It was mission accomplished and the national sepak takraw team kept the streak going with their third consecutive bronze medal.

They returned to Brunei with their heads held high after finishing joint-third in the inter-regu discipline at the 3rd Asian Beach Games in Haiyang, China.

It was a tad easier for this edition as the team were already ensured a medal before kicking off their campaign after Myanmar pulled out in the last minute.

They were grouped together with Indonesia and Myanmar. Since the top two teams advance into the semi-finals meant the national squad progressed automatically.

They were edged 3-2 (15-10, 13-15, 15-8, 14-6, 16-14) by Indonesia in the group stages which resulted in them facing Thailand in the semi-finals.

The World No 1 and eventual champions, Thailand, proved to be at another level as they swept the Sultanate 3-0 (15-4, 15-8, 15-7) in their last-four matchup.

Despite having the luck of the draw at the start of the competition and losing both their matches, national coach Ittiphol Chomchaissak felt that the team put up a pretty good performance at the June 16-22 biennial tournament.

"I thought the performance was alright. We knew from the start that the match against Indonesia would have gone either way," said Ittiphol upon arrival at the Brunei International Airport in Berakas yesterday.

"But knowing that we have already entered the semi-finals might have played a part in terms of mentality. Overall, I'm still happy with the boys as they tried their best," he added.

"We couldn't play to our potential against the Thais though. It could have been because the match against Indonesia the previous day lasted almost three hours inclusive of warmups," continued the Thai.

Meanwhile, chef de mission Mariam Ulat, felt that the team did a great job at the Games.

"They played extremely well against Indonesia in the first game. But it could have been the nerves in the last set that led to the lost. We just made more mistakes," said Mariam.

"We weren't consistent against Thailand though. We could have done a lot better but overall I'm satisfied from this trip," she added.

There will be no time to rest for the team as next they will leave for Thailand tomorrow for the ISTAF Super Series from June 28 to July 1.

The 27th King's Cup Sepak Takraw World Championship to be held on July 2-8 will follow right after.

Courtesy from Brunei Times