{
  "id": 4634056,
  "title": "Part-time training holding back women's rugby squad, says coach",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/31/part-time-training-holding-back-womens-rugby-squad-says-coach",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-08-31T11:24:19.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "New Straits Times",
    "slug": "new-straits-times",
    "url": "https://www.nst.com.my/sports/others/2026/08/1522914/part-time-training-holding-back-womens-rugby-squad-says-coach"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "National women's rugby squad head coach Faiz Samsukhidhir has expressed disappointment with his team's performances at the start of the Asia Rugby Sevens Series in Suzhou, China. All three group matches were losses against Hong Kong, Thailand, and Sri Lanka. In the subsequent classification matches, Malaysia secured wins against Sri Lanka and Iran, while the match against Singapore was cancelled due to bad weather. The team finished ninth overall. Faiz blamed their underwhelming performance on their lack of preparation, noting that they only have around 14 days of training per month, while other teams train full-time. Funding and support have been a constant issue, preventing a consistent full-time training program. The coach now faces the challenge of getting the squad ready for the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games in just three weeks.",
  "summary": "KUALA LUMPUR: National women's squad head coach Faiz Samsukhidhir admitted that he was not surprised by his team's mixed performances at the opening leg of the Asia Rugby Sevens Series which concluded in Suzhou, China yesterday.",
  "key_points": [
    "Coach Faiz Samsukhidhir blames part-time training for women's squad performance.",
    "Team lost all three group matches at Asia Rugby Sevens Series.",
    "Only 14 days of training per month available, hindering full-time preparation."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}