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HK Cricket Match Reports: Women’s League 5 December, 2015

Women’s League

KCC Maidens v PACC
There was a very short game of cricket in the Women’s League where KCC Maidens thrashed PACC by ten wickets. PACC could only put seven players on the park and they found themselves batting after losing the toss. Unfortunately, they could only post a score of 11 and they were all out in five overs. KCC knocked off the runs in less than two overs without losing a wicket.
At PKVR Reservoir: PACC 11 from 5 overs lost to KCC Maidens 0/12 from 1.5 overs by ten wickets.

Hong Kong Women’s XV for December’s Spain Tour

The Hong Kong Rugby Union (HKRU) has announced the squad for the upcoming tour (12-21 December) of Spain. The 25-woman strong squad will be the first Hong Kong XV to play a test series overseas against non-Asian opposition when they take the field in Madrid.

Hong Kong will play Spain on Tuesday (15 Dec.) and Saturday (19 Dec.) although both sides are expected to experiment with their selections in the opening match. Currently there’s no information as to whether the games will be watchable in Hong Kong.

The final squad features a core of national team players including those from the sevens squad, who recently returned from participating in the final stage of Olympic qualification for the Rio 2016 Games. Hong Kong finished third overall in the qualification process, securing their spot in an international repechage tournament next year for the sole remaining women’s berth at the 2016 Games in Rio.

“We’ve got a good mix of young players and experienced campaigners such as Christy Cheng and Royce Chan from the sevens set-up, but we were keen to make sure that we selected a squad for the future so there is a balance of experience and potential for the future,” said Hong Kong Women’s XVs coach and HKRU Women’s Performance Manager Jo Hull.

The squad features a concentration of players from the two strongest HKRU Premiership sides, Valley and Gai Wu Falcons. Chow Mei Nam, who plays No.8 and captains Gai Wu Falcons, currently in second on the Women’s Premiership league table, will lead Hong Kong for the first time on the tour.

“Although she has only played twice for the national team – in last season’s Asia Rugby Women’s Championship, she is already a huge leader in everything we do. Over the last three or four months she has proven that she is one to watch for the future. Physically she has the size to compete at this level. She’s a strong ball carrier who we’ll be relying on heavily in the coming games. But she also embodies the team’s values. She is a teacher by day and her work rate is inspirational to the rest of the team,” Hull added.

Valley’s Adrienne Garvey is the vice captain and is one of eight Valley players in the squad. Valley is undefeated in the Women’s Premiership, extending their winning streak to 20 matches across two seasons after winning the double last season without a loss.

Gai Wu are runners-up on the table with a game in hand, and nine of their players have been selected including the ‘Gai Wu Express’, Aggie Poon, the top scorer on the Asian Sevens Series this season. USRC Tigers and Hong Kong Football Club both have three representatives in the final 25 with Kowloon and Tai Po Dragons each having one player represented.

Sevens captain Christy Cheng Ka Chi has been named to the Tour, alongside Poon, Amelie Seure, Natasha Olson-Thorne, Sham Wai Sum, Kwong Sau Yan, Candy Cheng Tsz Ting and Stephanie Cuvelier from the squad that recently competed in Tokyo. Other elite athletes from the rugby sevens programme at the Hong Kong Sports Institute named include Royce Chan, Melody Li Nim Yan, Colleen Tjosvold and Garvey.

Hull and the selectors have tipped four potential new caps including Valley’s Rebecca Thompson who previously represented Hong Kong at age grade level and has recently returned from studying overseas. Hong Kong U20s sevens captain Aileen Ryan of Hong Kong Football Club has also been selected, along with Kowloon’s Mak Ho Yee, another U20s sevens player and National Age Grade representative, rounding out the three new caps in the backline.

“Our four new caps show great potential for the future,” said Hull. “Ryan, Thompson and Ho have come through the Age Grade programme as one of our key aims for the Tour is to groom young players. There are a number of exciting U19 players coming through at the moment and we wanted to ensure that opportunities to progress into senior rugby are provided.”

Jasmine Shuk Han Cheung is the only uncapped player selected in the forwards after having impressed selectors on her return to Hong Kong from studying overseas. “Jasmine brings a strong physical presence to the side. She has been playing in England and adds some valuable experience and knowledge to the team,” added Hull.

Spain finished ninth overall in the 2014 Women’s Rugby World Cup after being grouped in the same pool with the eventual finalists England and Canada. Spain beat Kazakhstan 18-5 to advance to the ninth place play-off where they dispatched South Africa 36-0. The results indicate the challenge ahead for Hong Kong who lost their most recent test to Kazakhstan 40-0 in Almaty this spring.

“We expect a physical challenge from Spain, but they also have a full-time sevens squad which is obviously going to be a factor. They are good with ball in hand and fast, building out of their sevens capability, so it will be an excellent opportunity for us to gauge where we are,” said Hull.

“Spain are good, but we are focusing more on our own processes rather than our opponents. We have some talented players and can play dynamic rugby. We’re never going to be the biggest or the strongest team on the park, but we have an experienced front row that we will rely on heavily. We also have huge experience in the backline so we want to move the ball around.

“It’s very easy to say ‘we’re building’, but that is our mindset as we look from the next few months to four of five years from now. It’s important for the players to gain experience now.

We’ll be looking to see which combinations work on Tour and will focus on some key performance goals rather than judging success purely on wins and losses. Having said that, we want to show our strengths to the women’s rugby world and a win would be nice,” Hull concluded.

Hong Kong Squad, Spain Tour 12-21 December, 2015
Forwards: Karen So Hoi Ting, Amelie Seure, Royce Chan Leong Sze, Cheng Ching To, Christy Cheng Ka Chi, Chow Mei Nam (Captain), Claire Forster, Tammy Lau Nga Wun, Lee Ka Shun, Melody Li Nim Yan, Lo Wai Yan, Jasmine Shuk Han Cheung, Winnie Siu Wing Ni.
Backs: Adrienne Garvey (Vice Captain), Aileen Ryan, Cheng Tsz Ting, Colleen Tjosvold, Kwong Sau Yan, Lau Sze Wa, Mak Ho Yee, Natasha Olson-Thorne, Poon Pak Yan, Sham Wai Sum, Stephanie Cuvelier

Photo: HK Rugby Union

HK Cricket Match Reports: Women’s League 28-29 November, 2015

Saturday, 28th November 2015

HKCC Cavaliers v KCC Maidens
In an entertaining match at PKVR Reservoir on Saturday, HKCC Cavaliers scored a six-wicket victory over KCC Maidens.

The KCC women took first use of the wicket and they put together a good score of 6/193 with five of their top order reaching twenty and Amanda Kwok’s 35 their best.

The big score didn’t deter the HKCC Cavaliers’ batters and Jasmine Titmuss (76*) and Alvina Tam (45*) got them home in 33 overs with an unbroken stand of 133 for the fifth wicket.
At PKVR Reservoir: KCC Maidens 6/193 from 35 overs lost to HKCC Cavaliers 4/194 from 33 overs by six wickets.
Sunday, 29th November 2015

DLSWCC Wasps v USRC
Shahzeen Shahzad smashed an unbeaten 211 in just 33 overs as DLSWCC Wasps thumped USRC by 264 runs in a Women’s League match at PKVR Reservoir. The DLSWCC women batted first after winning the toss and they scored a massive 2/339 with Shanzeen helping herself to what is thought to be the first double century and the highest individual score by a women cricketer in Hong Kong. Manpreet Kaur also scored 40.

The USRC women, having been docked two overs for failing to bowl out their overs in time, managed to bat out their 31 overs to finish on 9-75. Mehreen Yousaf picked up 3/7 from six overs.
At PKVR Reservoir: DLSWCC Wasps 2/339 from 33 overs beat USRC 9/75 from 31 overs by 264 runs.

HK Cricket Match Reports: Sunday 29 November, 2015

Sunday Championship – 29 November 2015

KCC Templars v KCC Infidels
As usual, the annual KCC derby between Templars and Infidels was evenly contested but it was Infidels that prevailed quite comfortably in the end.

Set a victory target of 220, Infidels chased down the total in the 47th over with Sunny Bhimsaria (44), skipper Muhammad Khan (37) and Najeeb Amar (38) making the major contributions.

Earlier in the day, Bhimsaria had grabbed three wickets as Templars were restricted to 9/219 from their 50 overs after failing to make the most of a strong start that saw them reach 1/93. Nigel Shroff with 51, Dylan Dearing 31 and Aditya Kanthan 41 were the best of the Templars’ batsmen.
At KCC: KCC Templars 9/219 from 50 overs lost to KCC Infidels 6/220 from 46.4 overs by four wickets.

HKCC Wanderers v DLSWCC Knights
In another thrilling finish at Hong Kong Cricket Club, HKCC Wanderers pipped DLSWCC Knights by one wicket.

Knights batted first after winning the toss and Shakeel Haq dominated the early batting as he scored 44 out of the first 59 runs scored. But his was the fourth wicket to fall and the fifth fell soon after to leave the Knights teetering at 5/63 but a 99-run sixth wicket partnership, featuring 46 from Tabarak Dar, helped to lift the to an eventual total of 166 from 47.2 overs. Angus Robson was the best of the Wanderers’ bowlers, claiming 3/34 from 8.2 overs.

Knights’ skipper Niaz Ali grabbed three early wickets to reduce the Wanderers to 6/42 before a steadying 38 from Stuart Tohill moved the score to 75. Amanat Khan also grabbed three wickets as the Wanderers top and middle order were blown away. A 57-run eighth wicket stand between skipper Jon Bond and Tim Cutler got the score to 132 but when Niaz grabbed his fourth wicket shortly afterwards, 25 runs were still needed for victory with the last pair at the crease. Cutler nurtured the scoring with a fine 79 not out as Wanderers earned the narrowest of victories in a nail-biting finish.
At HKCC: DLSWCC Knights 166 from 47.2 overs lost to HKCC Wanderers 9/167 from 42 overs by one wicket.

HK Cricket Match Reports: Saturday 28 November, 2015

With Mission Road now out of action due to a period of winter turf maintenance, there were only three Saturday Championship matches played this week.

Saturday Championship Division 1

HKCC Nomads v KCC Tartars
In a tight match at Hong Kong Cricket Club, HKCC Nomads bounced back from last week’s loss to beat KCC Tartars by 11 runs.

Batting first after winning the toss, Nomads recovered from the early loss of both openers to post a score of 9/194. Shephard was the best of the Nomads batsmen, scoring 63.

Tartars’ reply failed to gain much momentum as they lost wickets at regular intervals and at 7/104 they looked dead and buried however, a battling 71 from Afzaal Haider got them within 11 runs of victory. James Dillon picked up 3/42 for Nomads.
At HKCC: HKCC Nomads 9/194 from 35 overs beat KCC Tartars 183 from 34.4 overs by 11 runs.

KCC Saracens v CCC Jing Sun
At Kowloon Cricket Club, KCC Saracens continued their unbeaten start to the season with a 50-run victory over the previously unbeaten CCC Jing Sun.

Saracens have Simondeep Singh (35) and Usman Manj (45) to thank for their score of 7/161 as the pair shared an 86-run partnership for the fourth wicket. Giacomo Lamplough was the pick of the CCC bowlers, claiming 4/37 from his seven over spell.

The CCC reply got away to a good start but from 0/34, they slipped to 3/36. They recovered to 3/81 but then slumped to 7/88 as wickets fell in groups to stymy any momentum they had built up. They eventually reached 111 at which score they lost their last three wickets. Naveen Shivalingham was the best of the Saracen’s bowlers with 3/15 from five overs.
At KCC: KCC Saracens 7/161 from 35 overs beat CCC Jing Sun 111 from 31.5 overs by 50 runs.

Saturday Championship Division 2

SCC Lancers v Lamma CC
At PKVR Park, SCC Lancers got their second win in as many weeks with a seven-wicket victory over Lamma CC.

Lamma batted first after winning the toss and they were led from the front by their skipper Andy Fullard who scored 76 in an eventual score of 7/167 from 35 overs. SCC Lancers only lost three wickets in their chase that was ably finished off by Prakash Chakravarti and Nitesh Jeevan who scored 44 not out and 64 not out respectively.
At PKVR Park: Lamma CC 7/167 from 35 overs lost to SCC Lancers 3/171 from 31 overs by seven wickets.

Hong Kong Women’s Seven Tough Day in Tokyo

The Hong Kong Women’s Seven had a tough day in Tokyo, losing crucial matches to Japan (5-27) and Kazakhstan (5-29) in the first day of the final stage of the Asia Rugby Olympic qualifiers. The competition’s format, which has all six participating teams in a single pool, sees day two’s finals placings determined directly by pool results.

Japan and Kazakhstan, the winners and runners-up in the opening leg of the Olympic qualifier held in Hong Kong, emerged undefeated from day one. Those results will likely put the finals beyond reach for Hong Kong, barring an upset in the final pool round tomorrow when Japan and Kazakhstan play the fifth and sixth seeds Guam and Sri Lanka respectively, before playing each other in the last pool match ahead of the finals.

On present form, that match could preview the final, which Kazakhstan would need to win to keep their hopes of a direct Olympic berth alive.

China also struggled on day one, dropping its opening match to Japan 7-20 before losing to Kazakhstan 14-0, further damping Hong Kong’s hopes as China were the only other side outside of the leaders capable of shaking up the standings.

Slow starts were the problem for Hong Kong. That trend started in the opening match when Guam dominated possession and territory against the third seeds overall for nearly the entire first half. Late first half tries from captain Christy Cheng Ka Chi and vice captain Natasha Olson-Thorne righted the ship and set the platform for the final half when Aggie Poon Pak Yan, Stephanie Cuvelier, Amelie Seure and Chong Ka Yan all scored. Poon added three conversions with Lai Pou Fan adding one.

Another slow start proved lethal against Kazakhstan who mounted their finest performance of the season with a 29-5 win. With size and pace across the side, Kazakhstan put on a display, suffocating Hong Kong of any possession and scoring three tries before the break to take a 19-0 lead.

Kazakhstan maintained the pressure in the second half, scoring twice after the break, but most of their work came in defence of the lead, with Hong Kong having the lion’s share of possession. Late in the match Hong Kong began to string together consistent and structured phase play that rattled the Kazakh defence. Hong Kong scored a consolation try at the hooter with Amelie Seure finishing off a good period of offensive pressure with her second try of the day.

Hong Kong dropped its final match of the day to Japan but played its best rugby. After going down 5-0 early on, Aggie Poon Pak Yan leveled the scores after capitalizing on broken play to score in the corner. Japan’s second try came from a well-worked move at the base of a scrum that outfoxed the Hong Kong defence putting Mifuyu Koide over untouched. Hong Kong conceded a third try late in the half after having a player down with injury for the last minute leaving them outnumbered.

The Sakura Sevens were superb in defence in the second half keeping Hong Kong off the board while adding two more tries to win convincingly.

Hong Kong will play China and Sri Lanka in the final pool rounds tomorrow.

Babar Hayat and Mark Chapman Smash Hong Kong to Victory

Mark Chapman bludgeoned a six to complete a consolation win, as he and Babar Hayat put on an unbeaten 127-run partnership to lead Hong Kong to an eight-wicket victory in the final T20I against Oman in Abu Dhabi on Thursday (26 November).

Chasing 150 for victory, both Babar (65*) and Chapman (63*) struck their highest ever T20I scores in a third-wicket partnership that spanned 14 overs. Their stand was the fifth-highest for the third wicket in T20I history, and the highest ever by an Associate side. It is also the highest-ever partnership in Hong Kong’s T20I and ODI history.

Both batsmen were still at the crease when Chapman struck a mighty six to take the side to 155 for the loss of only two wickets in 18.3 overs. The win also proved a consolation victory in the three-match series, after Oman won the first T20I by six wickets and the second by four runs.

Babar’s historic knock is the highest-ever T20I innings by a Hong Kong player, and came off only 45 deliveries, including four fours and three sixes. Chapman’s innings is the second-highest for Hong Kong, and came from 41 balls, including three fours and three sixes.

The side looked like it might be in trouble when it lost opener Kinchit Shah (5) in the second over, and then Anshuman Rath (20) in the fifth over. However, the two hard hitters showed no signs of pressure as they pushed the ball around for singles in between the boundaries.

Babar brought up his half century with a boundary in the 15th over, while Chapman’s came two overs later after the pair scampered between the wickets for two runs.

Earlier, captain Tanwir Afzal won the toss and sent Oman in to bat, and the side quickly set about putting runs on the board. Khawar Ali (18) and Zeeshan Maqsood (23) put on 34 runs at a run rate of 9.71 before Haseeb Amjad struck in the fourth over to dismiss Khawar, caught at long on by Babar Hayat.

New batsman Aaqib Sulehri was helped back to the change rooms on the very next ball, with Haseeb’s delivery striking his foot and forcing him to retire hurt. After Aizaz Khan dismissed Zeeshan Maqsood four overs later, Adnan Ilyas (49) and Aamir Kaleem (46 not out) combined for a 101-run partnership, scoring at well above a run a ball until Haseeb struck on the last ball of the innings with a plumb delivery, knocking out the stumps to dismiss Adnan one run short of his half century, on 49 runs, to see Oman post a total of 149 for the loss of four wickets.

Hong Kong’s Aizaz and Haseeb each claimed two wickets.

Hong Kong captain Tanwir Afzal was thrilled with his side’s clinical performance: “I think our approach today was really good. I am so happy that throughout this long tour, we’ve had some injuries, but we still have had guys who’ve done really well with the ball and in the field. We’ve struggled a bit with the batting, but it worked in this game and hopefully it is a good sign for us looking forward to our next game against Afghanistan.”

The skipper believed that the victory will put his team in a good mindset for the final match of its tour, a one-off T20I against Afghanistan on Saturday. “I think today was a very comfortable win against Oman, I think we really worked hard and we learned a lot from the last two games, and it is good for us, going forward. We have a few changes in the batting order and different roles, so it is a really positive sign that we clicked in this game, and hopefully it will work in the future.”

Hong Kong Head Coach Simon Cook was delighted with the record-breaking partnership: “Babar and Mark came out and were outstanding, it’s as good a run-chase as I’ve seen in T20 cricket, you don’t often get 100-partnerships in T20, and we’ve had one of the best ones here. To get an over-par score and knock it off with nine balls remaining was an outstanding effort. The two guys who got runs today really took ownership of that partnership, and ownership of the game, and they controlled it and really never let Oman into the game from probably the 10th over onwards.”

He believed that his charges would take some valuable lessons from the series loss to prepare for Saturday’s one-off T20I against Afghanistan. “The first two games, I think the word ‘frustrating’ was used, and I would probably use it again today – it is frustrating because if we’d played half as well yesterday as we did today, we would have probably taken this series 3-0. But as it is, we go down 2-1, but having learned a lot of really good lessons.”

“The win will fill the guys with a lot of confidence, certainly with a run-chase as emphatic as that. The Afghan bowlers will provide a challenging test for our guys, and also with the ball as well. So there is still a lot of work to do, but a lot of confidence can be taken from this run chase and how it was constructed, and how it was finished off in such a clinical fashion.”

Hong Kong Women Aim for Olympic Qualification in Tokyo

The Hong Kong Women’s Sevens squad departed today for Tokyo, Japan where they will play in this weekend’s second leg of Asia Rugby’s Olympic qualification tournament. At the end of which one women’s team from Asia will automatically qualify for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro after the completion of the tournament on 29 November.

After winning this year’s opening Asia Rugby Women’s Sevens Series tournament in Qingdao China, what once looked like a goal for 2020 is now a real – albeit slim – possibility for the 2016 after Hong Kong finished third in the opening leg of the two-stage qualifier at the Hong Kong Stadium on 7-8 November.

The women’s seven finished that tournament with a four win and two loss record – with losses coming against the eventual finalists Japan and Kazakhstan – but dispatched pre-tournament favourites China twice, including a 12-7 win in the third place play-off.

The result leaves Hong Kong needing an outright win in Tokyo, but also dependent upon the two finalists from the first leg not reaching this weekend’s cup match.Should either opponent reach the final in Tokyo they will have done enough to book their ticket to Rio on overall points across the series.

If Hong Kong win in Tokyo and Japan and Kazakhstan fail to reach the final, tie-breakers will come into effect. First up will be the head-to-head results between the two tied teams across the two Olympic qualifier events. If three teams are tied at the end of play on Sunday, point differentials across the series will be the deciding factor.

Hong Kong must win and win well this weekend. The hometown heroes have the advantage of heading to Japan with an unchanged side including flying winner Aggie Poon Pak Yan, who has been the revelation of the series.

Poon again proved that she is the deadliest finisher in Asian women’s rugby, leading all players with eight tries in Hong Kong earlier this month. Those totals bring her remarkable season tally to 25 tries and 24 conversions over the qualifier and two Asian sevens events so far in 2015, for a combined 173 points.

Hong Kong will need Poon to be on song once again as the team looks to make an all-out push for a historic Olympic berth. Squad veterans in captain Christy Cheng Ka Chi, vice captain Natasha Olson-Thorne and Candy Cheng Tsz Ting will also need to peak at the opportune moment to give Hong Kong any chance of success.

The Tokyo qualifier will again see six teams competing in a single pool, round-robin competition. Hong Kong will face Japan, Kazakhstan, China, Sri Lanka and Guam. Hong Kong will open in Tokyo against Guam, whom they blanked 29-0 earlier this month but it is the last two matches on day one that will determine Hong Kong’s chances as they face Kazakhstan and Japan in the closing ties on Saturday. Both sides beat Hong Kong in the first qualifier, with Japan handing the hosts a 36-0 whitewash to end day one at the HK Stadium – that match coming on the heels of Hong Kong’s highly physical 5-0 victory over China.

Coach Anna Richards commented on the squad’s performance from the opening leg, saying, “We were up-and-down unfortunately, but we still have a mathematical chance. It will be a tough one and we must now win it all this weekend.”

In Tokyo, Hong Kong will need to take matters into their own hands and hand Japan and Kazakhstan early losses to prevent them from reaching the final. Hong Kong’s opening pool match on day two is against China in a potential trap game after Hong Kong gained the upper hand on China in recent tournaments.

China, perhaps the most disappointing performer after many expected them to be Asia’s representatives in Rio, will kick off the second leg against Japan in the first match in Tokyo, a tie that could help upset the formbook and set the stage for a weekend of hoped for surprises.
After looking imperious in the opening leg, Japan will enter the tournament as the heavy favourites particularly as they enjoy a rare opportunity to play in front of their home fans. Japan’s women’s sevens have never played an Asia Rugby tournament at home.

Led by the inspirational Chiharu Nakamura, Japan will be intent on joining their men’s counterparts, who secured the Olympic berth earlier this month after coming back from a 10-point first half deficit to beat Hong Kong 24-10 in the final, next year in Rio.

Hong Kong Squad for Olympic Qualifier – Japan Leg
Cheng Ka Chi Christy (Captain), Natasha Olson-Thorne (vice Captain), Amelie Seure, Cheng Tsz Ting, Chong Ka Yan, Kwong Sau Yan, Lai Pou Fan, Lindsay Varty, Nam Ka Man, Poon Pak Yan Aggie, Sham Wai Sum, Stephanie Cuvelier.