Hong Kong Sevens squad ‘raring to go’ with World Series spot up for grabs during Challenger tournament in Chile

Hong Kong sevens captain Max Woodward said his side were ready to shake off their “nearly men” tag and embrace their status as one of the teams to beat in this month’s Challenger Series in Chile.

With a place on next season’s HSBC World Sevens Series up for the grabs, head coach Paul John has named an experienced squad for the three-day tournament in Chile in 10 days time.

Alongside Woodward, John has turned to the likes of Russell Webb, Cado Lee Ka-to and Salom Yiu Kam Shing in a team full of powerful attacking intent.

Pierce Mackinlay-West, Harry Sayers and Max Denmark, who all starred during the side’s recent tour of the UK and Portugal, bring some creativity into the squad, while Alex McQueen adds a healthy dose of experience.

“Everybody wants to be on the World Series and test themselves against the best in the world,” John said. “There’s a lot of experience in the boys who got picked. They’re the ones who have been consistently putting their hands up during training and the competitions we’ve had recently.”

While Hong Kong will be without the injured Liam Herbert, Woodward said there was still plenty of strength in depth in a “special group” of players, who were raring to go.

“We are as strong and close-knit, with as much depth as I have ever seen in my career,” he said.