Having led England under-21s to two RBS Six Nations Grand Slams in 2004 and 2006, Hong Kong U20 head coach Pete Drewett knows what it takes to be a winner in age-grade international rugby.
While it is unlikely the World Rugby U20 Trophy 2016 will be added to the achievements column on his impressive coaching CV, Drewett says that success for Hong Kong over the next fortnight will be measured by more than just results on the field.
“We know we have a great challenge ahead of us, as Hong Kong is still looking for its first win in this tournament," he said.
“That first win would of course be the best visible indicator of positive results, but we know from previous experience that our players will return to Hong Kong better prepared to make the transition to senior club and international rugby, so participation is really its own reward for us.
“The Trophy is a fantastic opportunity for our players to play on the world stage and test themselves against some excellent players and teams. The rare chance to play against competition from outside of the region is also hugely important for our player and team development."
"The Trophy is a fantastic opportunity for our players to play on the world stage and test themselves against some excellent players and teams. The rare chance to play against competition from outside of the region is also hugely important for our player and team development."
INS & OUTS
Some of the players who helped Hong Kong qualify for this year’s event will be missing in Zimbabwe, as Drewett explains.
“Unfortunately, due to school and university exams and injuries, not all of our Asian U19 Championship title-winning squad was available for selection. In terms of player development, this has created an excellent opportunity for some of our other national age grade players to gain invaluable experience at the highest level.
“We will miss the experience of players like Tom Gibb, Ben Schats, Ho Yin Cheung, Alex Horne, Aiden Trent, Chun Hei Wong and Cameron Smith.
"But Hugo Stiles, Liam Owens and Matt Worley have all experienced the World Rugby U20 Trophy before and our co-captains Pierce Mackinlay–West and JW Markley are also highly experienced players worth watching.”
This year’s squad contains 11 survivors from the 2015 event in Lisbon, Portugal, which saw Hong Kong beaten by Tonga, Canada and Namibia in the pool stages before losing 47-21 to the host nation in the seventh-place play-off, all in the space of 12 days.
PROFESSIONAL PROGRAMME
“These tournaments mean that every player in the squad has a very important contribution to make both on and off the field," Drewett added.
“We are also fortunate that we have been able to launch a new professional 15-a-side programme in Hong Kong, the Elite Rugby Programme (ERP), which also offers positions for junior players, some of whom have been included in the JWRT. The opportunity for these players to train day in and day out in a fully professional environment will be a great asset in handling the physical demands of what is a very compressed match schedule.”
Hong Kong have been drawn in Pool B, alongside tournament debutants Spain, 2012 winners USA and Namibia, who prevailed by 36-12 when the sides met in 2015.
“We have some very challenging opposition in our pool. It will be a massive test for our players and one that we are really looking forward to," Drewett concluded.