Hong Kong’s women aiming higher after ‘massive effort’ in Asia Rugby Championship loss to Japan, Kazakhstan clash awaits
- Hong Kong’s meeting with Kazakhstan on June 1 shaping into playoff for place on Rugby World Cup pathway
- Japan too strong at King’s Park, but hosts rally to score pair of second-half tries through Shanna Forrest and Chong Ka-yan
Head coach Royce Chan said Hong Kong’s women could reach a “much better level”, despite delivering a “massive effort” in their 29-12 Asia Rugby Championship defeat by Japan on Wednesday.
The seven-position world-ranking gulf between the teams was exposed during a one-sided first half, when the home team struggled to escape their own 22, but defended tremendously to restrict Japan to 12-0 advantage at the break.
Chan praised her players for digesting half-time instructions to take more care in possession, and consequently scoring two second-half tries.
Hong Kong next meet Kazakhstan, on June 1, in what is shaping up to be a straight duel to qualify for WXV3, the third-tier of the new elite 18-team global tournament that provides a route to the 2025 Rugby World Cup.
Hong Kong have channelled considerable resources into trying to join the World Cup pathway, staging training camps in Australia, in January, and Japan this month, and removing the core of the sevens team from last weekend’s Challenger Series leg to prepare for the Asian 15s competition.
“I am super proud of the girls, they have taken a lot on board through our preparations,” Chan said.
