Hong Kong out to lay down World Cup marker

It is a long way off, but Hong Kong can take a significant step towards realising their goal of one day playing in the World Cup by finishing second in the ARFU Asian Five Nations Top Five competition today.

Tom McColl and his men take on surprise contenders United Arab Emirates in a winner-takes-all encounter at Hong Kong Football Club, kicking off at 4pm. With two away wins over Kazakhstan and Sri Lanka, and a feisty 45-22 loss to Japan, Hong Kong go into the game as favourites.

Japan will seal their fourth title with victory over Sri Lanka in Colombo today, but finishing second is nothing to be sneezed at if you look at the bigger picture, which includes the 2015 and 2019 World Cups.

Japan are guaranteed a berth in 2019 as the hosts, and this could leave a second spot up for grabs for an Asian team. A similar scenario applies if Japan finish in the top 12 at this year's World Cup in New Zealand, earning automatic entry in 2015 unless the International Rugby Board changes its existing formula.

Hong Kong can today lay down their long-term credentials for the second-best Asian side. But coach Dai Rees is resisting the temptation of contemplating a second-place finish for the first time in this competition.

'I want to focus on performance. This is our biggest game in the Asian Five Nations,' he said.