Former national player Fazil Marija has been appointed head coach of the Sri Lanka men’s sevens rugby team, Hiru News reported.
Sri Lanka Rugby President Pavithra Fernando said the appointment was made with the upcoming Asian Games rugby tournament set as the team’s primary objective.
Marija continues in his existing roles as head coach of Kandy Sports Club and of the Trinity College Kandy rugby team. The dual club-and-school workload is not unusual in Sri Lankan rugby, but Hiru did not say whether he will retain both while running the national sevens programme.
A programme mid-season
The appointment lands with Sri Lanka’s sevens side already in continental competition. The team opened its 2026 Asia Rugby Emirates Men’s Sevens Series campaign with a 49-7 win over Kazakhstan in Suzhou, China, in late August, in a squad drawn heavily from Kandy SC — the club Marija coaches — and captained by Srinath Sooriyabandara.
The series carries a direct home stake: Asia Rugby has confirmed that the 2026 season concludes in Colombo on October 17 and 18, where the men’s and women’s continental champions will be crowned.
Sri Lanka’s sevens year has been uneven. The side won a double title at the CASA Sevens in May, but its Asia Championship campaign was disrupted in June when a visa issue handed Korea a walkover.
Hiru did not name Marija’s predecessor, give the length or terms of his contract, or say whether a separate coaching appointment has been made for the women’s sevens side. No other verified newsroom had reported the appointment at the time of writing.
