Hong Kong’s women have been forced to withdraw from their Rugby World Cup qualifier in Dubai next month because of travel restrictions linked to Covid-19. The women’s 15s side had been expected to play Kazakhstan in the UAE on February 13, with the winners then going into the final global repechage tournament the following week, where a place at the 2021 World Cup in New Zealand later this year is up for grabs. In a statement released on Friday evening, the Hong Kong Rugby Union said it had also been forced to make the decision because of the lockdown of sports facilities in the city. World Rugby revealed that Samoa, who Hong Kong would have played if they had beaten Kazakhstan, had also been forced to withdraw because of coronavirus restrictions. As a result, the governing body has revised the format for the final qualification tournament, with Kazakhstan now playing Colombia in a semi-final on February 19, and the winners playing Scotland a week later for a place at the World Cup. Hong Kong’s government has banned all sport in the city since January 7, with the clampdown presently running until February 4. “The team has been unable to train for the competition, which was first scheduled for May 2020 before being rescheduled numerous times with the final dates set for February 2022,” the statement said. “Given current social-distancing restrictions in place in Hong Kong, the team would not have been able to train until February 4 at the earliest, leaving it just days to ready for the competition, hampering preparations and creating a potential risk to player safety.” Ex-Hong Kong coach Milo could face city as Samoa player in Rugby World Cup qualifier The union had wanted the Hong Kong government to grant a training exemption for the squad, with the women’s side the only representative team to have qualified for a World Cup. But that would have included all the players, who are amateurs, undergoing mandatory home quarantines outside of training and competition or travel periods, something the governing body said “proved unfeasible”. Originally players were already facing a month away from work and other commitments to train and play. That was without the 21 days in quarantine they would have to do when they go back, assuming the Hong Kong government had not banned flights from coming from Dubai in the interim. “This is incredibly disappointing news for Hong Kong’s vibrant women’s rugby scene, especially the committed group of players and coaches who have gone above and beyond in their efforts to pursue Hong Kong’s Rugby World Cup dream, and to follow in the footsteps of their peers at the 2017 tournament,” Patrick Donovan, the union’s chairman, said. “The HKRU would like to thank the members of the squad and management team for their dedication and concerted efforts to represent Hong Kong on the global stage in this challenging moment, and we look forward to starting a new journey towards Rugby World Cup 2025.” Jo Hull, the union’s head of women’s rugby performance, said the side had been training for two years for the tournament, and praised their “incredible commitment”. “Their dedication and professionalism, despite being a largely amateur team, have been world class,” she said. “It is also worth mentioning the girls from the sevens programme who were participating, who have already been through two quarantine cycles in the last few months; this would have been their third, and yet they were prepared to do it. The players were really focused on this World Cup cycle so it will have a big impact on them.”