The 2008 Asian Five Nations division tournaments, known as the 2008 HSBC Asian 5 Nations due to the tournament's sponsorship by the HSBC, was a rugby tournament played in divisions. This was the 1st series of the Asian Five Nations, following the merge of the ARFU Asian Rugby Series and Asian Rugby Championship.
There were two main divisions, with three further regional divisions. The winners of Division 1 would be promoted up to the Top Division for 2009, as will the winner of Division 2 being promoted to Division 1. The loser of Division 1, drops to Division 2.
Scoring system: 5 points for a win, three for a draw, one bonus point for being within seven points of the winning team, and one for four tries.
Teams The teams involved, with their world rankings pre tournament, were:
Division 1 (48) (55) (50)
Division 2 (81) (79) (NA) (65)
South-East Asia Division (NA) (NA) (NA)
Pacific-Asia Division (NA) (83) (NA)
Central Asia Division (NA) (NA) (NA)
Other Regions (NA) (NA) (NA)
Division 1 + Key to colours Earns Promotion Relegated
Standings
Position Nation Games Points Tablepoints Played Won Drawn Lost For Against Difference Tries121104342+148221015746+1167320114355-12434000000000
China withdrew due to lack of visa availability and were relegated to Division Two. Standings were determined according to the same method used in the HSBC Asian Five Nations championship. Singapore promoted to main tournament for 2009 edition.
Fixtures
Division 2 + Key to colours Earns Promotion Relegated
Division Two served as the first round of qualifying for the 2011 Rugby World Cup, as the Division Two champion would be promoted to Division One for 2009 and have the opportunity to be promoted to the HSBC Asian Five Nations for the 2010 season. The 2010 HSBC Asian Five Nations will be the final qualifying stage for the Asian representative at the 2011 Rugby World Cup.
Fixtures
Semi finals
Third v Fourth Final
Final
Tournament winner Thailand promoted to Division One for 2009. There will be no relegation for fourth placed team Pakistan.
Regional Divisions + Key to colours Earns Promotion Relegated
South-East Asia
Position Nation Games Points Tablepoints Played Won Drawn Lost For Against Difference Tries122007814+64010221014423+210532002388-8500
Pacific-Asia
Position Nation Games Points Tablepoints Played Won Drawn Lost For Against Difference Tries12200121811318102210182206205320020175-17500
Central Asia
Position Nation Games Points Tablepoints Played Won Drawn Lost For Against Difference Tries12200382216610220112123-223320113145-1433
Other Regions
Position Nation Games Points Tablepoints Played Won Drawn Lost For Against Difference Tries100000000020000000003000000000
Cancelled
See also 2008 Asian Five Nations
References
External links
Asian 5 nations on itsrugby.co.uk Pakistan Rugby Union