Women’s Rugby Regular Season Finale

It’s the final round of the 2017-18 women’s rugby season and there’s all to play for at the top and bottom of all three divisions.  With teams also looking for an advantage going into the Grand Championships it  promises to be another fiercely competitive day of rugby.

In the Premiership Gai Wu Falcons lead Valley Black by a single point. To take the title for a fourth successive year, Valley will need a bonus point victory over USRC Tigers (18:00, King’s Park) and hope that HKFC Ice can contain Gai Wu (16:30, KG V). Quite why the HKRU can’t schedule the games to kick-off at the same time instead of giving Valley the advantage is unknown.

In the insultingly names Premiership Development Legaue three teams have a shot at wrapping up top spot. Kowloon, in second place, need a four-try win over leaders Tai Po Dragons (17:30, HKIED), while third-placed CWB Phoenix need a demolition of winless City Sparkle (16:00, HKIED) and a narrow win for Kowloon.

The USRC Tigers head to King’s Park touting their October draw with Gai Wu as evidence that they have what it takes to bring down Valley Black, whose seeming invincibility was dispelled in their 22-15 loss to Gai Wu, two weeks ago.  Both teams have near-full-strength squads, with their Hong Kong sevens players back from the Coral Coast Sevens.

Tigers coach Fan Shun Kei has opted to play exciting 17-year-old Lara Schats at fly half, and move New Zealander Sarah Swinbanks to fullback where she can use her strength and kicking skills to cover the back line. His only notable absentee is winger Hebe Talas, resting after a concussion in her previous game.

“Lara is the youngest in the squad, but is a very attacking player. In the fly half role, she gives us an extra possible combination for the Grand Championships. We now have the option to swap around for each team we play,” Fan explains.

Fan is brimming with optimism about the opportunity to cap the season by beating one of the top two. “Unfortunately we are not able to compete for the league leadership,” Fan added. “But our girls are very excited because of Valley’s defeat by Gai Wu. This is our rehearsal for the Grand Champs and hopefully it will bring out our best game.”

“Valley have some really good players, but do not always play as a team. If we can mark up their important players, and shut down their attack, we’ve got a chance. Our attack this year is quite sharp, and we should be able to score against them, as Football Club did last week,” points up Fan.

Unsurprisingly, that’s not how it looks to Valley’s player-coach, former Samoa captain Bella Milo. She recognises that the league win may have slipped from their grasp, ruing that their single loss to date in the season doesn’t overcome Gai Wu’s two losses and a draw. But the team are focused on securing a fourth consecutive Grand Championships title, and are going about it in typically thorough fashion.

Milo had the players watch and honestly analyse the video of their streak-breaking loss to Gai Wu. The team saw some correctable errors that led to a dip in confidence that she believes they can put behind them, with no major revision of the approach that notched 51 straight wins across three seasons.

Milo expects a tough match but comes well-armed. “We can’t take anything for granted, after losing to Gai Wu. Tigers have all their sevens players back and a strong team so it’s going to be a battle right through the 80 minutes. But this is the first week this season that we have a possible best starting line-up. So this is a good situation as we go into the [Grand Championship] quarters and semi-finals,” she observes.

In Women’s National League 1, leaders Revolution SRC will hope to retain the WNL 1 Challenge Shield for a fifth week when they play HK Scottish Kukris, just two points adrift in third (18:00, King’s Park). In WNL2, second-placed Police Sirens play City Twinkles (18:00, PBS), eying a third week in possession of the National League 2 Challenge Shield.

Additional reporting and images: hkru, Phoebe Leung

Women’s Rugby Fixtures – 27 January, 2018

Women’s Rugby Results – 20 January, 2018

Premiership

Valley Black 33-22 HKFC Ice
@ Aberdeen, Kick-off: 15:00

Gai Wu Falcons 36-15 USRC Tigers
@ Aberdeen, Kick-off: 16:30

CWB Phoenix 22-15 Tai Po Dragons
@ HKIED, Kick-off: 17:30

Kowloon 52-5 City Sparkle
@ So Kon Po, Kick-off: 18:00

National League 1

USRC Tigers 0-81 HK Scottish Kukris
@ Aberdeen, Kick-off: 13:30

Tai Po Dragons 15-5 HKCC
@ HKIED, Kick-off: 16:00

Valley Red 20-29 Revolution SRC
@ Aberdeen, Kick-off: 18:00​

National League 2

Tin Shui Wai 5-15 CWB Lammergeier
@ Aberdeen, Kick-off: 14:30

City Twinkles 5-29 HKFC Fire
@ So Kon Po, Kick-off: 15:00

University 0-42 Kowloon 
@ So Kon Po, Kick-off: 16:30

Gai Wu Hawks v Police Sirens
@ Police Boundary Street, Kick-off: 18:00

Images: bc magazine, hkru

Tai Po Dragons Take on CWB Phoenix

Tai Po Dragons will look to clinch the insultingly named ‘Premiership Development League’ when they take on Causeway Bay Phoenix at HKIED (17.30). Kowloon will play City Sparkle in the other bracket of the four-team mini-league, at So Kon Po at 18.00.

Gai Wu Falcons, fresh from their defeat of Valley Black last weekend, take on USRC Tigers at 16.30 at Aberdeen – which is preceded by the Valley Black versus HKFC Ice game at 15.00.

Tai Po has played some fine rugby since the eight-team Women’s Premiership split into two competitions last November, turning in four straight wins to top the table ahead of Kowloon. All eight Women’s Premiership sides will regroup for the Grand Championship play-offs after the league season concludes next weekend.

Tai Po, who returned to Premiership competition this season after a year in the lower leagues, are the only undefeated side in either premiership competition heading into the penultimate match of the season. Coach Tsang Hing-hung believes that the fruits of that tough decision to take a year off to regroup are being seen now.

The last two years were a planned development phase for the club. Many of the girls were young and a bit green. We needed time to develop them further, and that year in National League 1, which is still a very high standard, was important for us.”

“The results so far showed that our team has re-built as I had hoped, and were ready to return to the Premiership. Our performances are showing the work that has been put in by the club and the players,” said Tsang. “I’m excited; I think they’re not reaching their target yet, and can go a lot further. If we can strengthen our defence, then I think we can consistently chase the top four teams.”

But up first this weekend is Causeway Bay and Tsang is concerned about whether his team can maintain their momentum. “I am a bit worried about this game. If we lose, we have to face Kowloon, and we might not finish at the top of our Premiership division, which is something that we really want to achieve for a better placing in the grand championship play-off.”

“We are going to have to focus heavily on our defence. They have some strong ball carriers and are also strong in the ruck, so our defence is key. On attack, we are confident in our patterns and will make what we can of situations that come along, but everything has to build from a good defence and that is what we have focused on in training,” continued Tsang.

The Dragons’ will be missing three players who are away on national sevens duty in Fiji with Ivy Kwong Sau-yan, Agnes Chan Tsz-ching and Vivian Poon Hoi-yan, who is making her senior international debut, all unavailable.

Causeway Bay lost their earlier meeting with Tai Po in the development grade 22-5 in early December but played well in beating Kowloon 24-10 last weekend. Coach Chris Lin was pleased to see some confidence returning in his team’s performance.

“In the last game against Kowloon, we were much improved and much more confident. Our patterns are more aligned with our player’s capabilities, and the players know their positions now, so we got the win. Tsang Siu-ching played particularly well in that game and lifted our team to another level, but unfortunately she will miss this week’s game,” said Lin.

“Tai Po will be tough, but we are also improving, so it should be a good game. They are missing their international sevens players while we don’t have that issue. I expect their backs will play a leading role in the game, with a lot of kicking for possession. They have some good kickers, which we lack, and they are aggressive on defence,” continued Lin. “Our aim is to finish second, so a point from this game is important. We are going to be looking for four tries. After the Kowloon game, the team feels more comfortable now and feel they are back on track.”

Additional reporting and image: hkru

Women’s Rugby Fixtures – 20 January, 2018

Women’s Rugby Results – 13 January, 2018

Premiership

CWB Phoenix 24-10 Kowloon
@ Shek Kip Mei V, Kick-off: 15:00

City Sparkle 0-47 Tai Po Dragons
@ Shek Kip Mei, Kick-off: 16:30

Valley Black 15-22 Gai Wu Falcons
@ Aberdeen, Kick-off: 16:30

USRC Tigers 44-12 HKFC Ice
@ King’s Park, Kick-off: 18:00

National League 1

Gai Wu Fawkes v USRC Tigers
@ King’s Park, Kick-off: 16:30

Revolution SRC 36-5 Tai Po Dragons
@ Shek Kip Mei, Kick-off: 18:00

HKCC 5-25 Valley Red
@ Aberdeen, Kick-off: 18:00

National League 2

City Twinkles 12-24 Kowloon
@ Shek Kip Mei, Kick-off: 13:30

Gai Wu Hawks 15-20 Tin Shui Wai
@ King’s Park, Kick-off: 15:00

HKFC Fire v University 
@ King’s Park, Kick-off: 16:30

Police Sirens 22-7 CWB Lammergeier 
@ Police Boundary Street, Kick-off: 18:00

Images: bc magazine, hkru

Unbeaten Streak Ends, Gai Wu Falcons 22-15 Valley Black

After several close games recently Gai Wu Falcons ended Valley Black’s unbeaten streak at 51 games with a 22-15 win over the three times defending champions.

The win puts the Falcons on top of the Women’s Premiership table on 16 points, one ahead of Valley, with two weeks remaining in the regular season.

In the other Premiership matches USRC Tigers beat HKFC Ice 44-12,  CWB Phoenix returned to form with a 24-10 win over Kowloon while Tai Po Dragons beat City Sparkle 47-0.

Ahead of the clash with Valley, Gai Wu coach Sailo Lai Yiu-pang had commented that the lengthy lay-off for both teams could be a factor,and predicted that the result would come down to the team with the superior intensity.

It was his side that came through in the end, with a massive defensive effort keeping the Falcons in the match for the full 80 minutes and putting them in position to score two tries in the dying minutes, turning a 15-12 deficit into the eventual 22-15 win.

Lai was ecstatic with the result, which has been a longtime coming for the Falcons, who have finished as league runners-up and lost the Grand Championship finals to Valley for the last three seasons.

“It was amazing. Our defence was massive. We won this game because we defended well. We held out not just once but twice on our try line. Mentally, we were spot on and kept a high focus for the entire 80 minutes. We lost momentum once, but then we got it back and were able to maintain it for the full 80.”

Lai hailed the effort of the entire squad, saying, “We played as a team, which you can see from the scoring–two tries from the backs and two from the forwards. It was a true team effort.”

Valley went all-out in attack early on with No.8 Aroha Savage scoring in the opening minutes with fullback Zoe Smith converting to give the defending champions an early 7-0 lead.

Gai Wu mustered some impressive rear-guard defence to keep Valley from extending its lead by holding them up twice on the try-line, before they were able to mount their own forays into their opponents half.

When they did they made them count. Christy Cheng Ka-chi opened the scoring for Gai Wu in her first game of the season after returning from an injury suffered in the World Cup. Showing her sevens versatility, Cheng forced a gap in the Valley defence close to the line before charging over for the score.

Falcons’ second try came off another line-break with the ball wending its way to centre Greer Muir who outpaced two defenders in a 40-metre sprint for the line to give Gai Wu a 12-7 lead after the conversion heading into the half-time break.

Valley player-coach Bella Milo willed her side back into the affair with an early second-half try to level the scores at 12-all, before Smith gave Valley back the lead at 15-12 after a successful drop goal.

That lead looked to be secure when Gai Wu lock Wong Ka-yin was yellow carded after 70 minutes, but Falcons found another level to close out the game with two tries in the right corner from Hong Kong standouts Aggie Poon Pak-yan and No. 8 Chan Ka-yan to seal the win.

After the game, Lai cautioned his charges to maintain not just their perspective, but also their performance.

“We have to take it game by game. If we can maintain our level of play like this we have a good chance of winning the league, but it’s down to how we perform weekin, weekout. We can’t let down now,” said Lai.

“But this win certainly gives us a lot of confidence. If we can defend like we did today, we can beat Valley again. It is a huge boost for us to be able to play against world-class players like Bella (Milo) and Aroha (Savage) and come away with the win. It’s the first time I’ve seen the girls so happy,” Lai added. “It’s the best game they’ve ever played, and they deserved that win.”

Milo agreed with Lai’s estimate in the final analysis saying, “They played really well. The game was won at the breakdown, which is where they came out faster and we couldn’t slow them down, but it just means we’ve got to work a bit harder. We’ve got to go back to the drawing board.”

Milo was intent on refocusing her side after the end of a winning streak that had extended for three full seasons– and very nearly a fourth – and is unlikely to be equalled in the annals of Hong Kong women’s rugby.

“It’s not the end of world. The streak had to end eventually and in that sense it is good that it happened now and not in the Grand Championships. At the final whistle there was disappointment for sure, a few tears in there, but it was a good kick up the bum, and will make us hungrier for the next games,” Milo warned.

In National League 1, Revolution SRC overcame Tai Po Dragons 2 36-5, to take home the NL1 Challenge Shield for a third time. While in National League 2 saw Police Sirens scored a feisty 20-17 win over CWB Lammergeier to take possession of the NL 2 Challenge Shield and end the league leaders’ five-match run.

Additional reporting and images: hkru

Gai Wu Target Unbeaten Valley as Premiership Returns

Valley Black take on Gai Wu Falcons this weekend at Aberdeen Stadium (16.30) as the Women’s Premiership returns after it’s winter break.

The battle of Hong Kong’s two top women’s rugby outfits is the highlight of a full day of women’s rugby action. USRC Tigers tackle HKFC Ice at King’s Park (18.00), CWB Phoenix play Kowloon at Shek Kip Mei (15.00) and Tai Po Dragons play City Sparkle at the same ground at 16.30.

Valley and Gai Wu resume their rivalry as the Grand Championships beckons… Valley unbeaten for three seasons top the league with a perfect 3-0 record and 14 points. The Falcons are in second on 11 points, with a 2-1 record, their only loss coming to Valley in a 21-14 thriller at the end of last year.

Both sides are close to full strength with the Falcons looking forward to the season debut of Hong Kong ace Christy Cheng Ka-chi after she was sidelined with an elbow injury at the Women’s Rugby World Cup last summer. Valley will have to wait a bit longer for the return of their star forward Amelie Seure, who looks set to return to action in the coming weeks.

The Falcons will also be looking to ease Cheng and Seure’s Hong Kong sevens squad teammate Melody Li Nim-yan back into action after a lengthy injury lay-off. ‘Sailo’ Lai Yiu-pang, coach of Gai Wu is happy with the way his side has been preparing to start the final season push.

“Training last night was really good. It’s always difficult getting every one back into performance mode but everyone put their hands up and got back to business. Both teams will probably take a little time to get their fitness levels up to peak so it’s all about how much determination the players on both sides have to win on Saturday. They have to transfer that intensity into the game situation,” said Lai.

“It’s going to be 80 minutes of tough rugby, so we need to be ready to play the whole game, not just show up for a half or fade out for 10 or 20 minutes. Last time against Valley, we had plenty of opportunities but we made too many mistakes, so we will have to play smart. We have to avoid making the mistakes that give away penalties, and we need to build up our momentum and hold control for good periods,” Lai added.

Valley coach Bella Milo is also leery of any residual holiday rust ahead of the crucial tie. “It’s been a long break and I think the girls are going to take a little bit to get out of the Christmas mode. It’s now about getting our shape for Saturday. Everyone is a bit cautious about how they will perform and how their bodies will hold up.

It’s going to be another tough game – it always is with Gai Wu. This weekend is a big game to kick off the new year and anything can happen. From what I’ve seen before Christmas, anyone [of the four teams in the elite Premiership division] can win. It’ll be interesting and exciting to watch,” said Milo.

Valley will be looking to make another statement of its status as the top side in Hong Kong against Gai Wu, but Milo is aware of some fixes that still need to be made.

“We want to go out and win our set pieces, especially our lineout, which has been troublesome recently. Before Christmas we were a little bit inconsistent with our player line-up, which hurt our performances. It would be good to have a consistent squad available each week, but that’s still a bit of an issue for us, so we will be looking to stabilise the squad in the weeks following.”

From the three-time successive Grand Champions, riding a 51-game winning streak, that will come as ominous news for the other sides in the competition.

The split into an elite and premiership competition has been a positive one for Kowloon who currently nest second behind Tai Po in the development league table with a 2-1 record after romps over Causeway Bay and City in the early going after the break.

Kowloon’s only loss since the split has come against first-placed Dragons who have a perfect 3-0 record since November. Causeway Bay are in third place with five points with City Sparkle still chasing a first win in the development competition.

There’s also a full schedule of matches in Women’s National Leagues 1 & 2

Additional reporting and images: hkru