Hong Kong, Repechage bound

Can Hong Kong dream with the RWC?

Nov 02, 2022

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This piece was written by Steve Noble, sports journalist and chief editor of Rugby Asia 24

Hong Kong Men’s XV are days away from opening their account at the RWC 2023 Final Qualification Tournament where they face Portugal (6th November), the USA (12th November) & Kenya (18th November) on their journey to try and qualify for their first ever Men’s Rugby World Cup and enter Pool D at RWC 2023.

The HKRU says its selected squad for the matches in Dubai features a mix of fresh faces and veterans, and while many in the team play their rugby in the Nan Fung | SEWIT Men’s Hong Kong Premiership - the top flight of rugby in HK - a third joined the squad from leagues abroad when they assembled in the UAE.

WHO IS THE TEAM?

The HK squad includes ten players who have come through the ranks at Hong Kong Football Club (HKFC) and sevens players who have played with Sandy Bay Rugby Club in Hong Kong’s Premiership.

The team selection also features many players who triumphed over Korea to claim the 2022 Asia Rugby Championship which earned them the right to travel to Australia and take on Tonga in the RWC 2023 Asia Qualifier Qualifier. Despite the team’s loss to the Pacific islanders, they fared well against a side that many pundits thought would put them away far more easily than they did in their 44-22 loss.

Even England Head Coach Eddie Jones, who was in attendance at the Sunshine Coast Stadium to watch the match, said that it was the best Hong Kong side he had seen.

The HK squad is one of the most impacted by the pandemic as the HKRU elite programs were financially wrecked due to the cancellation of three Hong Kong Sevens which drives most of the union’s revenue, so this year has been one of rebuilding, flexibility and sheer determination - this also means the national XVs team has seen a large number of players earn their international debuts.

Key players include Josh Hrstich, James Cunningham, Bryn Phillips, and Alex Post who are rugby veterans and they will be relied upon by the coaching team to offer a mature and guiding hand even if they have limited international experience.

Earlier this year, Hsrtich made his debut as captain and was supported by James Cunningham and fly-half Glyn Hughes as vice-captains in the team’s only two international fixtures in 2022.

Within the 30-strong squad that has assembled in Dubai, nearly a third joined from overseas, a reflection of the pandemic-enforced change of HKRU policy that previously saw them lose players to other unions on the international stage if they did not play within Hong Kong. The national teams will now benefit from players involved in top leagues across the globe.

Bryn Phillips at scrum half (with both HK Sevens and XVs caps in 2022), Matt Worley (who has played for Racing 92 previously and has been with the Bedford Blues in the English RFU Championship since 2018), Jack Neville (who was in the HKRU programme for years and then moved to Spain to play before joining Nottingham in the English RFU Championship), and ex-South China Tigers and HKFC back Nate de Thierry all are important cogs in the side. De Thierry returns from club stints with Castilla in the Europe Super Cup and with the NHRU Wildfires in the New South Wales Shute Shield.

LEWIS EVANS AND THE DREAM

Head Coach Lewis Evans, himself a former professional Welsh player has seen his accession to lead the HK Men's team accelerated by the impacts of COVID - and the matches against Korea and Tonga in 2022 were his first in charge on the international stage. He is still the current HK Premiership KROLL USRC Tigers Head Coach, and is joined by Sandy Bay’s Head Coach Will Webster is in charge of the team’s defence.

The coaches only had the irregular preparations from the two test matches played earlier this year and four rounds of the HK Premiership to base their selections on and earlier this week played a warm up match against a local club side in Dubai - this was probably the first time all of the players have had a run out as one unit.

The staff have had to work some logistical magic to field competitive teams throughout the year, circumnavigating tough COVID protocols and a disrupted rugby season but Evans said “We had a lot to be proud of looking back on the footage from our game against Tonga. The attitude and the energy remained consistent, and we will be looking to take that through to the tournament.”