PUBLISHED ON 20 MAY 2025
Hong Kong China Women's XVs started their Asia Rugby Emirates Championship campaign with a hard-fought 29-12 victory over Kazakhstan in Fukuoka, Japan. The girls will now take on the hosts Japan in a tournament decider this Sunday, 25 May (KO 13:00 local/12:00 HK).
Match Replay: Hong Kong China 29-12 Kazakhstan
Match Report
Mid-week Test Match rugby saw our Hong Kong China Women’s XVs claim their first win of 2025 by beating a physical Kazakhstan team 29-12 in Fukuoka, Japan.
The result means Kazakhstan are out of contention for the title, while Hong Kong China face defending champions Japan on Sunday (25 May) in the Asia Rugby Emirates Women’s Championship decider.
The victory is the fourth for our women over Kazakhstan since 2022 and has levelled the head-to-head record at four each. It is a confidence-boosting win for Lewis Wilson, in his first match as Hong Kong China Women’s interim Head Coach. The team were well ahead at the break, 17-0, but had to put in a resilient defensive effort as Kazakhstan came out in the second half looking for their first win and points in test rugby since 2023.
He said, "I am stoked for the girls. I think the performance we put together is just a testament to all the hard work that we've done, and it's clearly shown out on the field. So credit to the players and the rest of the coaching staff, and I am proud of that.
"At half time, we talked about our three-phase accuracy, and that's what put us in a dominant position as we were quite clinical in that first half. We touched on the penalty count being 11 to five in the first half, and that was one of the reasons why we were in good field positions. That slipped a little bit in the second half, but we focused and managed to be in the right areas of the field."
The win was set up by a forward pack which was dominant in the opening forty minutes. Any number of forwards could be complimented for the number of carries, dominant tackles, and set play superiority, even though that was calibrated in the second half. Shanna Forrest was rewarded as Player of the Match, in which she scored one of the five tries for the side.
Forrest said, "I am really happy. Kazakhstan is a very physical team, but I think that we executed well in certain areas that helped us win the game. Obviously, I couldn't get this award without my teammates beside me. So I'm really happy and grateful."
First Half
The win was set up by resolute defence from the entire squad as they were tested early by the Kazakhstan side, who were blown away 90-0 by Japan. The early stages of the match were an arm wrestle with both sides carrying plenty of ball but neither finding much space.
As became a bit of a theme for Hong Kong China, the girls tried to move the ball out wide to attack the edges, but often found themselves drifting, and the Kazakhs could defend the speedy threat posed by Chong Ka Yan.
The scrum and lineout were steady for most of the 80 minutes, and it was the Kazakhstan side who struggled with the pace and were deprived of the ball, giving away that high penalty count.
Hooker Tanya Dhar scored the first points in the 10th minute after one of many successful rolling mauls in the match.
There were plenty of attacking opportunities for Hong Kong China and serial infringements on defence by Kazakhstan, especially in the red zone. Eventually, front rower Kea Herewini scored the second try to give some breathing space on the scoreboard at the half hour mark, converted by Lo Wing Yin for a 12-0 lead.
Kazakhstan defended phase after phase, and they had bodies all over the place and looked exhausted before the half. That's when Shanna Forrest found herself in huge space to score the third try after the hooter.
Second Half
The second half saw Kazakhstan come out strongly. Hong Kong China captain Pun Wai Yan said after the whistle, "We faced a lot of pressure in that second half. I told the team we needed to focus on our basics, regroup and move on. We did well to stay in the fight and finish the game strong to get the win."
The half saw errors from both sides, but it was the opposition who now controlled the ball and territory and forced Hong Kong China to successfully defend our try line for periods of time. Substitutions were made to try and shift the momentum.
Kazakhstan did eventually crack our defence as their fullback, who had a good game off the boot, kicked behind into our 22m and right wing Ocana Shadrina scored their first test points since 2023.
Hong Kong China struck back as left wing Jessica Eden scored a 4th try as the team finally found space on the right for a 22-5 lead with less than 20 minutes left. Kazakhstan then responded, and a TMO decision confirmed a try for Svetlana Malezhina to narrow the lead to 22-12.
Although Kazakhstan had improved in all areas in the second half, the final ten minutes were once again controlled by Hong Kong China, and Naomi Peeters came on for her debut with 6 minutes left.
The end of the game was marked by a period of territorial dominance, and Grace Hood was rewarded with a try to seal the win, 29-12.
More Coach Reaction
Head Coach Lewis Wilson said of Peeters earning her first cap, “I think even in those five minutes she was on, she showed why she deserved to get a cap from Hong Kong China. She made two or three massive, massive tackles, which is a compliment to her game. I am over the moon for Naomi. I think it's really well-deserved, and she will probably get more caps, which is great news for her.”
Looking forward, Royce Chan, who has played for, coached, and is now the Programme Lead for the Women’s XVs added, "I think it's a really good result, and we must also praise the Kazakhstan team, and how much they have developed and how many young players they have in their team. They gave us a lot of challenges, and our coaching group, management group, and the players that we have used have been brilliant.
"We managed to bring some new players on this tour, and I am looking forward to the next 12 months with the Hong Kong China Rugby women developing more. We all want competitive games, and we need game exposure. The more exposure we can get, the more we can work together as a team with the management group and player group."
This article was posted in collaboration with our good friends at RugbyAsia247 – check them out for all the latest Asia Rugby news!
