PUBLISHED ON 15 JUN 2025
Hong Kong China Men's XVs started their Asia Rugby Emirates Championship campaign with a 43-10 victory over the United Arab Emirates in Dubai.
Next up the boys will take on Sri Lanka at Kai Tak Youth Sports Ground on Sunday 22 June (tickets available here), before completing the four-team round-robin with a trip to play Korea in Incheon on Saturday 5 July.
Fans can watch the action from the match back on the HKCR YouTube Channel.
Match Report
Hong Kong China Men started their title defence of the Asia Rugby Emirates Men’s Championship, and the first step of three to qualify for the Rugby World Cup 2027, with a solid 43-10 win over the UAE at the Sevens Stadium in Dubai.
A Man of the Match performance from Sunia Fameitau in his third cap and on his 30th birthday was symbolic of the team’s pack dominance, in which the set piece, especially the dominant scrum, drove the team upfield and was rewarded with numerous penalties across the 80 minutes on a very warm and humid evening in the desert.
The front rower said, “This is a credit to the whole team, and the whole pack worked well together. The conditions were what we were planning for, and we had a plan to go hard in the first half hour. I'm proud of the pack as we worked well together, and the guys who came off the bench as well, they made an impact.”
Coach Alex Allan reaffirmed that view, saying, “The set piece was outstanding today, and we are very pleased with that. They put us in the right areas, and it was good to see, and we were dominant.”
The boys won the coin toss and opted to kick via the reliable boot of flyhalf Nate De Thierry, which the UAE dropped. After a few scrum resets, we won our first scrum penalty in the game, which De Thierry slotted to lead within the opening minutes.
The forwards executed the lineouts well with Alex Post nailing the throws, and they created chances for the team to attack through mauls and carries. Post went over for the first try (he scored against the UAE last year too), which was converted for a 10-0 lead.
In the few attacking phases that UAE threw, the Hong Kong China defence held, albeit at times scrambling, as the hosts moved the ball well among their backs. However, their first and only try of the match came from a lineout in the 20th minute to cut the Hong Kong China lead to 10-7.
The midfield was fierce, and both Tommy Hill and Ben Axten-Burrett put in good shifts and some big hits. That created pressure on the UAE attack, and another big scrum earned a penalty advantage as Harry Sayers burst through midfield before some great hands by the backs put Max Denmark in the corner for a 15-7 lead.
UAE slotted a penalty, but another effective driving maul from an attacking lineout for Hong Kong China resulted in prop Keelan Chapman scoring and extending the lead to 22-10 at the break.
Speaking on the broadcast, the UAE coach said that they had a slow start but had to keep believing and felt they would match fire with fire in the second half, while the message from the Hong Kong China coaches was to control the ball better in the second period.
The scrum dominance and penalties continued in the second half, and Matt Worley added the fourth try following a phenomenal recollected ball from Axten-Burrett, to take the lead to 29-10.
Substitutions were made, and several players stood up, with Tyler McNutt having several carries, as did captain Josh Hrstich.
The pack dominance was rewarded with a penalty try as there were two yellow cards, one for the UAE and one Hrstich, within a couple of minutes, while Joe Barker came on for his debut.
With a man down, Axten-Burrett collected a loose kick, ran it up before the ball went wide and replacement hooker Calum Scott found himself in the wide channel to dive over for a 43-10 score with less than ten minutes left and that's how it stayed until the final whistle.
Hrstich said afterwards, “The boys did well and we prepped well for the conditions. Pressure is a privilege, and we're not taking anyone lightly – everyone in this championship is dangerous, so you need to take it game by game.”
Coach Lewis Evans commented that the “lineouts were a good launchpad and created opportunities for us. We have work-on areas, but I am looking forward to Sri Lanka, and where we can impose ourselves at home next week”.
Barker, who was part of the coaching setup on the same fields a few years ago, explained his emotions, “Huge excitement these past few weeks, and then when I got the news, I was getting the jersey and coming off the bench. I have worked with the youth teams and the senior men, and nothing beats the feeling of wearing the jersey after coaching as well. I am a very lucky person, and I have the opportunity to push on further and help the pathways for Hong Kong China.
“Everyone who watched the game knows we have work-ons, but we got the win, which was the goal. We will fix things in-house, and we will get it right next week for the home crowd so they can get excited for that as we aim for another win.”
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