Hong Kong Sevens 2022: New Zealand fall short but still emerge as victors
- Trophies shared out to Argentina, All Blacks Sevens and Uruguay and they all look to the future
- ‘We have this trophy and it is very special, of course, and we have this moment, but we need more,’ says Argentine coach
One of the aspects that lifts the Cathay Pacific/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens head and shoulders above its rivals on the circuit is that at this event some of the losers walk away winners anyway.
Consider the case of Uruguay, whose record was 1-2 in Pool B play, before they lost to Spain 19-14 on Sunday morning to go to 1-3.
Yet here they were as darkness descended on the Hong Kong Stadium lifting a shiny Shield having defeated Kenya 10-7 in the afternoon before rolling Japan 33-10 and with proud captain Diego Ardao beaming as though it was the World Cup. Well, maybe.
“This is unbelievable for us,” said Ardao. “Our first time in the Series and we already have one trophy. I didn’t even know I would have a trophy to lift to this is big surprise.”
Uruguay were happy just to make it to their first-ever Hong Kong Sevens as part of the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series proper, so to win – albeit for coming 13th – was simply a bonus.
“This is my first time playing here as a core team and it is such a great experience,” said Ardao. “This has just been a great experience for us all and we’ll just keep going forward.”
The Hong Kong Sevens is also like no other in that it turns players into rock stars over each edition.
That is why you saw New Zealand’s Regan Ware, battered and hobbling but still out there signing every programme thrust his way, and posing for every selfie, even though a full 40 or so minutes had expired since he had played his final game.
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His teammates were still appearing at intervals from down the tunnel and throwing pieces of kit to delighted fans.
Even if there was disappointment for Ware and the Kiwis, they lost yet still won, and they took home the Bowl with a 33-5 win over Canada that had coach Clark Laidlaw conceding he was not overjoyed, but saying that it was still nice to hold onto a piece of silver.
New Zealand had drawn pool A, the toughest of all, and finished the early action with a 1-2 record, losing to Samoa and Australia. They wanted to be playing for the title, of course, but they came good by the tournament’s end, with three wins on Sunday, and Laidlaw was quick to turn attention to what lies ahead, rather than behind.
“We always knew with the draw that Australia and Samoa were the two teams nobody wanted,” said Laidlaw. “We came here probably a week short with injuries and things but we bounced back today and that was awesome. We played really well. So disappointed to begin with but something to build on for the next round in Dubai.”
And, finally, there was Argentina smashing the United States 36-0 and raising the Plate (for fifth) high, despite a surprise loss to Ireland on Saturday and another early Sunday to Tonga that spoiled their title hopes.
Coach Santiago Gomez Cora said winning a trophy at any time was a thrill. Winning a trophy in Hong Kong was something a little bit more special.
“We are happy because we finished with this big win, and they scored no tries against us,” he said. “We made a lot of mistakes against Ireland and Samoa and it’s a simple thing – if you want to be part of the big three at the tournament, you can’t make a single mistake.
“It’s great to be back in Hong Kong, and to hear the fans. We have this trophy and it is very special, of course, and we have this moment, but we need more, and we need to be playing against the top three teams.”
