World Rugby Sevens Challenger Series: Uruguay halt Hong Kong’s heroics in final, but elite HSBC SVNS places still up for grabs
- Hong Kong defeat series co-leaders Kenya to reach final, where they are blown away by the hosts, but move up to fifth overall in race for top-four spot
- City’s women win their playoff in a tournament won for a second leg running by China
Hong Kong’s men kept up their strong showing in the World Rugby Sevens Challenger Series’ second leg of three in Uruguay before running into an inspired home team in the final.
Impressive victories earlier in the weekend over Japan, Chile and Tonga had already given them a fighting chance in a series from which teams can earn promotion to the elite 12-team HSBC SVNS. The top-tier circuit’s season includes the main competition at next month’s Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens.
And Hong Kong took another scalp in their semi-final in Montevideo, beating series co-leaders Kenya 21-14 on Sunday, local time.
Cado Lee Ka-to scored two of their three tries, with the other coming from Callum McCullough as Hong Kong led on the scoreboard throughout.
Uruguay, however, were resurgent. Having lost to Uganda and Germany in their pool to only sneak into the quarter-finals as one of the two best third-placed group-stage finishers, they proceeded to beat Portugal and fellow series contenders Chile to reach the final.
With home support behind them, they then steamrollered the Hongkongers at Estadio Charrua, romping to a 28-0 victory through tries from Diego Ardao, Bautista Basso, Ignacio Facciolo and Ignacio Alvarez Akiki.
It drew the South Americans level with Kenya at the top of the series’ overall standings. Hong Kong lie fifth, level on points with Germany one place above them, with one round to play in Munich in May.
“I am really pleased with how we performed this weekend,” men’s coach Jevon Groves said. “Coming in, some of us thought that reaching the playoff might be out of reach after the opening tournament, but the boys really showed up. That was some of the best rugby that we have played in some time in a tournament of that level.
“We are disappointed in the final, but I think we have taken some good learnings from it. The boys really enjoyed their appearance here, which was great because South America has not been a happy hunting ground for us previously.
“We learned a lot from the final. We learned a lot from the weekend and we learned a lot about the players and squad. Now we can put these learnings to good use in Hong Kong next month and in Munich.”
The women’s series is shaping up more straightforwardly, being dominated by China, who made it two series titles from two with a 38-7 defeat of Argentina.
Hong Kong’s women won their seventh-place playoff against Kenya 27-22, thanks largely to a hat-trick of tries from Chong Ka-yan.
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They scored first through Chong, who then crossed for her second score after a reply from Janet Okelo, leaving Hong Kong 17-5 up.
Okelo’s second and another Kenyan try for Phoebe Otieno pulled back the deficit to only two points, only for Julia Mba Oyana and Nam Ka-man to give Hong Kong breathing space once more.
Stella Wafula claimed a late score for the Kenyans but it came too late to alter the outcome.
Following the final round for the women in Krakow and the men in Munich, the top four from the series’ overall standings in each will qualify for a stand-alone promotion-relegation tournament against the bottom four teams from HSBC SVNS 2024.
Four men’s and four women’s teams will emerge from those tournaments in Madrid to complete next year’s elite line-up.
