Hong Kong lose to Japan in Asian Games men’s gold medal final
Jamie Hood’s team settle for second straight Asiad silver while Hong Kong women lose out to Kazakhstan in bronze medal play-off
To see more photos of the Hong Kong men’s and women’s teams in action at the Asian Games, please click here.
The ghosts of the past came back to haunt Hong Kong's men's sevens team yesterday as they settled for a silver medal for the second successive Games, once again undone by Japan.
Nemesis Japan won 24-12, scoring four tries to two, including a contentious penalty try that possibly swung the game in their favour. Hong Kong head coach Gareth Baber said: "I don't want to be controversial but yes that try came at an important time."
It was a bitter pill to swallow for Hong Kong and while a silver medal will be some consolation, there was no hiding the disappointment in skipper Jamie Hood and his team.
"To get on the podium is always a good effort but we had our sights set on the gold and we had a team to do that but we failed and it's disappointing," said Hood.
Hopes were high that the men would land the coveted gold medal. And things seemed to be going well with the match finely balanced at 5-5, with Rowan Varty slicing the defence open with a searing 30 metre break to plant Hong Kong's opening try and the first of the match.
Japan equalised but with the hooter gone for half-time, Hong Kong opted to keep the ball alive when awarded a penalty with a tap. Unfortunately it was turned over and a Japan punt downfield ended in a penalty try after Singaporean referee Paul McKay decided that Tom McQueen running back in defence had obstructed a Japanese player.
