HONG KONG CHINA RUGBY MEN’S XVs START ROAD TO RUGBY WORLD CUP 2027

Fully contracted squad visit Japan for training camp and matches with professional clubs 

[Hong Kong, 26 September 2025]: Following Hong Kong China Rugby’s historic qualification for a first ever men’s Rugby World Cup in July, the men’s XVs squad will kick off their preparations for the world championships in Australia in 2027 with a training camp and two matches in Japan in October.

The matches are the first for Hong Kong China since qualifying for Rugby World Cup 2027 and signal a significant increase in international competition for the team in the build-up to Australia.

Hong Kong China Rugby (HKCR) has contracted a group of 34 players to date on a full or part-time professional basis.  More players are set to join this group, pending work or educational commitments, as HKCR transitions to a full-time athlete program, and readies to mix it up with the world’s best in two years’ time.

Built largely around the core squad that qualified for Rugby World Cup 2027 after winning last season’s Asia Rugby Championships, the 34 currently contracted players will be joined in Japan by a few more Hong Kong qualified players coming from overseas.  

The group includes 16 forwards and 18 backs.

“We have always been working around a target of around 35 or so contracted players, but this is not the full group yet,” said HKCR Head of Technical Rugby and Elite Coach Development Andrew Douglas, who coached the team to Rugby World Cup qualification.

“We have deliberately left room for other players. We know that guys are out there and if they become available, we are not going to say no to any qualified player out there that can improve our club and representative system.

“There are also guys that have been key for us in recent times whose commitments are tough at the moment, so they are not included, but that doesn’t mean they won’t play for us in the future. They have been great servants for Hong Kong China Rugby, and the door isn’t closed to them,” Douglas added.

Although largely built around the core squad that secured Hong Kong’s first ever place at a Rugby World Cup, HKCR were deliberative and selective in their approach, says Douglas. 

“We haven't rushed this process. We couldn’t do too much until we qualified in July in any case, and then we had to contract players who were working and had professional commitments, notification periods, and obviously a lot of things to consider before jumping in as a pro rugby player. We had to wait for most of them to serve out notice periods and rightly so, as we want good people that meet their commitments, not fly-by-nighter's.”

“It hasn’t been ideal in terms of our preparations, but it is what it is. Now we have to back ourselves as coaches to get the new players up and running quickly,” added Douglas. 

That need for speed and integration will add more importance to the upcoming training camp.

“The camp is really important to embed our game plan and get guys up to speed as much as we can for November; but this is a platform for next year, not just this year. The camp is going to be vital for the players culture-wise, to establish who we are, what we are doing, and why we are doing it, and to reinforce our values.”

For Douglas the goals are equally clear on the pitch.

“We have spent a good amount of time in the last months as a coaching team working on our game model and focusing on what areas of the game we need to be successful in to reach the level we need to be at the Rugby World Cup.

“Our game model is built around beating the teams ranked one to eight immediately above us in the world, and understanding what we need to be successful against those teams. What worked for us in Asia is not going to work at that level, and we are aware of that, but we have a crop of players that are keen and want to do well and can be competitive with the likes of Spain, Portugal and Uruguay.

“We are not going to beat New Zealand or South Africa and we are realistic about that, but there will be four teams in our pool in Australia, and if we can win one game, well the next best 3rd place teams advance to the group of 16. To win one game at a World Cup is an achievement in and of itself, but we have to be aspirational and give ourselves a chance.”

“Playing these games in Japan will help us get there on the pitch, and will also be a great reminder of the power of aspiration. New Zealand once beat Japan by 100 points at a Rugby World Cup and now Japan consistently qualifies for Rugby World Cups by reaching the quarterfinal stages,” said Douglas.

All 34 currently contracted players will travel to Japan.  The squad will depart on 10th October with the opening match against Japan League One side Mazda Hiroshima Skyactivs in Fukuoka on 11 October.  Following that the team will travel for a weeklong training camp in Okinawa before facing LeRIRO Fukuoka on 18 October and returning to Hong Kong the next day.

The preparations are timely and geographically appropriate with Hong Kong then set to play a friendly against Japan A, just five days after returning - in what will be the first rugby XVs match ever played at Kai Tak Stadium on 24 October. 

HKCR Tour Squad: Japan (October 2025)  

Forwards

Sunia FAMEITAU (HKU Sandy Bay); Faizal SOLOMONA PENESA (HK Scottish); Zac CINNAMOND (HKU Sandy Bay); Rory CINNAMOND (HKU Sandy Bay); James HOLMES (Hong Kong Football Club); Calum SCOTT (Hong Kong Football Club); Harry BARON (HK Scottish); Max MURPHY (Hong Kong Football Club); Dana FOURIE (HKU Sandy Bay); Kyle SULLIVAN (USRC Tigers); Joshua HRSTICH (Hong Kong Football Club); Tyler McNUTT (Hong Kong Football Club); Jack BARTLETT (Hong Kong Football Club); Pierce MACKINLAY-WEST (Hong Kong Football Club); James SAWYER (Valley); Lachlan DOHENY (Hong Kong Football Club); Callum Smith (Hong Kong Football Club)

Backs

Jack ABBOTT (HKU Sandy Bay); Brendon NELL (HKU Sandy Bay); Gregor MCNEISH (HK Scottish); CHUI Wai Lap Eric (Kowloon); Joseph BARKER (Kowloon); Thomas HILL (Hong Kong Football Club); Isaac CAMPBELL-WU (Valley); Ben AXTEN-BURRETT (Hong Kong Football Club); Guy SPANTON (HKU Sandy Bay); Marcus RAMAGE (HK Scottish); Murray BRECHIN (Hong Kong Football Club); Elliott QUINTON (Kowloon); Dylan McCANN (Hong Kong Football Club); Matt WORLEY (Hong Kong Football Club); Penetana SMITH (Hong Kong Football Club); James RIVERS (HK Scottish); Harrison KING (HK Scottish); Charles HIGSON-SMITH (Hong Kong Football Club)

Management Team

Andrew Douglas, Head of Technical Rugby

Logan Asplin, Head Coach

Lewis Evans, Coach

Marno Meyer, Coach

Pete Nugent, S&C Coach

Andy Yuen, Analyst

Charles Cheung, Team Manager