Hong Kong continue 7s push

The team will compete in Malaysia this weekend and their appearance caps a few weeks of busy action for the Asian nation on the women's rugby front with the senior sevens side in the hunt in Dublin for a place on the World Series, whileJo Hull was last week appointedas the union's Women's Performance Manager.

Asia Rugby established a women’s U20s sevens series this year to further develop regional competition in advance of sevens’ debut at the Olympic Games in 2016.

The four-team tournament that also features Japan, Singapore and Thailand.

The Hong Kong squad includes several veterans from both the 2013 Asian Youth Games in Nanjing, where Hong Kong won the bronze medal, and players that were blooded last year versus Russia’s U20s girls in a triangular tournament (Hong Kong A and B sides) held as part of the U20s Sevens tournament in Hong Kong last December.

U20s Girls and HKSI Rugby Sevens coach Mark Komar is confident in the team achieving results on its debut:

“We have had a strong build-up. We started with a talent identification programme that saw 40 girls brought into camp, which we then pared down to an initial training squad of 20. That squad has been preparing for six weeks now and we have narrowed it down to more or less our first choice squad of 12 players.

“I’m very pleased with the build up, we have had a few preparation games against the senior women’s sevens squad and the difference in performance across those matches was really massive. The girls looked more fluid and showed a better understanding after that series,” Komar added.

Komar is also excited about the inception of the U20s Girls Sevens series and the HKRU’s support in entering a team.

“Creating an U20s Girls sevens squad has been massive. It has energized the women’s rugby community and there is now a vital stepping stone between U18s girls rugby and senior rugby, which is hugely important for development purposes.

“We will now be able to have more consistent competition with the series in place which will help us develop the side and strengthen our depth at senior level,” added Komar.

Komar has named a strong squad for Johor Bahru which will be led by Aileen Ryan as captain and senior sevens squad member Lee Tsz Ting as vice captain.

“Aileen offers a lot of experience as she was part of the Asian Youth Games team and also played against Russia. She has come through the National Age Grade programmes and has trained with both the senior sevens and fifteens squads. She is a good talker and a natural leader.

“With BB (Lee Tsz Ting) as vice captain we will also have a bit of senior level experience on the field and she brings a great understanding of the game and what we are trying to achieve in terms of structure,” said Komar.

Other notable inclusions in the squad include Rachel Fong Siu-Ching, sister of senior sevens squad star Rose Fong Siu-Lan and Rosanna Wright, sister of Hong Kong men’s sevens squad member Mark Wright.

Komar believes that several of the U20s girls will be pushing for senior places soon. “They are not that far off and the training camp versus the women’s seven has only heightened their confidence. If you consider how they performed against the senior team, who are full-time at the HKSI, you can really see how close they are.

“A couple of these U20s girls - with the benefits of training full-time at the HKSI and given the same opportunities as the senior squad - would do very well and this weekend will help them stake a claim for senior spaces.

“The team is really excited. They know that they are the first side to represent Hong Kong overseas at this level and they understand they have an opportunity to make history here. They have embraced that and they are out to set a benchmark in terms of their performance,” concluded Komar.

Hong Kong Girls U20s squad: ARFU U20s Sevens 1st leg (Malaysia):

Aileen Ryan - captain (Hong Kong Football Club), Lee Tsz Ting - vice captain (Gai Wu RFC), Louise Austin (USRC Tigers), Chan Tsz Ching (Tai Po Dragons), Chan Tsz Ying (Hong Kong Scottish), Rachel Grace Fong (HKS), Mak Ho Yee (Kowloon), Eleanor Ngan Kee (HKS), Pang Hui Lam (City RFC), Tam Yu Ching (USRC), Rosanna Wright (Hong Kong Cricket Club); Wong Suet Ying.