Beautiful!!!

Beautiful!!!
Hong Kong’s women’s 7s team runout at the Hong Kong Sevens for the first time!!

Brilliant!!!
Agnes Tse scores a historic first try for Hong Kong on their Seven’s World Series debut.

image: Takumi Photography

HK Sevens
Date: 31 March – 2 April, 2023
Venue: HK Stadium
Tickets: $1,950
More info: www.HKsevens.com

Samurai RFC Win Inaugural Women’s HK10s

Unbeaten over the two days, Samurai RFC beat Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix 14-12 in the final to win a fiercely competitive and entertaining inaugural Women’s HK10s.

Samurai’s ex-England International Rocky Clarke MBE posted on twitter after the final “To say I’m over the moon is an understatement. To pull on the Samurai jersey and win the HKFC10s is amazing. Thank you for the belief in me and memories we’ve created. You’ve made an old girl very happy. Thank you for the amazing experience”

Rocky Clark MBE

Ashbury Tropics won the plate final against hosts HKFC Ice

Ashbury Tropics Plate winners HK10s 2023

HK10s Women's pool standings 2023

Hong Kong Tens
When: 29-30 March, 2023
Where: Hong Kong Football Club
How much: $120
More info: www.hkfc10s.com

Additional reporting and images: HK10s

Tradition YCAC Win Men’s HK10s 2023

In a close and competitive men’s final Tradition YCAC beat Samurai RFC 7-0 to win the 2023 HKFC10s

Hong Kong Tens
When: 29-30 March, 2023
Where: Hong Kong Football Club
How much: $120
More info: www.hkfc10s.com

Additional reporting and images: HK10s

Harry Harrison Designed Charity Rugby Balls

300 limited edition Harry Harrison-designed rugby balls have gone on sale to support local charity Rugby For Good.

A renowned local satirical cartoonist, Harrison’s balls feature a dragon and the Hong Kong Stadium and cost $300, order one here.harrys balls 2023

HK Sevens
Date: 31 March – 2 April, 2023
Venue: HK Stadium
Tickets: $1,950
More info: www.HKsevens.com

Hong Kong Squads Announced for The Sevens

The Hong Kong Rugby Union has announced experienced women’s and men’s squads for the Hong Kong Sevens.

Experienced co-captains Natasha Olson-Thorne and Melody Li Nim-yan will take the women’s team into its first ever World Rugby Sevens Series tournament this weekend when the Sevens hosts a full Series tournament for the first time in its history.

The team has a largely veteran cast with Nam Ka-man, Stephanie Chan Chor-ki, Jessica Ho Wai-on, Chloe Chan, Maggie Au Yeung Sin-yi and Agnes Tse Wing-kiu joining the co-captains. Rising stars Lam Tsz-yan, Micayla Baltazar, Julia Mba Oyana and Allianz Premiership player Rosie Wright are all included as the women look to use their debut World Series appearance inside the stadium this weekend, and then at the Singapore Sevens, as a stepping stone for the World Rugby Sevens Series qualifiers in South Africa at end April.

Head Sevens coach Paul John spoke about the opportunities and challenges that lie in store, saying: “This is the biggest test the girls have ever had. We have a difficult group but we have to embrace that, learn from it, and take the experience of a lifetime out of this weekend. The biggest challenge is to respect, not fear, our opponents,” said John.

 “Hong Kong is a great way to start our progression to the Asian Games. Every player wants to play in that stadium, but it is just the start of an exciting time for the squad. From Friday until the end of April there are three huge tournaments for us to play in, which is brilliant.

 “We have to approach it that way as well. The top teams in the world are here this week, and we need to learn from that. It is what we play for; it is why we are professional athletes – to test ourselves against the best – and hopefully the girls will do themselves proud. If they play to the best of their ability they can enjoy it,” said John.

 Hong Kong are in Pool A with Series leaders New Zealand, Canada and Team Great Britain. Their first match against New Zealand is on Friday at 14.16.

Hong Kong men's Sevens squad 2023

Hong Kong’s men’s squad is also laden with experience with nine players returning from November’s Sevens including captain Max Woodward – marking his sixth tournament (five times as captain) in 2023.

Hong Kong Rugby’s most capped player, the evergreen Salom Yiu Kam-sing, will celebrate a 12th appearance at the Sevens. This weekend also marks Yiu’s 70th sevens appearance for Hong Kong.

Alex McQueen marks his ninth showing, while senior players Russell Webb and Seb Brien make their fourth appearances at the Hong Kong Stadium. Top finisher Max Denmark makes his third Hong Kong Sevens appearance this weekend. Alessandro Nardoni, Pierce Mackinlay-West and Mak Kwai-chung will also mark their second tournaments.

Two X-factor players have also recovered from injury battles to make debuts in 2023 in Liam Herbert and Hugo Stiles, both of whom were side-lined by injuries for last November’s tournament.

Stiles whose 2022 debut was derailed by a late injury has returned to fitness and will mark his debut Hong Kong Sevens despite being in the squad for several years and having represented Hong Kong, China at two Rugby World Cup Sevens and an Asian Games final already.

Similarly, Herbert has been a fixture in the squad having played in numerous international competitions and now experiencing a first taste of the Hong Kong environment. James Christie and Callum McCullough are also making their first appearance at the Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens in 2023.

“Missing out last year, but getting in this time is a dream come true to be honest as a Hong Kong kid”

“The squad is rugby ready,” said men’s coach Jevon Groves. “It has been a tough selection, and there are some very good players missing out, but over this next month there is more of a view to the World Rugby Sevens Challenger Series. We want to give guys opportunity so we can have the most competitive squad we can for the Challengers and to push for a place on the circuit.

“Hong Kong and the Singapore Sevens the week after will show where we are at now. Last November, we showed we could compete in parts, and in parts we were below the standard required, so we are looking for that consistency. The Challenger is not an easy thing to win, it will be tough but we have to allow guys to push for spots.”

“There will be some real competition over the next weeks, but it is very tough for the guys to be told they are not playing in Hong Kong. But for those guys that have been raised on the Hong Kong Sevens this is a fantastic opportunity for them,” Groves said.

Two players raised on the Sevens are Stiles and Christie. The 26-year old Stiles said today that the two had played against each other at U9s level (Christie for Football Club and Stiles for Valley) in the Sevens youth rugby showcase 15 years previous, and now both are coming full circle in 2023.

“Since then, I have not really set foot on the pitch in the stadium, so it is going to be an awesome weekend,” said Stiles, who picked up a neck and shoulder injury shortly before last November’s Sevens.

“Missing out last year, but getting in this time is a dream come true to be honest as a Hong Kong kid,” said Stiles.

Hong Kong are in pool B with France, Team Great Britain and Uruguay in Pool B and will close out the tournament’s opening day against France at 20.33.

HK7s women 2023 HK7s men 2023

image: Takumi Photography

HK Sevens
Date: 31 March – 2 April, 2023
Venue: HK Stadium
Tickets: $1,950
More info: www.HKsevens.com

Women’s 10s Debuts in Rugby Week 2023

It’s taken thirty-five years but the inaugural HKFC Women’s 10s Competition kicks off as part of 2023 Hong Kong 10s and will see five teams compete in a round-robin format. The top four teams will progress to the knock-out phase of the competition, with the winners of two semi-finals progressing to the Cup final and the losers to a Plate final.

The competing teams are Samurai Warriors, Ashbury Tropics, Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix, FindRugbyNow as well as hosts and Hong Kong Premier League champions, HKFC Ice

Samurai Warriors will be coached by two titans of England Rugby (a.k.a. the Red Roses) in Rochelle ‘Rocky’ Clark, who with 137 national appearances is one the most capped English players of all time, and 115-cap team-mate, Tamara Taylor.

Going head-to-head with the pair is fellow World Cup winner and legendary open-side flanker, Heather Fisher, who joins as part of the coaching team for Ashbury Tropics. Fisher is a veteran of both the Sevens and 15s having represented England and Great Britain in the 2014 World Cup and the Rio Olympic Games respectively.

Rocky Clark, who is also the Official Tournament Ambassador, said “I am massively grateful to Samurai for inviting me to coach the team. After the opportunities they gave me as a player back in the day when I started my playing journey, to now be coaching the team, it is a massive honour and where better to do it than the world’s best tens.”

The Red Roses’ involvement in the tournament reflects the calibre of the new Women’s Competition and HKFC Chairman, Neil Jensen, said “As a club, we are delighted to see that Hong Kong Football Club can still attract the biggest names in sport. We are really looking forward to seeing the return of the HKFC 10s to the Club and to once again present this exciting precursor to the Sevens which started over three decades ago.

We’re particularly pleased to see the introduction of a Women’s Competition which is an important milestone for the tournament and something we have been working towards for a number of years. Thank you to the teams that are making the journey to Hong Kong and we look forward to seeing a new dimension to the World’s Best 10s out on pitch.”

The 2023 HKFC 10s marks the 35th edition of Hong Kong Football Club’s flagship rugby event. It takes place at Hong Kong Football Club from 29-30 March. Matches are 10 minutes each way, gates open at 8.30am. Tickets cost $120 per day.

Hong Kong Tens
When: 29-30 March, 2023
Where: Hong Kong Football Club
How much: $120
More info: www.hkfc10s.com

Additional reporting and images: HK10s