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Hong Kong head coach Tumua Ioane has stated that the national women’s rugby team requires access to its sevens players during major 15s tournaments to achieve significant progress. His comments followed a 54-26 defeat to Fiji at the Kai Tak Youth Sports Ground on Saturday during the WXV Challenger competition.
The Hong Kong team, which previously secured a narrow victory over Brazil, is currently preparing for its final campaign match against Samoa next Saturday. Despite a competitive start that saw Hong Kong take a 14-12 lead following a 26th-minute try by Sabay Lynam, the team struggled against a surge from Fiji before half-time.
Fiji scored four converted tries in a 10-minute span, with Varanisese Qoro, Atelaite Bune, and Merewairita Neivosa crossing the line to secure a decisive lead. The Hong Kong squad is currently missing several players who are training for the upcoming Asian Games sevens competition in Japan.
Ioane praised the effort and relentlessness of his players during the match. However, he noted that bridging the performance gap between Hong Kong and top-tier second-tier nations like Fiji will require more frequent high-level matches and the availability of the full player pool for major 15s events.
Article and image source: scmp.com
