Hong Kong are set for their first appearance of the Asia Rugby Championship 2018 having watched from afar as Korea beat Malaysia 35-10 in the opening match last Saturday.

For the visitors, it will be a chance to show what they are made of in this all-important Championship that is doubling up as the next stage of Rugby World Cup 2019 qualification in Asia.

"Malaysia are a team which will play from anywhere on the park, They have the ability to create something from nothing."

Hong Kong captain James Cunningham

“Malaysia are a team which will play from anywhere on the park,” Hong Kong captain James Cunningham told Asia Rugby. “They have the ability to create something from nothing, which our players have all been made very aware of.”

Having finished second in all three Top 3 competitions so far and as the highest ranked side in the 2018 edition with perennial champions Japan absent from the line-up, Hong Kong go into the Championship as the favourites to progress to the next phase of Rugby World Cup 2019 qualification.

That would mean a home and away play-off against the Cook Islands for a spot in the global repechage tournament that will determine the 20th and final qualifier for Japan 2019.

“For us to progress through this round to the play-off against the Cook Islands would be not only huge for us as a playing group and as a team who’s worked so hard to build the squad to where we are now but the whole rugby community within Hong Kong,” added Cunningham.

“It would start to create hype in the game and give us the belief we need, not only internally, but also externally to get us all the way to Japan in 2019. Getting to that point would prove to everyone how far we’ve really come.”

Cunningham says Hong Kong have not cut any corners in preparing for their shot at the big time. “Our coaches have trained us to be the fittest, fastest and strongest team in Asia.”

 Welcome addition

Saturday’s match will be the first time Hong Kong and Malaysia have met since 1996, and although that scoreline saw Hong Kong win 103-5, Malaysia demonstrated last weekend that they have improved a lot and should not be taken lightly.

“It’s great to have Malaysia in this year’s Asia Rugby Championship. They bring freshness to the competition along with a very good brand of rugby,” explained coach Leigh Jones.

“They, of course, bring an element of the unknown from Hong Kong’s perspective, and we’re a little unsure of what to expect from them. That means we will pay them maximum respect in our preparation and select our strongest team to play against them.

“This will be the third week we have trained together as a national squad, the challenge, as it always is, is to integrate three distinct groups as well as we can, and get everyone on the same page for the first game versus Malaysia.

“Preparation to date has gone well, and we are pleased with where we are.”

The match will be streamed live on Asia Rugby’s Facebook channel.

Photo credit: Asia Rugby