bc magazine

Anshuman Rath and Nizakat Khan Half-Centuries Lead Hong Kong

An attritional second days play means Hong Kong will have to overcome a first innings deficit of 79 after being dismissed for 237 on day two of their Intercontinental Cup match against Ireland.

After losing two wickets in the first over of the day, two quality innings from Anshuman Rath (73*) and Nizakat Khan (69) were the highlight for Hong Kong who grafted all day long but lost wickets in bunches.

A partnership of 101 between Nizakat and debutant Ninad Shah (38) repaired the initial damage, while Waqas Khan (27) was the only other player to reach double figures.

Rath was left unbeaten at the other end when Tanveer Ahmed was the last man dismissed with just 8 balls left in the day.

The Ireland bowlers were relentless all day with spinner George Dockrell (3-46) and Peter Chase (3-50) the pick of the bowlers.

Play will resume at 6pm HKT with some rain forecast for the final two days in Belfast.

https://youtu.be/HRZKvacUlUQ

Highlights: Ireland v Hong Kong D2 (https://youtu.be/HRZKvacUlUQ)

Interview with Nizakat Khan
“Yeh we fought hard and just tried to hang in there after losing the two early wickets. When I was out there with Ninad we were just talking to each other a lot out there to urge each other to hang in there.”

“Their bowling was very disciplined and we got no loose balls, so we had to work really hard to score runs and they have bowled to their plans, which have succeeded most of time.”

“I think we are still short of runs and we wanted to get closer to them so tomorrow is crucial for us. We have to take early wickets so can give ourselves a score to chase down.”

“I’m pretty happy with myself – although I was looking for a big score. I was playing really well which was pleasing after I’ve worked really hard with the batting coaches in Hong Kong on a few things. And I felt really good so hopefully I will get a big score in the second innings.”

“Anshy played really well – his innings was what we really needed but unfortunately no one stuck with him. He played to the conditions and looked solid. His innings at the end there has kept us in the game.”

Additional reporting HK Cricket Association, scorecard Cricinfo

Bowlers Keep Hong Kong in the Hunt Against Ireland

https://youtu.be/G64dggcXicI

Highlights: Ireland v Hong Kong D1 (https://youtu.be/G64dggcXicI)

Hong Kong fought hard to keep Ireland honest on the first of their four day ICC Intercontinental Cup clash in Belfast.

The hosts, who won the toss and chose to bat reached 124-2 before Hong Kong battled back well, on a turning pitch, to dismiss Ireland for 316 just before close of play. At stumps the tourists were 2 without loss. Hong Kong’s two spinners found some turn with Nadeem Ahmed taking 4-73 before paceman Tanwir Afzal removed Ireland’s lower order to finished with 4-63.

Ehsan Khan, who along with Ninad Shah, Waqas Khan and Tanveer Ahmed, made his first class debut took a wicket in just his second over.

Post-match interview with Nadeem Ahmed
“I think we started poorly but we came back really well after lunch. I think the boys pulled it back and that was really good to see. It was challenging as they know the conditions and knew what to expect so we had to fight hard. Cooky (coach Simon Cook) pumped us up during the lunch break and we stood up to the challenge. To bowl them out for 316 is good but we gave away about 50 runs on this wicket, which we shouldn’t have done.”

“It was turning a lot for the first day and gradually started to turn more and more as the day went on. When the team need you, you need to stand up and be counted on. Today was a day where I needed to stand up as the wicket suited me and things went well. I just tried to bowl tight overs and be more consistent and it started to turn a lot.”

“We’ve got good players of spin and they have only one front line spinner so this could be something that gives us a small advantage. Both openers did well to stick in there until the end.”

“This performance means a lot to us and to Hong Kong. We are in a good position so hopefully we can keep it going.”

Kenya 34-10 Hong Kong

Kenya thrashed Hong Kong in Nairobi, 34-10 easing up in the second half or the scoreboard could have looked a lot worse for the visitors such was the home side’s superiority. As their Sevens team has shown on the World Sevens Series with their inaugural win last season Kenyan rugby is vibrant and full of powerful skilled players.

For Hong Kong it was a pretty abject performance full of far too many basic rugby and unforced errors gifting the Kenyans easy ball. That the tour is taking place at all is good news, but the scheduling just before the Asian Sevens Series rather than just after meant that far too many of Hong Kong’s key players weren’t on the pitch. We complain that teams don’t respect us when they send understrength sides to Hong Kong, yet here we are doing the same to Kenya.

“Today’s match was not dissimilar to Tuesday’s loss (28-14 to Kenya A). We looked like a side that haven’t played together and we struggled to put any constructive phases together. They scored 3 or 4 tries purely as a result of us turning the ball over. At this level you get punished for those errors and that was the case,” said coach Leigh Jones making the same excuses as in many of Hong Kong’s recent loses. “It is just getting guys used to playing under this type of pressure. At the moment, the step up is too much for some of them, which forces a large number of errors. But the only answer is to expose them to this level of rugby more often.” Talk about stating the obvious, so why then is this Hong Kong’s first ‘tour’ against non-Asian opposition since 2012? The players can only play against the opponents the HK Rugby Union picks for them.

The test match was effectively over by half time as the visitors conceded two tries and two penalties in the opening forty minutes to hand Kenya an unassailable 20-3 lead at the break. Hong Kong’s only reply came from a late penalty by Matt Rosslee after the centre’s committed chase of fly-half Liam Owen’s booming up-and-under from the Kenyan 22-metre line put the defence under pressure.

Rosslee and Owens marked their international debuts today with four other newly capped players joining the fray from the bench in the second half.

Kenya added two more tries after play resumed to put the game further out of reach. Winger Darwin Mukidzu was a one-man wrecking crew as he paced his side with a perfect six goals from six attempts (two penalties and four conversions), while setting up Kenya’s third try before claiming the fourth.

The scrum was perhaps the only bright spot for the visitors, with Hong Kong’s eight competing well, including in the second half, when hooker Alexander Post, lock Mike Parfitt and flanker Joey Cheung Ho-yin all came on to earn their first caps. The forwards were unable to match that performance in the lineout however, damaging their hopes of playing an old fashioned structured possession game and slowing down their opponents.

Hugo Stiles made it on late in the match as Jones ensured all of Hong Kong’s potential debutants saw the pitch. The new caps accounted for all of Hong Kong’s points when Stiles crossed for his first test try late in the match as Hong Kong took full advantage of a yellow card against Kenya in the 60th minute to camp out on the Kenyan five-metre line. Liam Owens nearly scored in the corner, but showed good awareness and off-loaded the ball to his long-time U20s backline partner Stiles for the try. Rosslee added a nice conversion from the touchline to bring the final score to 34-10 to Kenya.

The result will likely see the two sides swap places in the World Rugby rankings after Hong Kong entered the test ranked 22nd trailed by Kenya at 24.

Watching the match stream it was massively frustrating to see Hong Kong continue to make basic unforced handling errors. The All-Blacks have shown for a decade that ball skills and being comfortable with ball in hand are the way to win modern rugby matches. The vast improvements that teams like Argentina and Kenya have made in recent years is because they have taken this lesson to heart.

So as a fan it’s sad to see that despite being far better funded than both those countries we continue to lose games because of our unforced basic handling errors. Losing because you are outplayed by a better team on the day is one thing, continually losing important games year after year because we gift the opponents the ball is getting really frustrating.

Hong Kong SAR v Kenya:
1. Ben Higgins, 2. Jamie Tsang, 3. Jack Parfitt, 4. Adrian Griffiths, 5. Fin Field, 6. Nick Hewson (Captain), 7. Mathew Lamming, 8. Dan Falvey, 9. Adam Rolston, 10. Liam Owens*, 11. Charles Higson-Smith, 12. Tyler Spitz, 13. Matt Rosslee*, 14. Jamie Robinson, 15. Ed Rolston. Reserves: 16. Alex Post*, 17. Alex Ng Wai-Shing, 18 Adam Fullgrabe, 19. Mike Parfitt*, 20. Tony Wong, 21. Joey Cheung Ho-Yin*, 22. Charles Cheung Ho-Ning, 23. Hugo Stiles*.
*First Hong Kong Cap

Additional reporting and photo: HKRU

Kenya A 24-18 Hong Kong Select

Hong Kong’s Select XV, with eight players marking their senior debuts, lost to Kenya A 24-18 in Nairobi in the opening encounter of their two match tour.

The Kenya ‘A’ team featured some familiar names to those who watch sevens rugby, with the side led by Kenya’s sevens captain Innocent Simiyu and featuring sevens internationals Patrice Agunda, Mike Agevi and Dan Sikuta.

HK coach Leigh Jones’s pre-tour assessment of the opposition, when he summed up the two encounters as a test of Hong Kong’s collective organisation versus Kenya’s individual flair, proved correct with Kenya scoring several tries off counter attacks from deep within their own territory, including scoring twice in quick succession to open up the game shortly after half-time.

Hong Kong enjoyed the more positive start, attacking from deep early on to put the hosts under sustained pressure in the early stages. A series of minor miscues and unforced errors left the Kenyans’ dangerous attack stuttering and Hong Kong took full advantage of the gifted possession putting in sustained drives and penning Kenya deep in its half before the pressure told in the 20 minute. Winger Conor Hartley collected the ball off a driving attacking lineout deep in Kenya’s territory to barrel across the tryline for the first points of the match. The difficult touchline conversion attempt from Kjestrup was no good leaving Hong Kong 5-0 up.

Fiercely committed in defence, the intensity of the Kenyan tackling put the visitors on the back foot as Hong Kong began to concede possession. Late in the half, fullback Mike Avegi put the hosts on the scoreboard with a penalty to close the gap to 5-3. Hong Kong replied well moving the ball methodically up field and forcing the Kenyans into conceding a second penalty for Kjestrup who struck it well pushing Hong Kong ahead 8-3.

In an early warning sign for the visitors the game started to get loose as the half wore on with Hong Kong’s accuracy suffering as a result. The forwards responded again with another massive effort from Hong Kong’s scrum forcing the Kenyans to concede a kickable penalty that Kjestrup slotted home to push the lead to 11-3.

In injury time, the Kenyans ignited with winger Cyprian Kuto breaking away for a late try from deep in his own half. Avegi’s conversion was good and Kenya trailed 11-10 going into the break.

Kenya book-ended that momentum building score with another to start the second half as reserve back Samson Onsomu collected the ball off a turnover before tearing away for another lengthy try against the run of play. Scrumhalf Kelvin Masai was on target with his conversion as Kenya took its first lead 17-11.

Moments later, Kenya struck again from deep with Kuto securing his brace after capitalising on an overthrown lineout on his five-metre line. 95 metres, a clean pair of heels and a second Masai conversion later and Hong Kong were left trailing 24-11 after a display of individual skills.

Hong Kong battled back with reserve front rower Jack Parfitt scoring the riposte. Matthew Rosslee made the conversion to bring the visitors back within a converted try at 24-18 with fifteen minutes remaining but despite opportunities to draw level Hong Kong couldn’t cross the line before time expired.

After the match Jones commented “I’m never too happy with a loss but it was a worthwhile game. There is a lot to be pleased with. We controlled the first half and created several chances that we weren’t able to finish today. In the second half they hit us with those two breakaway tries and their tails were up. It was pretty textbook in many ways to what we said before the tour. If your accuracy isn’t there or if you slip off the tackles with these guys they have the power and pace to make you pay and that was the case.”

“The experiment in coming here to look at guys under test pressure was a success and we got a lot from it. Now we’ll look to regroup and work on some of our accuracy issues and lick our wounds for the test,” Jones concluded.

Eight Hong Kong players made their senior squad debuts last night including Premiership standouts Ben Roberts and Matthew Rosslee, both of whom will likely win their first caps in Saturday’s test. Also among the new faces was former U20s captain Mike Parfitt, who formed a locking duo with Fin Field playing in just his second senior match. U20s sevens captain Hugo Stiles started at fullback while his long-time backline partner Liam Owens came off the reserves bench in the second half.

“I’m really pleased with the young lads. They performed well. Mike Parfitt and Fin Field were strong in the second row and Liam Owens did well when he came on. Young Hugo Stiles at fullback showed the class that he has,” said Jones.

Hong Kong Sevens players are not involved in the tour as they train for the upcoming Asia Rugby Sevens Series which kicks off on 2 September at HK Football Club.

Hong Kong Select:
1. Adam Fullgrabe, 2. Jamie Tsang, 3. Rohan Cook, 4. Mike Parfitt*, 5. Fin Field, 6. Tony Wong, 7. Joey Cheung Ho-Yin*, 8. Nick Hewson (Captain), 9. Charles Cheung Ho-Ning, 10. Jason Kjestrup*, 11. Conor Hartley*, 12. Jamie Robinson, 13. Matt Rosslee*, 14. Jonny Rees, 15. Hugo Stiles*. Reserves: 16. Ben Roberts*, 17. Ben Higgins, 18. Jack Parfitt, 19. Dan Falvey, 20. Matt Lamming, 21. Charlie Higson-Smith, 22. Liam Owens*, 23. Adam Rolston
* on debut

Additional reporting and photo: HKRU

Hong Kong on Tour in Kenya

Hong Kong takes on Kenya today in Nairobi as part of it’s first non-Asian fifteen-a-side tour since 2012. The sides currently ranked 22and 24 in the world respectively will play a two match series with the second game an official test match taking place on the 27 August.

Coach Leigh Jones 28-man squad for the tour features a majority of the members of the new Elite Rugby Programme, Hong Kong’s first ever professional programme for fifteens rugby, and several U20 players. Back row forward Nick Hewson will captain the tour party.

Although 22 top players are unavailable Jones added “Kenya is an important opportunity to examine these players at effectively a test level. It will be a fair step up from what they are used to at club level and we will see how they adjust”.

The four U20 players named in the squad, forwards Alexander Post and Mike Parfitt and backs Hugo Stiles and Liam Owens, will be hoping to make their full debut and join Finlay Field, another U20s veteran who made his senior debut versus South Korea earlier this year.

“It’s great to have the young guys involved. In the past we haven’t been able to keep tabs on them or influence their rugby or physical development and ultimately they lose out on three years of preparation. Recently we have started to reverse that trend. We are working hard to maintain ties with our top young players both in Hong Kong and overseas to ensure that they are involved at a reasonable playing level and provide them with solid programmes while monitoring their progress,” Jones said.

“The tour will give these players an opportunity to acquire a senior international cap in the second game, but it also provides them with some important exposure and makes them feel they are a part of something,” said tour manager Dai Rees.

“The players have trained hard all summer and want to represent Hong Kong. All of them are still a couple of years off of finishing university but we hope their inclusion will encourage more and more kids to return or even stay in Hong Kong. This will not only benefit the international side but the domestic league as well,” Rees added.

The remainder of the squad is drawn from players within the Elite Rugby Programme, including several players on the cusp of Hong Kong eligibility, among those is Valley standout Matthew Rosslee, who will become eligible during the tour and looks likely to return from Africa with his first senior cap. Hong Kong Cricket Club hooker Ben Roberts is another soon-to-be eligible player from the domestic leagues likely to earn his first cap on tour.

“Tours like this send an important message to players that if you make the effort, if you come back, participate and commit yourselves you can be selected for Hong Kong.” said Rees who added “Kenya and Zimbabwe regularly feature in the final repechage for Rugby World Cup. We are targeting to reach that stage again for 2019, so it is advantageous to measure ourselves against our potential opposition. We have played Zimbabwe recently in the Cup of Nations so this is a great opportunity to front up against Kenya”.

Jones is under no illusions about the challenges: “We want to win of course, but we are travelling effectively without 22 first-class players and Kenya are a big, athletic outfit. They have lots of pace and individual power. I think it will come down to our collective strength as opposed to their individuality and I’m interested to see if we can be organised enough on the pitch to nullify their threats.”

Hong Kong previously played Kenya in Dubai in 2011, winning 44-17 en route to a victory in the four-team tournament that also included Brazil and the UAE.

Hong Kong Team for Tour of Kenya
Adam Fullgrabe, Adam Rolston, Adrian Griffiths, Alex Ng Wai-Shing, Alexander Post, Ben Higgins, Ben Roberts, Charles Cheung Ho-Ning, Charles Higson-Smith, Conor Hartley, Daniel Falvey, Edmund Rolston, Finlay Field, Hugo Stiles, Jack Parfitt, Michael Parfitt, Jamie Robinson, Jamie Tsang, Jason Kjestrup, Jonny Rees, Liam Owens, Matthew Lamming, Matthew Rosslee, Nick Hewson (Captain), Cheung Ho-Yin, Rohan Cook, Tony Wong Ho-Yeung, Tyler Spitz.

Additional reporting and photos HKRU

Hong Kong Independence Rally @ Tamar Park – 5 August, 2016

https://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2016/Hong-Kong-Independance-Rally/i-pdTjBwF

Hong Kong’s first rally overtly advocating independence from China was organised by the Hong Kong National Party as a protest following the Electoral Affairs Commission disqualification of several politicians on the basis of their policies. Democracy in Hong Kong is under serious threat as those candidates not prepared to toe the Beijing party line find the September election of Legislative Council members will go ahead without them as they have been excluded by the EAC from the ballot.
Click on any photo for more images of the rally
Photos: Jayne Russell

https://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2016/Hong-Kong-Independance-Rally/i-GPR44xr

https://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2016/Hong-Kong-Independance-Rally/i-Fj2HK4D

https://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2016/Hong-Kong-Independance-Rally/i-FVzDnDn

Bruce Lee… Welcome to Hong Kong

Hong Kong’s favourite son Bruce Lee is welcoming arrivals to our wonderful home town at Chek Lap Kok courtesy of a series of awesome illustrations by Milton Wong.

The eleven 10 foot tall illustrations, set against the backdrop of Victoria Harbour, feature Bruce Lee with his nunchaku in the film Game of Death.

The exhibition, which runs until November, is organised by the Bruce Lee Foundation. All images by Milton Wong

Hong Kong Host Papua New Guinea in Three-game ODI Series

After the success of Scotland’s recent visit, Hong Kong men’s cricket squad will host Papua New Guinea for a three-game One Day International (ODI) series in November.

The three game series will be played on Friday 4 November, Sunday 6 November and Tuesday 8 November. The fixtures will be the first ICC recognised ODI series hosted in Hong Kong outside of ICC World Cricket League and will be played at the Tin Kwong Road Recreation Ground in Mong Kok.

Papua New Guinea hosted Hong Kong in Townsville for their first ever ODI’s, which saw PNG play some quality cricket and win the series 2-nil.

Director of Cricket Charlie Burke said the series will be another step forward in what is already a strong relationship between the two emerging regions. “PNG and Hong Kong have both progressed through Cricket’s divisions together over the last few years,” Burke said.

“It was only in 2010 when we met in Division 3 and since then we have both emerged to register some excellent results in the World Cricket League and World Cup qualifiers. Our fans deserve to witness two quality sides that have played in some great battles as well as an opportunity to host PNG, who put on a great series in Townsville. The bigger picture is to continue preparations for the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifiers in 2018.”

The series will be played during a busy period for Hong Kong, following a three-week tour of Ireland and Scotland and right before a trip away to play Kenya in two ICC WCLC matches.

Head Coach Simon Cook says the busy schedule will allow selectors to test the depth of what is now an extended full-time squad. “We have played PNG a lot over the years and the players have detailed knowledge of each other which always makes for an interesting series,” Cook said. “They have some good players that can take the game away from you if you let them so we will have to be on top of our game to beat them. As we speak our players are currently in a strength phase of their training program which is going really well so we should be seeing a faster, stronger and more durable Hong Kong squad leading into this really busy 6 month period.”

Hong Kong v Papua New Guinea
Date: 4, 6 and 8 November, 2016
Venue: Tin Kwong Road Recreation Ground
Tickets: tbc