Hong Kong had to settle for third place at the Shanghai Sevens yesterday - the first event in the inaugural Asian Series. But head coach Dai Rees insisted that a gold medal at December's East Asian Games was not out of the picture.
South Korea defeated Japan 45-19 to spirit away the championship and cement their credentials as the biggest threat to Hong Kong's hopes of winning the EAG plum in front of their home fans at the end of the year.
But Rees was unfazed, saying the Jeff Wong-led team could only get better over the next few months.
'It was an outstanding first tournament for the boys. Considering that this is a relatively new squad, I'm pleased with how they have performed,' he said.
'The fact that we beat Korea in our pool game on the first day will give us confidence. And Japan were here with four Pacific Islanders in their team, all of whom won't be eligible for the East Asian Games,' Rees pointed out.
Hong Kong defeated Taiwan 31-10 - two tries from Rowan Varty, and one each from Simon Leung, Yiu Kam-shing and Gavin Hadley - to clinch third place after they had been knocked out by Japan, 17-5, in a semi-final marred by several controversial decisions by the referee.