HONG KONG CHINA WOMEN QUALIFY FOR WXV3 AND KEEP RUGBY WORLD CUP 2025 DREAM ALIVE
Hong Kong China Women beat Kazakhstan for just the third time in their history in the final match of the Asia Rugby Women Championship 2024 to secure the runner-up place in the standings. More importantly the team has booked a spot in WXV for the first time and kept their pathway to Rugby World Cup 2025 England open.
The heavy rain dictated the type of game on display late on Saturday at Hong Kong Football Club as Hong Kong China and Kazakhstan locked horns for another really tight game. Although the first half was a one score game, Hong Kong China dominated the second half and kept the visitors scoreless to claim a historic 22-0 win.
Hong Kong China Women’s XV captain Pun Wai Yan said after the win “I think during the game there were many tough moments but it was a team effort and we got the result we wanted. We wanted to fight back after last year's results in the ARWC and keep the Rugby World Cup dream going.”
Zoe Smith, who was excellent off the kicking tee added, “We have been working for this for so long. There was pressure but I thought, as a team, we coped really well. It's such a historic moment for us to play at home in Hong Kong and qualify for WXV for the first time. It's huge for us and the team, and we are so excited for the opportunity that we now get to play different teams.”
World Cup 2025 qualification is the next goal, and Smith said that is definitely a goal but they want to focus on WXV first but they as a group are very happy to have the pathway open.
Hong Kong China Women’s Head Coach Royce Chan, “We have a door open now to expose ourselves in another international tournament (WXV) but more important, is we keep our dream alive for Rugby World Cup 2025 qualification. In the first half we didn't play the way we wanted and they put us under pressure. We had more belief after the try and built up the momentum in the second half. That penalty from Zoe Smith was big as we played with more freedom.”
Coach Royce Chan has now steered her side to all three wins over Kazakhstan, and today’s win was by the biggest margin.
Information source : Hong Kong China Rugby
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