The Hong Kong rugby sevens team will have to do it the hard way if they are to qualify for next summer's Paris Olympics, after a last-gasp 21-14 loss to hosts Japan in the cup final of the Asian qualifiers in Osaka sent them to the international repechage in June.
Earlier, the women beat Thailand 12-0 in the third-place playoff to book their spot in the international playoff.
It was a heartbreaking result for the men as Asia's top rugby rivalry resumed with a vengeance at the Yokodo Sakura Stadium. It was the fifth time the two teams had met this season with Hong Kong having won twice, including the Asian Games gold-medal showdown in Hangzhou in September.
It took two Television Match Official decisions and a last-second try for Japan to secure the win.
Hong Kong struck first after some fierce rush defense and counter-rucking produced a loose ball for Liam Doherty to swoop on before outpacing Josua Kerevi to the corner.
Russ Webb, whose tackle had helped put Japan on the backfoot, added the conversion for a 7-0 lead, but Taiga Ishida drew the home side level at 7-7 soon after.
A Liam Herbert try, converted by Webb following a TMO review, gave Hong Kong a 14-7 lead at the break.
Japan's defense held firm in the second half, as they forced key turnovers and produced more moments of individual skill.
In the 13th minute, a try for Kippei Taninaka beneath the posts tied the game at 14-all.
Japan added the game winner at the death, prompting another TMO review, but it was clear that Takamasa Maruo's score in the corner was clean - and the hosts thus booked Asia's sole reserved spot at Paris 2024.
Earlier, Hong Kong beat China 19-12 in the semi-finals thanks to a brace of tries from Max Denmark.
"It is really tough," Alessandro Nardoni said of the loss to Japan. "Coming in we knew that only one team was going to get that [Olympic] ticket. We gave it our all ... but it didn't go our way."
Nardoni commented on how tight the rivalry with Japan is, with all their five matches this season "always down to one try."
"I know that the boys are proud of our performance, but right now it hurts. But it is just fuel for our next games - next year's Asia Series and the repechage."
Japan coach Simon Amor credited Hong Kong for their performance as well. "If they stick together, there is so much wonderful talent in that team," Amor said.
The women, meanwhile, bounced back from a 33-5 loss to Japan in the semi-final to claim bronze thanks to the efforts of veteran campaigners Natasha Olson-Thorne and Chong Ka-yan.
Olson-Thorne is now focused on closing the gap further on champions Japan and runners-up China.
Alessandro Nardoni supports Cado Lee at a lineout during the cup final against Japan. Natasha Olson-Thorne races away during the third-place playoff against Thailand.
