Two young men and women from City Rugby Club flew out last weekend headed for Bay of Plenty Rugby Club in New Zealand on the first "President's Scholarships".  Ahead of them is a 2 week rugby course where they will be put through their paces by coaches from the Steamers, Bay of Plenty's flagship side, and also get the chance to learn more about both the tactical approach to the game and also strength and conditioning training.

The lucky four players were selected after an open nomination and selection process within the club, and all have shown great commitment to City over the past few years both on and off the pitch as well as an exemplary attitude and spirit of sportsmanship - they are Tsang Pak-ngai, Michael Lau Hin-shing, Agnes Tse Wing-kiu and Jan Tang Yuen-yee.

"This is a very exciting initiative for City," explains the Club Director of Marketing James Wong. "The scholarships cover all course fees, accommodation, meals and transport so it's truly a golden opportunity for these players to experience rugby in an exceptional environment, and then bring back new knowledge for the benefit of their team mates and the whole of our club. None of this would have been possible without the generous support of our sponsors, and I'd like to thank Co-Prosperity Holdings Limited, Comvita and Wavemax Sport Wears for all they've done for City. We hope the President's Scholarships will be an annual exchange, and that we can broaden the relationship with Bay of Plenty in the years ahead." 

If you'd like to know more about the City President's Scholarship please contact James on [email protected]

Meanwhile, Kowloon Rugby Club have selected Lawrence Chan, a young player from the Operation Breakthrough programme, as the first recipient of the Tony Ho Scholarship Award. Lawrence is due to fly to UK this week to commence 2 terms at Mount St Mary's College, all-expenses paid courtesy of funds raised by Kowloon with additional support from Breakthrough.

The scholarship has come off the back of the extremely successful Tony Ho Summer Camps at Mount St Mary's which Kowloon has taken groups of young players from the Kowloon Lions, Sai Kung Stingrays, and Breakthrough across to for the past two years. As Kowloon's Mark McMillan explains, "Kowloon were determined to put in place something meaningful to mark the memory of our former club mate and Hong Kong U20 international Tony Ho, who was tragically murdered whilst studying at university. His former school, Mount St Mary's, felt the same, and together we have been able to provide amazing opportunities for youngsters from Hong Kong, something we and Tony's family are very proud of. I know how excited Lawrence is, and I'm sure this will be a life-changing few months for him. Let's hope he's the first of many!"

To find out more about the Tony Ho Scholarship and Summer Camps, click here  or contact Jason on [email protected]