Hong Kong’s ‘super seven’ run riot over Pakistan and Philippines
Jamie Hood’s men rack up 18 tries without conceding a point ahead of tricky test against China in final group match
Being part of the Asian Games is "humbling" for Hong Kong, but Jamie Hood's men showed a touch of arrogance as they brushed aside Pakistan and the Philippines to put down a marker in the rugby sevens competition.
Hong Kong hammered Pakistan 72-0 and the Philippines 40-0, to win the first of their three pool matches. A dangerous China await in the final pool match and if this obstacle is overcome, Hong Kong will finish as one of the top two seeds when the eight quarter-finalists are ranked for the knockout showdown later today.
"I'm very pleased. We wanted to get the first two done and we looked sharp and it will be a confidence booster," said Hong Kong head coach Gareth Baber.
We didn’t concede a point, which is great and we managed to rack up a few as well
Baber, who said being part of the Asian Games was "a humbling experience", had special praise for his magnificent seven - skipper Hood, the McQueen brothers Alex and Tom, Rowan Varty and forwards Jack Capon, Michael Coverdale and Max Woodward. This seven, all part of the Hong Kong Sports Institute programme, had also been the key components in two tournament victories in the Asian Sevens Series, and are now leading the way in Incheon with aplomb.
"They have generated a bit of momentum as a seven. These are the guys who have been in the programme with me from the first day," Baber said.
"There are a couple of guys who have come back from injury [Kwok Ka-chun and Salom Yiu Kam-shing] and a couple from overseas [Mark Wright and Keith Robertson] and I'm introducing them slowly and generating as much competition within this group.
"But you go with what you trust and the boys are doing the job as you can see by the two performances today. We didn't concede a point, which is great and we managed to rack up a few as well," Baber said.
A total of 18 tries were scored with the pick being a solo effort by the outstanding Woodward, who slipped four tackles as he weaved his magic against the Philippines.
But coach Tomohiro Segawa was not satisfied and believed his side needed to improve quickly if they are to halt Hong Kong.
"I'm happy with the scores, but I'm not all that happy with the way we played, especially our support play which was not the best," Segawa said.
Japan kept their cream under wraps for most part of the day, including 15s skipper Michael Leitch and it remains to be seen if the Asian juggernauts can get their new combinations working smoothly before the knockout phase.
" We are getting there and I hope by the time the final comes around they will be playing well," Segawa said.
