The Sri Lanka women’s rugby team - the fifth ranked team on the continent - will not be taking part in September’s Asian Games in South Korea due to the lack of funds, it as announced over the weekend.

Sri Lankan coach and team in happier days

Sri Lanka have been the success story of Asian women's rugby in recent years. In terms of women player numbers they are now the 12th largest union in the world, with more adult players than New Zealand, Scotland, Brazil or the Netherlands.

With that base new coach Chandrishan Perera has taken them in recent years from 15th-placed also-rans to number five on the continent, breathing down the necks of China and Hong Kong. But that advance has hit a massive road block - money.

The Asian Games are a huge event with a prestige second only to the Olympics in the region, and was one of the first multi-sport games to embrace rugby sevens. But the national women's sevens team has been cut from the list of participants funded by the Sri Lankan National Olympic Committee (NOC).

Sri Lanka Rugby Football Union spokesman Rizly Illyas said they had put up an application but participation but had not been recommended by the NOC, which also handles team management and funding for the Asian Games. The cost of sending the team would have been Rs 2 million (just over £9,000).

“The more international competitions we contest, the better it would be for the team to further improve and we train hard and tough for such tours”, said coach Chandrishan.The Sri Lanka women were also expected to contest both legs of the Asian Sevens in Hong Kong in August and China in October, but there is no confirmation about their participation, and the NOC could not be reached for comment