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Alvin Sallay

STUART Krohn and Valley's 1997-98 rugby season got off to an inauspicious start yesterday at the Beijing Carlsberg 10s.

 Hong Kong international Krohn was sent off in the Cup final against Beijing Agricultural University, who went on to win a highly physical game 7-5.

 Krohn was sent off midway in the second half for a professional foul. Reports from Beijing said that Krohn earned the censure of the referee for killing the ball.

 'It was a dubious decision . . . there was a lot of niggly stuff going on,' said Bob Brown, the Hong Kong Rugby Football Union's assistant director of coaching.

 To make matters worse for Valley, who were defending their title, Beijing Agricultural University (BAU) were awarded a penalty try for a 'foul off the ball'.

 The Chinese team were determined to beat Valley. According to Hud Vowell, manager of the Hong Kong Under-23s, BAU's goal was simply to beat Valley, who had beaten them last year.

 'They are a very fit side with superb handling skills. They matched Valley in all departments,' said Vowell.

 Reigning First Division champions Valley comprised a number of players from the top league, including their player-coaches Krohn and Rodney McIntosh, Toby Bland, Deab Herewini, Jon Dingley, Troy Sing, Jason Going and Sam Kynaston.

 But BAU's determination to win proved to be the deciding factor.

 The Plate final also went to a Chinese team with the PLA defeating Aberdeen. But Kowloon won the Bowl by overcoming Shanghai Sports Institute.

 The Hong Kong Under-23s had mixed results in their group games.

 They defeated BAU II 21-5 but were beaten 29-0 by Valley. In their first game in the Plate competition, the U-23s lost 19-5 to the PLA.

 Meanwhile, in Kuala Lumpur, the Hong Kong national squad encountered a few problems as they began the season on a slow note at the COBRA 10s.

 Hong Kong finished in the Plate competition after losing their first two games in the preliminary round to Fiji and Argentina, before bouncing back with a victory over Zimbabwe.

 'We were caught napping in the first two games. The lack of match fitness took its toll,' said Hong Kong manager Bill Harris.

 Hong Kong were beaten 17-5 by Fiji, lost to Argentina 25-0 and defeated Zimbabwe 19-7. Luke Nabaro, who scored the solitary try against Fiji, also touched down against Zimbabwe. Nigel D'Acre and Warren Warner were the other try-scorers in this game. Carl Murray added the extra points.

 It was the first time that Hong Kong had failed to finish in the Cup competition at the COBRA 10s. Their campaign was not helped by the fact that they arrived in Kuala Lumpur late on Friday night after their flight was diverted to Penang.



Unhappy start to season for Krohn and Valley at Beijing 10s