Rugby World Cup repechage: Canada await after Hong Kong romp to easy victory over Kenya
- Hong Kong wake up from their slumber to beat the Kenyans, but the odds are heavily stacked against them in their final game against unbeaten Canadians
Hong Kong sprang to life in the second half to thump Kenya 42-17 in their second game of the Rugby World Cup repechage tournament in Marseille, France on Saturday.
But they face a huge task to qualify for Japan in their final match against unbeaten Canada this Friday after the Canucks beat Germany 29-10.
Hong Kong need to win with a bonus point (four tries) and also deny the Canadians anything from the game to make it to their first Rugby World Cup.
Hong Kong captain James Cunningham said they were pleased to bounce back after their shock loss to Germany in their first match.
“A little bit better, a bit scary at the start that is for sure. But we knew we had the fitness so we just grinded it out,” he said.
Saturday’s game featured 41 turnovers and a massive amount of breakdowns in play, something Cunningham said was difficult to deal with at times. “It’s absolute bloody chaos, to go from the last few games against very structured teams to come into this.”