Dragons advance to Plate final after ‘physical’ first day
‘Sevens in the Vines’ is tough going for Hong Kong development squad, but coach Barber sees plenty of positives
Hong Kong Dragons advanced to the Plate final at the Margaret River Sevens near Perth on Saturday, after a bruising first day against more experienced and physical opponents.
The Dragons – who are Hong Kong’s men’s sevens development team – narrowly defeated invitational side Fresh 19-17 in the Plate semi-final, thanks in large part to a strong showing by Adam Raby.
We talked a lot about character and ... what I saw on display today from our guys pleased me
The Newedge Club wing scored a try and added two conversions to the tries scored by captain Max Woodward and Tomasi Lawa.
Hong Kong will play invitational side Outlaws in Sunday’s Plate final.
“The Outlaws are a Perth-based team with players from Australia, England, New Zealand and South Africa,” said Hong Kong sevens coach Gareth Baber.
“They play in a number of sevens tournaments around Australia, and they look like a strong outfit with many seasoned sevens players. So for us as a young group, it’s a new experience and it is going to be tough.”