Bring on the big hitters

Fans will be able to watch both men's and women's rugby competitions for the first time at the upcoming Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens, where 28 teams will be joining the tournament comprising more than 70 world-class matches from March 31 to April 2.

The Hong Kong Rugby Union, organizer of the Sevens, has sold more than 25,000 tickets and expects the tournament to draw crowds of 30,000 people at the Hong Kong Stadium each day.

Yesterday's announcement at a press briefing comes just five months after the last tournament was held last November for the first time in over three years following several cancellations during the pandemic.

The Hong Kong women's team, which will be playing alongside the men's team for the first time in the tournament's 45-year history, will face off against New Zealand, Canada and Great Britain.

Completing the 12 women's teams are Australia, Fiji, Ireland, Brazil, the United States, France, Japan and Spain.

Sixteen men's teams will match up, with Hong Kong facing Britain, France and Uruguay in their pool. Twelve other men's teams represent Argentina, Fiji, Samoa, Canada, Australia, United States, Spain, Japan, Ireland, New Zealand, Kenya and South Africa.

The Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Kevin Yeung Yun-hung, said he welcomed the return of the rugby tournament in full, less than five months after last year's edition, after the stabilization of the pandemic.

"We have now returned to normalcy comprehensively and resumed thorough connectivity with the mainland and the world," he said.

"This is the perfect time to showcase to the world that Hong Kong is back on stage."

Sevens veteran Jessica Ho Wai-on said the opportunity to play at the stadium is a dream come true for someone who grew up playing rugby and going to the Hong Kong Sevens.

"It's so exciting, right?" the 30-year-old said. "In 2019 we played one game at the stadium, but being able to play for the whole weekend is incredible. The feeling of the crowd is like nothing else, I don't think you can really compare.

"I think there's definitely an element of a home advantage.

"I've been lucky enough to play one game at the stadium, and with the energy that we got from the crowd in that one game, I honestly played those 14 minutes and it felt like I wasn't tired," Ho said.

Hong Kong star Salom Yiu Kam-shing looks forward to playing Team GB, whose players are going through an "adjustment" period.

"Great Britain combines teams from Scotland, Wales and England, which means their coach actually has to lead multiple teams, so they're still getting used to each other. I hope that we'll be able to win," he said.

"I also really want to play against Uruguay. We've played against them four times and haven't won once. We aren't that far apart in terms of skill, so in a very stubborn way, we really want to win," the 35-year-old said.

Hong Kong Sevens coach Paul John said: "It is going to be another tough competition, but it is fantastic for us to be a part of it. It was a great event last November, the atmosphere in the stadium was brilliant, and this is the next step."

John said the women's team is excited to play against the best at the Sevens.

Separately, a spokesman of the Security Bureau's narcotics division reminded the public to "stay away from drugs at all times, even when socializing at gatherings and participating in leisure activities."

cjames.lee@singtaonewscorp.com