HONG KONG NAMES FORM SQUAD FOR MASSIVE TEST VERSUS RUSSIA

18th Nov 2016


Hong Kong coach Leigh Jones has rewarded players for both form and consistency in naming his squad for tomorrow’s deciding test against Russia in the 2016 Regal Hotels Cup of Nations (17.00 at Hong Kong Football Club).

Russia and Hong Kong enter the final round with perfect records. The hosts are in first place on 10 points after collecting bonus points in their opening matches, wins over Papua New Guinea (51-5) and Zimbabwe (34-11). Russia bounced back from a hesitant start (a 19-15 win over Zimbabwe) to beat Papua New Guinea convincingly (49-19) and are in second place with 9 points in the standings.

Hong Kong lost 31-12 in last year’s finale versus Russia and the going is expected to be tough once again.

Russia boast over 530 caps in their match day 23 with blindside flanker Viktor Gresev owning 87 of them. The near-centurion has obviously not lost a step since his 2006 debut as he leads all scorers in the competition with five tries over two matches.

Gresev is partnered in the back row by No.8 Pavel Butenko who has 40 caps of his own; the halfback pairing of scrumhalf Anton Ryabov and flyhalf Yurii Kushnarev combine for another 105 caps with Kushnarev having appeared 85 times for Russia. Centre Dmitry Gerasimov and captain and wing Vasily Artemyev have 40 and 67 caps respectively.

With a massive challenge looming, Jones has prioritised consistent form over caps, selecting players that he feels fully embrace the concept of professionalism and the demands of the HKRU’s Elite Rugby Programme (ERP).

“From day one, I have said that the only way the ERP is going to have its desired effect is through a top-down and bottom-up approach,” says Jones.

“The ERP guys train hard day-in, day-out and are performing well when called upon for international duty. That is the top-down effect. But we also need to see that bottom-up quotient where players return to their clubs and maintain high performance levels. For Russia, we have selected those players we feel are performing at an international level on a week-in, week-out basis with their clubs.

“The squad as a whole has performed well in the Cup of Nations, but Russia demands another step up in intensity. We need players who are able to take that step and manage that intensity, so most of those selected have demonstrated a professional consistency in their effort and performance throughout the domestic season and not just over the two recent internationals,” Jones added.

The emphasis on high performance for both club and country is the way forward according to Jones, who notes that it is the only way to develop the depth and competition within the squad that is required if Hong Kong wishes to achieve its ultimate objective of qualifying for a Rugby World Cup.

Hong Kong’s forwards will have a job on their hands in blunting the size and experience of Russia. Jones has opted to meet grit with grit in the front row, with starts for Valley props Ben Higgins and Alex Ng Wai-shing and hard-nosed hooker Ben Roberts from HKCC. An all-HKCC second row sees Adrian Griffiths pairing with emerging player Finlay Field.

With a largely new tight five, barring tighthead prop Innokentiy Zykov’s 35 caps, Hong Kong will look to halt Russia’s progress at the coalface in the scrum.

“Last year, although the guys put in a truly gutsy performance for 50-60 minutes, our set-piece didn't function. You simply can’t win international games of this calibre on 30% possession. We will need to be 50-60% effective in our set-piece to ask questions of the Russian defence and play the type of rugby that we can and want to play,” Jones said.

“That puts a huge responsibility on our tight five and we need our senior leaders - players like Adrian Griffiths, Alex Ng and Ben Roberts, to step up and do what it takes to ensure an effective set-piece,” added Jones.

Workhorse flankers Matt Lamming (HKCC) and Toby Fenn (Valley) will anchor the back row alongside HKFC No.8 Dan Falvey who will captain Hong Kong tomorrow. The back row will need an outstanding performance to counter the Russian troika of Gresev, Butenko and Tagir Gadzhiev.

Falvey commented on the team for Russia, saying, “It’s definitely a side that has been picked to do a job. The team has been picked on form, not just in this tournament but also in the league, and we have been pushed hard by the coaches to perform week-in, week-out. The onus is on us now as players to perform for our clubs as well as internationally,” Falvey added.

Falvey understands that he and his fellow forwards have an outsized role to play tomorrow: “There are areas where we can have a go at Russia and we want to have a crack at them. The pack will have to work through the roof to get quick, clean ball but if we can get parity up front, our backs can be really damaging, and we’ve seen that in spells in the first two games. It will be no different tomorrow. It will be a big physical challenge but one we are up for and the boys are quite excited,” Falvey added.

Jones echoed his captain’s analysis, saying, “We need to unsettle the Russian attack. They want and need structure, so we have to get in amongst them - as Zimbabwe did so well. This explains our back row selection. Toby, Matt and Dan are expected to get in there and rattle them, while also maintaining high levels of discipline. This all points to our forwards rising to a very tough challenge and meeting the opposition 'head-on'.

“If we can achieve success in these two areas, [the tight and loose forward play] we put ourselves in with a chance and give our very talented back-line the opportunity to steer us to victory, but there is no doubt that it will be a massive challenge,” said Jones.

In the backs, Jamie Hood, currently playing for Ricoh in Japan, will start at scrumhalf with Valley’s Matt Rosslee earning his second start at flyhalf. Emphasising defence and line speed, tackling dynamo Tyler Spitz (Tigers) will partner burly HK Scottish midfielder Lex Kaleca in the centres. Tigers wing Salom Yiu Kam-shing, Valley pace-man Ryan Meacheam and the ever-steady Alex McQueen (HKCC), who retains the fullback’s spot after a strong attacking display against Zimbabwe, round out the back three.

Rohan Cook (HKCC), Jamie Tsang (Kowloon) and Jack Parfitt (HKS) will provide additional bulk for the front row on the reserves bench, while new find Will Eversfield (Tigers) gets a third straight selection, this time in the reserves. The performance of rangy Thomas Lamboley (Valley) on his debut against Zimbabwe earned him a second selection as a back row reserve. Sparkplug scrumhalf Jason Jeyam, dependable Ben Rimene at flyhalf and Ally Maclay are the back-line reserves.

“The selection rewards some players for their consistent performances and presents them with a well-deserved opportunity to further their ambitions as rugby professionals. Those not selected will have an opportunity to ask some questions of themselves and perhaps gain a better understanding of what we are looking for from our first generation of professional players,” Jones added.

But make no mistakes says Jones, Hong Kong is committed to winning the tournament and believes it has the firepower to do so.

“We have played well to date but another level is required now. We know the players we have selected have the ticker, now we need them to match that intensity with a composed performance against Russia,” concluded Jones.

Zimbabwe will play Papua New Guinea in tomorrow’s third place play-off at 14.00, followed by the final between Hong Kong and Russia at 17.00 (all times are local). Round three will be played at Hong Kong Football Club and admission is free.

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