the newly promoted Malaysian team 67-8 on Sunday. The Asia Top Division is totally a different level of rugby for the Fearless Hibiscus although they have won two consecutive Asia Division One titles in 2016 and 2017. The Fearless Hibiscus were looking good early in the match. After being held for the first 10 minutes, Hong Kong finally got the break through with a try by Thomas Lamboley in the 14th minute. Nine minutes later, they were 8-0 up after a penalty taken by Matthew Rosslee . Hong Kong started to show their class at the half hour mark. Another try by Lamboley and a conversion by Rossley put them further ahead. Then, Etonia Vaqa Saukuru brought Malaysia back into the game with a try in the 33rd minute. The Dragons w

Nitithorn Thippong of Thailand won his first Asian Development Tour (ADT) title with a final round three-under-par 69 at the RM225,000 (approximately US$58,000) PGM Penang Championship on Saturday. The 21-year-old, who entered the last day of the tournament one shot behind overnight leader Miguel Carballo of Argentina, made four birdies against a lone bogey to close with a winning total of 15-under-par 273 at the Bukit Jawi Golf Resort .  Carballo was in a prime position for victory, but he had to settle for tied-second after returning a 72. Also in second place is Swede Malcolm Kokocinski , who earned his fifth top-10 finish this year. With this, Kokocinski has taken over the lead on the ADT Order of Merit list from American John Catlin , who was not in the field this week. Wilson Choo of Malaysia finished commendably in tied-10th on a 279 total. Amir Nazrin is the next highest-ranked Malaysian. He carded a 66, the day's lowest score, to finish in 17th place. Th

LIGA SUPER: MELAKA UNITED 1 - PERAK 2 Perak stunned Melaka United to collect full points from their visit to Hang Jebat Stadium on Wednesday. It is their fifth win from eight matches in Liga Super this season. Perak showed strong determination from the start. The first half was pretty balance for both sides before Wander Luiz scored a penalty in the injury time. Melaka came back after the break looking for an equaliser. However, the Bos Gaurus strike again in the 56th minute through Gilmar Da Silva . Melaka United tried to take control of the match and Yahor Zubovich found the net for the home side in the 78th minute. Perak held on until the final whistle to claim another win. The Bos Gaurus remained at third place in Liga Super with just five points behind the league leader. Melaka dropped two places to ninth place. RUGGER DISTRICT

South Korea got Rugby World Cup campaign off to a good start after defeating Malaysia 35-10 in Kuala Lumpur. The Koreans were too superior against the Asia Rugby Championship Top Division debutant as they took a strong 21-0 lead in the first 40 minutes. South Korea went into the Bukit Jalil National Stadium like a storm as they pressured the unsettled home team. It took just two minutes for them to score their first penalty through Youn Hyung Oh . Six minutes later, Jeong Min Jang got a try to extend their lead. The Hibiscus struggled to hold the experienced South Koreans. Youn Hyung Oh scored another two penalties and a penalty try to put them 21 points ahead in the first half. South Korea returned after the break with a consistent performance. Jeong Min Jang delivered another try for his team in the 47th minute, and Youn Hyung Oh scored the conversion. Malaysia finally got into the match on the hour mark. Timoci Vunimoku scored a try in the 60th minute, and Moha

LIGA SUPER: SELANGOR 2 - NEGERI SEMBILAN 1 Selangor pulled away from the Liga Super relegation zone after defeating bottom-placed Negeri Sembilan 2-1 at the Cheras Football Stadium . The Red Giants took control of the game, but Negeri Sembilan gave them a good fight before going down. Rufino Segovia opened the scoring for the home side as he headed in to beat Negeri Sembilan's goalkeeper in the 34th minute. Selangor tried to extend the lead, but the Deer held on until the break. Negeri Sembilan looked more organised in the second half. In the 56th minute, Sean Selvaraj stunned the visitor with his first goal of the season to give Selangor a comfortable 2-0 advantage. Thanabalan Nadarajah was sent into the game in the after 60 minutes to find the goal for Negeri Sembilan. Just three minutes later, the Malaysia U-23 striker found the net to reduce the deficit. Negeri Sembilan threw everything to find the equaliser, though Selangor managed to control the situ