https://www.scmp.com/rss/322163/feed The 10s is a popular rugby union tournament played over two days immediately before the Hong Kong Sevens. Promoted as the world’s best 10s tournament, the event has long attracted some of the game’s top players. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Shah Sahari Shah Sahari The Tradition HKFC 10s celebrates its 40th anniversary this week and it’s fair to say a lot has changed since that inaugural tournament in 1986. Shah Sahari looks back at that first event ahead of Tuesday’s opening matches. Ah, 10-a-side rugby: the version for those who fancy themselves as sevens players but without quite having the speed, mobility and physique for it. Back in the dawn of time – 40 years ago, actually – the Hong Kong Football Club, having already launched what was to become the... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3349859/hong-kong-10s-was-my-first-proper-rugby-tour-40-years-later-i-still-remember-it-all?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3349859/hong-kong-10s-was-my-first-proper-rugby-tour-40-years-later-i-still-remember-it-all?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 Apr 2026 04:00:09 +0000 SCMP Sport SCMP Sport An expanded Hong Kong 10s tournament and midweek racing at Happy Valley are among the changes being made to this year’s sevens week in the city, as the landmark tournament celebrates its 50th birthday in April. For the first time, a partnership between Hong Kong China Rugby, the Hong Kong Jockey Club and Hong Kong Football Club will bring an element of cohesion to what is traditionally the biggest week in the city’s sporting calendar. Rugby and racing will work in tandem through the week, with... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3340029/rugby-and-racing-join-forces-make-hong-kongs-sevens-week-bigger-and-better?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3340029/rugby-and-racing-join-forces-make-hong-kongs-sevens-week-bigger-and-better?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 15 Jan 2026 10:20:45 +0000 Exactly 25 years to the day after she won a stand-alone Hong Kong Sevens tournament with New Zealand, Anna Richards hailed the growth of women’s rugby since her 2010 retirement. Four-times World Cup winner Richards, who coached Hong Kong’s women’s sevens team for four years until 2017, is back in the city to lead RKS New Zealand Legends in this week’s Tradition HKFC 10s. The 10s introduced a women’s competition in 2023, the same year the elite HSBC SVNS Series began staging its men’s and women’s... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/hong-kong-rugby-union/article/3303679/world-cup-winner-hails-womens-rugby-advances-leading-kiwis-tradition-hkfc-10s?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/hong-kong-rugby-union/article/3303679/world-cup-winner-hails-womens-rugby-advances-leading-kiwis-tradition-hkfc-10s?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 24 Mar 2025 15:00:17 +0000 Union Bordeaux Bègles will aim to plant a flag in Hong Kong when they travel to the city, armed with a “big bag of passion and spirit”, for the 2025 Tradition HKFC 10s. Staged over the two days immediately before the Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens, the 10s is considered an appetiser for the main event. In the shape of UBB, however, organisers have attracted rugby royalty for next year’s March 26 and 27 tournament. The club’s sevens team will target the French national title in February’s... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/hk-sevens/article/3292017/french-rugby-royalty-hong-kong-bound-ubb-coach-promising-hkfc-10s-passion-and-spirit?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/hk-sevens/article/3292017/french-rugby-royalty-hong-kong-bound-ubb-coach-promising-hkfc-10s-passion-and-spirit?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Dec 2024 04:00:15 +0000 The ongoing transformation of the Tradition Hong Kong 10s from a carefree social outing preceding the serious sevens into a competitive entity in its own right was underlined by Celia Quansah’s appearance for Haywards Tropics. The Great Britain winger, whose Tropics side won the women’s Plate competition, is bidding to regain her GB sevens place in time for the Paris Olympics. A member of the team that lost a bronze-medal match to Fiji in the Tokyo Games in 2021, Quansah said Team GB have... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/hk-sevens/article/3257884/tradition-hong-kong-10s-great-britains-celia-quansah-has-unfinished-business-she-targets-paris?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/hk-sevens/article/3257884/tradition-hong-kong-10s-great-britains-celia-quansah-has-unfinished-business-she-targets-paris?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 04 Apr 2024 14:47:17 +0000 Hong Kong rugby teams need to keep investing in the women’s side of the game or risk getting left behind as the sport continues to progress by leaps and bounds, one of the city’s stars has warned. “A lot of clubs started investing in their women’s programme last season; clubs are recognising that there’s a lot of sponsorship available within the women’s sport,” HKFC Natixis Ice lock Roshini Turner said. “Rugby is growing. If you don’t invest, you’re going to fall behind.” Turner made the... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/hk-sevens/article/3257604/city-must-invest-more-womens-rugby-improve-says-hkfc-natixis-ices-roshini-turner-ahead-tradition?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/hk-sevens/article/3257604/city-must-invest-more-womens-rugby-improve-says-hkfc-natixis-ices-roshini-turner-ahead-tradition?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 02 Apr 2024 11:12:51 +0000 Teams from the Chinese mainland and Papua New Guinea have been added to the expanded women’s competition at next week’s 10s tournament at Hong Kong Football Club. This year’s event will feature eight elite teams, with some of the best players in the world expected to take part. Defending champions RKS Shogun Rugby, formerly RKS Legal Samurai Warriors, are favourites once again, and have bolstered their side with the inclusion of USA Rugby 7s star Liz Tafuna. But they will face stiff competition... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3256638/usa-rugby-7s-star-liz-tafuna-boost-defending-champions-expanded-womens-competition-hong-kong-10s?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3256638/usa-rugby-7s-star-liz-tafuna-boost-defending-champions-expanded-womens-competition-hong-kong-10s?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 26 Mar 2024 04:00:17 +0000 The Hong Kong 10s will feature five new teams and an expanded women’s competition when it returns for a 36th year in April. Defending champions Tradition YCAC come back as favourites, but are expected to be pushed hard again by Shogun Rugby Men, who were runners up last year in their guise as Samurai RFC Warriors. Ashbury Tropics, boasting a star-studded line-up that includes Fijian-Australian ex-international, Nemani Nadolo, will also be among those pushing to lift the Burgess-Wootten Cup. “We... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3253785/hong-kong-10s-feature-5-new-teams-defending-champions-tradition-ycac-favourites-mens-title?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3253785/hong-kong-10s-feature-5-new-teams-defending-champions-tradition-ycac-favourites-mens-title?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 01 Mar 2024 06:10:01 +0000 The Tradition HKFC 10s returns to the city on Wednesday for the first time in four years, reclaiming its traditional place during Hong Kong Sevens week. Back for its 35th edition, the tournament has a new element this time around with the inclusion of a women’s competition. Five teams will battle it out for the cup over the next two days. Among those involved is Rochelle Clark, who with 137 appearances is one of the most capped England players of all time. Here in her capacity as coach with RKS... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3215175/hong-kong-sevens-curtain-raiser-hkfc-10s-back-womens-debut-and-england-legend-rochelle-clark-vows-be?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3215175/hong-kong-sevens-curtain-raiser-hkfc-10s-back-womens-debut-and-england-legend-rochelle-clark-vows-be?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 29 Mar 2023 00:45:19 +0000 Rugby Olympian Abi Burton doesn’t remember much that happened during the summer of 2022, when a potentially fatal brain disease left her in a coma for 25 days. Yet remarkably, the English sevens star is on her way to play in next week’s Tradition HKFC 10s less than a year after she was struck down with autoimmune encephalitis. She spent 2½ months in hospital, lost 19kg in weight, and was left having to learn to walk and talk again after suffering seizures and becoming violent. Initially... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3214448/abi-burton-rugby-star-struck-rare-disease-will-make-comeback-hong-kong-10s-tournament?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3214448/abi-burton-rugby-star-struck-rare-disease-will-make-comeback-hong-kong-10s-tournament?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Mar 2023 00:00:19 +0000 Samurai RFC Warriors have laid down a marker for this month’s HKFC 10s tournament, adding ex-Springbok Victor Matfield to a team hoping to better its runners-up spot from 2019. With former England international Nick Easter and Irish star Kevin Maggs among the coaches, the Warriors will be one of the favourites for the event at Hong Kong Football Club. A competitive men’s field boasts the return of some well-known invitational sides, including Tradition YCAC from Japan, A-Trade Overseas Old Boys... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/rugby-community/article/3212314/samurai-rfc-warriors-add-ex-springbok-victor-matfield-squad-hkfc-1os?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/rugby-community/article/3212314/samurai-rfc-warriors-add-ex-springbok-victor-matfield-squad-hkfc-1os?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 04 Mar 2023 02:00:25 +0000 It’s been three more than years in the making, but the Hong Kong Football Club’s 10s rugby tournament will return in March as a curtain-raiser for the Cathay Pacific/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens, with a new women’s tournament taking centre stage. First played in 1986, the event will spring back to life over two days from March 29 to 30 at the Hong Kong Football Club, with a new title sponsor and expanded format. Paul Christopher, chairman of the Tradition HKFC 10s, said the inclusion of a women’s... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3203313/hong-kong-sevens-curtain-raiser-hkfc-10s-return-march-all-systems-go?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3203313/hong-kong-sevens-curtain-raiser-hkfc-10s-return-march-all-systems-go?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 15 Dec 2022 00:45:07 +0000 New York Giants safety Nate Ebner is keen to win a spot on the US rugby sevens team for the Tokyo Olympics after failing to get on the podium with the squad in Rio. Ebner, who won the NFL Super Bowl with the New England Patriots in 2015, 2017 and 2019 before joining the Giants last year, said failing to advance from the group stage in 2016 was something that still bothered him. “Not winning a medal, especially when I thought that we had the team to do it, and as I look at the growth in the last... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/international-rugby/article/3125652/tokyo-olympic-games-new-york-giants-and-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/international-rugby/article/3125652/tokyo-olympic-games-new-york-giants-and-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 16 Mar 2021 08:50:46 +0000 The Hong Kong Football Club Tens rugby tournament scheduled for March 31 and April 1, 2021, has been cancelled because of the Covid-19 pandemic, organisers said on Monday. The HKFC’s rugby section intends to bring the annual 10-a-side volunteer-run invitational – a prelude to the Cathay Pacific/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens and opener to Hong Kong Rugby Week – back to the city in 2022. “The 2021 tournament has been cancelled due to the continued impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on visiting teams’ funding... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3104235/covid-19-claims-another-sporting-event-2021-hong-kong-football-club?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3104235/covid-19-claims-another-sporting-event-2021-hong-kong-football-club?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Oct 2020 09:43:41 +0000 The GFI HKFC 10s is underway at Hong Kong Football Club where 16 teams are battling it out on day one. Action in at the two-day tournament goes from 9am to 8pm on both days and fans can catch it in the flesh at Sports Road or on their YouTube and Facebook Live feeds. Wednesday’s opening day is filled with pool games to decide who goes into the Cup and who makes the Bowl on Thursday. https://www.scmp.com/sport/hong-kong/article/3004445/hong-kong-rugby-10s-catch-all-action-live-sports-road?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/hong-kong/article/3004445/hong-kong-rugby-10s-catch-all-action-live-sports-road?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 03 Apr 2019 05:22:27 +0000 Former Fiji Sevens star Isake Katonibau is used to making his opponents look silly at Hong Kong Stadium but this year he is preparing for a different week as captain of GFI HKFC 10s team Mourant Fiji Army. While Katonibau has played in each of Fiji’s record-breaking four consecutive Cathay Pacific/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens victories, he will be watching from the stands this weekend as his countrymen look to make it five in a row. “It will be very awkward for me to be on the other side [of the... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3004171/ex-sevens-star-isake-katonibau-join-amazing-fiji-fans-hong-kong-stadium?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3004171/ex-sevens-star-isake-katonibau-join-amazing-fiji-fans-hong-kong-stadium?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 01 Apr 2019 10:11:37 +0000 Fijian sevens stars Isake Katonibau and Apisai Domolailai will bring their magic to the GFI HKFC 10s in April as the Fiji Army enters the tournament for the first time. The Fijians are expected to be among the top contenders as Biarritz Gavekal – formerly UBB Gavekal – bid for a third successive Cup title. The tournament has also been boosted by the return of three-time champions Asia-Pacific Dragons (APDs) after a year’s absence. Katonibau has helped Fiji win the last four Hong Kong Sevens... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/fifteens/article/2183026/fiji-army-enlists-hong-kong-tens-sevens-stars-isake-katonibau?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/fifteens/article/2183026/fiji-army-enlists-hong-kong-tens-sevens-stars-isake-katonibau?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 21 Jan 2019 23:31:33 +0000 Damien Traille will captain Pyrenees in next month’s HKFC Tens, while his long-time France teammate Imanol Harinordoquy and former World Rugby Player of the Year nominee will co-coach the team alongside Yannick Vignette. Both Traille and Harinordoquy retired after last season’s Top 14 and the two France legends will add vast experience to Pyrenees as the French touring team compete in the 10-a-side tournament at Hong Kong Football Club for a 10th straight year. Traille and Harinordoquy, both 37,... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/2076690/france-legends-damien-traille-and-imanol-harinordoquy-boost-pyrenees?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/2076690/france-legends-damien-traille-and-imanol-harinordoquy-boost-pyrenees?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Mar 2017 05:44:05 +0000 Changing lives – and savings lives – has become the norm for a group of Hong Kong rugby fanatics known throughout Asia for their outlandish dress sense. The Pot Bellied Pigs, who held their annual Fatboy 10s in Clark last weekend, are a social team in Hong Kong doing good things in the region and in the Philippines in particular. Lito Ramirez, a shy 21-year-old, and hundreds of other young Filipinos and Filipinas have been given new lives thanks to the Piggies, as they are affectionately... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/2020234/saved-dark-side-how-hong-kongs-rugby-pigs-are-giving-philippine-street?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/2020234/saved-dark-side-how-hong-kongs-rugby-pigs-are-giving-philippine-street?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 17 Sep 2016 02:30:30 +0000 Nate Ebner has a quiet confidence about him that gives the impression he’s not a big fan of being told he can’t do something. It’s not surprising for a guy who has played two sports at the elite level and has a Super Bowl ring to show for his troubles. While life hasn’t always been kind to the 27-year-old – he lost his father in 2008 – on the sporting field Ebner is used to getting his own way. The sport kind of adopted me. I knew at some point I would come back, it was just a matter of if I... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/sevens/article/1934246/nfl-player-nate-ebner-driven-fathers-memory-make-us-olympic-rugby?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/sevens/article/1934246/nfl-player-nate-ebner-driven-fathers-memory-make-us-olympic-rugby?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 07 Apr 2016 10:30:45 +0000 Former All Blacks Jimmy Cowan, Carl Hayman and Isaac Ross will star for the BGC Asia-Pacific Dragons (APDs) at next week’s GFI HKFC Tens as the side bid for a third successive Cup title and a fourth overall. I played in the Bledisloe Cup in Hong Kong twice and scored a try in the second match, so hopefully I can contribute again this time Former All Black Jimmy Cowan Cowan is looking forward to his return to Hong Kong, where he played for New Zealand against Australia in the 2008 and 2010... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/1931755/former-all-black-jimmy-cowan-adds-star-power-asia-pacific-dragons-hkfc?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/1931755/former-all-black-jimmy-cowan-adds-star-power-asia-pacific-dragons-hkfc?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 30 Mar 2016 07:15:00 +0000 Former New Zealand sevens stars Rocky Khan and Ed Cocker and two-time MVP Kane Hancy will spearhead Tradition YCAC’s charge at the GFI HKFC Tens title next month as the New Zealand-packed squad bid to win the Cup for the first time. Three-time champions BGC Asia Pacific Dragons (APDs), 2013 winners Penguins and two-time finalists Samurai are among other top contenders at the 31st edition of the tournament, which will be held 6-7 April at Hong Kong Football Club, immediately ahead of the Cathay... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/1926998/tradition-pack-tens-team-ex-all-blacks-sevens-bid-shake-bridesmaids-tag?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/1926998/tradition-pack-tens-team-ex-all-blacks-sevens-bid-shake-bridesmaids-tag?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 18 Mar 2016 06:45:15 +0000 This year’s Hong Kong Tens tournament will help children with life-threatening medical conditions after Make-A-Wish Hong Kong was appointed official charity. The charity helps grant the wishes of severely ill children – from meeting their heroes and taking trips to fulfilling long-held ambitions – and will receive proceeds from the entrance fees and all on-site donations at the GFI HKFC Tens, which will be held at Hong Kong Football Club from 6-7 April, immediately before the Hong Kong... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/community/article/1913453/hong-kong-10s-tournament-teams-make-wish-help-sick-kids?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/community/article/1913453/hong-kong-10s-tournament-teams-make-wish-help-sick-kids?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 16 Feb 2016 06:30:00 +0000