Scorecard: Two wins and one loss, but Hong Kong women still in the hunt
Hosts triumph over China in bruising battle but stumble against Japan in Asia Rugby Olympic Sevens Qualifier
Hong Kong women were left to regroup and recuperate after being bruised by China and then battered by Japan on day one of the Asia Rugby Sevens Qualifier.
The locals had rallied themselves and the crowd in staving off wave after wave of assault by China in the afternoon, holding on for a gritty 5-0 victory that was sparked by an Aggie Poon Pak-yan try after 4.35 had gone on the clock and was then sealed by some resolute defence.
I told the girls it's not that we played badly [against Japan], just that we were a split second late
That left Japan to come in the last game of their day and it took just 50 seconds for the tournament favourites to declare their intentions.
The bustling Yume Okuroda crossed the lined after brushing aside the Hong Kong defence and from there on, the tries kept coming until the whistle blew with the scoreline at 36-0 to Japan.
WATCH: Coach Anna Richards and captain Christy Cheng explain what happened on day one
With three games played, the record for Hong Kong stands at two wins and one loss, with a crunch game this morning against Kazakhstan, who finished the day with the same record.
