Hong Kong claim Asia Rugby under-19s Championship for seventh time, secure place at World Rugby Junior Trophy
- Tries from Blake Elliot, Cooper Wnek and James Kee help Hong Kong to 19-12 victory
- Heavy downpour moments before start leads to scrappy encounter littered with knock-ons and forward passes
Hong Kong held off a spirited late onslaught from Taiwan to claim a 19-12 win in the final game of the Asia Rugby Under-19s Men’s Championship on Sunday, securing the title for the seventh successive tournament.
Victory also sealed a place at the World Rugby Junior Trophy in Kenya next July for coach Logan Asplin’s side.
Heavy rains moments before kick-off in Malaysia turned the pitch into a bog and contributed to a scrappy encounter littered with knock-ons and forward passes.
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Ultimately, Hong Kong’s all out defence was the difference, with a 10-man effort needed at the death to stop Taiwan’s dominant maul from driving over.
“It was a tough battle with both teams up for it and a lot on the line,” Asplin said.
“That big downpour in the warm-up followed by the sun, it was like four seasons in one day, which was taxing on the body, but it was good for the players to have adapt to that.
“The game was stop-start and there were a lot of whistles, but we went into it wanting to do three things: win the collision; play in the right areas; and earn the right to score from anywhere on the park.
“Some of those things we executed well, but it doesn’t always have to be pretty. We are stoked to get that win and it was a pretty elated group of boys there at the end.”
The highlight of a tight first half was a fine solo effort by Hong Kong fullback Blake Elliot, who made his own space with a dummy pass and scampered over from 30 metres out. Cooper Wnek’s conversion gave his side a 7-0 lead.
Taiwan responded almost immediately. Claiming the ball from the restart, they worked their way to an attacking line out and drove over to score a try of their own. However, the conversion fell short, leaving the game evenly poised at 7-5 at the break.
Hong Kong took the game to Taiwan in the second half, and a sustained spell of pressure resulted in Wnek crossing in the corner for his side’s second score. He converted his own try to put Asplin’s side 14-5 up.
Taiwan though would not be denied, and only some scrambling defence and loose passing kept Hong Kong in the clear.
However, the pressure eventually told and Hong Kong’s defensive wall crumbled in the face of relentless Taiwan attacks, with the forwards crossing once more. The extras made the score 14-12.
The final 15 minutes were a chaotic affair, with both sides blowing opportunities to win it, and not for the first time Hong Kong’s defence was the difference.
Eventually, the frenetic end-to-end action seemed to have even tired the referee who finally whistled for a scrum advantage to Hong Kong with time winding down.
This time it was the Hong Kong forwards who made their dominance tell, and they created enough of a platform for scrum-half Camill Cheung to work the ball out wide to wing James Kee, who crossed in the far left-hand corner.
Wnek missed the extras, which set up a nervy finish when Hong Kong were pinged for a succession of penalties that ultimately resulted in handing Taiwan a last-ditch attacking line-out.
This time though, the defence held, as a team effort helped hold the ball carrier up over the line after numerous phases.
