The South China Morning Post (SCMP) has one last chance for readers to score a couple of Cathay Pacific/Credit Suisse Hong Kong Sevens tickets:

A challenge awaits

If there was ever a challenge set for a brand-new skipper of a Springbok team, the recent call to duty for Kyle Brown is it. His side already decimated due to injury and SuperRugby call-up, the new Springbok Sevens Skipper will be leading what will be a Sevens team made up of primarily young, inexperienced players.

To add to the challenge, coach Paul Treu did not travel with his charges to Australia, choosing instead to remain behind to be by his sick mother’s bedside in hospital.

The senior players, guided by the rest of the BlitzBokke management team will be called upon to lead the preparations for Adelaide with the full knowledge that South Africa is the defending champions in Adelaide while woefully trailing the rest of the top teams on the IRB Sevens World Series log.

Thankfully, the young University of Cape Town player will have in his side one remaining former Bok skipper in Mpho Mbiyozo, ably supported by the other senior players in Frankie Horne, Rayno Benjamin, Chase Minnaar and Cecil Afrika.

Thanks to Treu’s mission of preparing all of his players to be leaders, Brown’s baptism as skipper of the 2008/2009 Series Champions will be less of a baptism of fire. Instead it will be but the next step in his development as a well-rounded international Sevens player.

We wish him and the Boys well in Adelaide and Hong Kong.

Bokke Bo!

(“Kaptein” is an Afrikaans song sung by popular Afrikaans artist Kurt Darren. “Kaptein, span die seile” translated into English means: “Captain, set the sails” While the song is primarily about a bloke and his girl, we chose to use it in this clip because it’s just such a lekker song about a captain getting ready for a challenge!)

On this website’s homepage, I write of how I often meet fellow-South Africans around Hong Kong and how easy it is to recognise our countrymen and women in this cosmopolitan city.  Funny enough, I probably meet most Saffas in the party-district of Wan Chai.  Regular readers of this Blog will know that I hang out at Delaney’s Irish Bar because we often meet there to watch rugby (they have a satellite dish that picks up Supersport).  Whenever I cover a major Hong Kong sports event, Wan Chai is often where after-work drinks are to be had.

So it was, late one night during the 2009 UBS Hong Kong Golf Open.  A friend and I literally bumped into a Saffa coming out of, shall I say, one of the popular ladies establishments in Lockhard Road.  He recognised us because we were speaking Afrikaans and the connection was immediately made.  The next day I followed that guy for the first couple of rounds at the Fanling golf course where he was playing.

James Kamte is a real stand-up bloke and a good golfer, though not in Hong Kong last year.

Here are some of the pics I took of “The Cobra” on the second hole at the Hong Kong Country Club:

Jason Dasey wrote this article about James Kamte in today’s Sunday Morning Post:

With all due respect to the fact that Hong Kong successfully staged the 2008 Olympic Games Equestrian events as well as the East-Asian Games, but the 1 week countdown to Hong Kong’s BIGGEST sporting week starts in a couple of days!

Here is what the week looks like so far:

Wednesday March 24, 2010  Kowloon Rugby Fest 2010

Venue: Kings Park Sports Ground, Wylie Road, Kowloon

Wednesday & Thursday March 24-25, 2010 GHF HKFC Tens

Venue: HK Football Club, Happy Valley

Friday March 26, 2010 Cable & Wireless Worldwide HK Women’s Rugby Sevens

Venue: HK Football Club/HK Stadium (Cup Final)

Friday – Sunday, March 26-28, 2010 Cathay Pacific/Credit Suisse Hong Kong Sevens

Venue: HK Stadium, So Kon Po

Other rugby-related events:

SAAHK Sevens Dinner

The Southern African Association in Hong Kong’s annual Sevens Dinner takes place at the HKFC on Wednesday  March 24.  This year’s guest speaker is the popular TV commentator Hugh Bladen, also known as the voice of SA rugby.  The Springbok Sevens Team will of course also be in attendance.

Hugh will probably also have several other speaking engagements around the city and we’ll bring you news about that as it becomes available.

Tens Dinner

The Ten’s Dinner will this year be open to the public.  It takes place at the HKFC on Thursday evening (March 25)  Fee: HK$300

More information about these and other events will be updates as they become available.

This story originally appeared on BlitzBokke.com

I just caught the Cathay Pacific television advertisement for the 2010 Hong Kong Sevens on local English-language TV channel Pearl TV. Cathay Pacific is, of course the national airline/carrier of Hong Kong and co-sponsor together with Credit Suisse of the BIGGEST Sevens on the IRB Sevens World Circuit.

The tag-line for their 2010 advert is “The Fun Is Back”  but with the Adelaide Sevens looming (in the way) a week before, at this stage of the season we should amend that to “The Fun Is (Almost) Back. For now.”

Be that as it may, for any serious Hong Kong Sevens fan now is the time to start preparing for Hong Kong’s un-official rugby week.

If you haven’t yet done so, put in that saved leave-days at the office to make sure you have a least 4-5 consecutive days come March 26-28, 2010.

“But the Sevens is only three days long” I hear you protest.

Hey, trust me… you’ll need 4-5 days.

Three days for the Cathay Pacific/Credit Suisse Hong Kong Sevens, one (or two) days before to get into the spirit by catching the GFI HKFC Tens over at the Football Club, maybe even the Cable & Wireless Worldwide HK Women’s Rugby Sevens (same venue) on the Friday and, most importantly… a day (again, or two) after March 28 to recuperate (aka sleep-it-off).

On the home-front Boys, now is the time to bank some extra time in the ‘good-house.’ You do not want to be sleeping on the sofa after HK Sevens. Once more, trust me… you’ll need that good-house-time more. The boss can be worked with paperwork, but the Missus…neva!

Now is the time to be doing all those chores you’ve been putting off till ‘tomorrow.’ Arrive home with take-outs or a nice bunch of flowers (yes, you know by now: or two) or give her a totally un-expected, un-begged-for full body rub (or more) until you’re dead on your knees or back (or whatever rocks her world).

You’ll thank me after March 29.

Whether you take my advice or you have your own, do it now because, in the words of Cathay Pacific:

                                                             The Fun Is Back!

                              See you on March 26-28 at the Hong Kong Stadium.

Cathay Pacific is running a competition where you can enter a video to win some fan-tastic prizes like flights, event tickets and many more. Simply go to their FaceBook page and enter your Sevens video.

(Fan-pic by: rugbydump.blogspot.com)

The official draw for the Cable & Wireless Worldwide Hong Kong Women’s Rugby Sevens took place at King’s Park this evening where twelve women’s teams were drawn into four Pools.

The participating teams are:

Arabian Gulf, Aussie Amazons, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia (debut), NZ Aotearoa Maori, Papua New Guinea, Singapore, Thailand, SA Tuks (South Africa debut).

Pool A: Aussie Amazons, Arabian Gulf, Singapore

Pool B: China, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea

Pool C: Thailand, Japan, Hong Kong

Pool D: NZ Aotearoa Maori, Kazakhstan, Tuks (SA)

Members of the Hong Kong Women’s Sevens Team at today’s Official Draw at King’s Park.

The Cable & Wireless Worldwide Hong Kong Women’s Rugby Sevens takes place during Hong Kong’s rugby-week on Friday, 26th March 2010

Time: 7.30am-6.20pm

Venue: Hong Kong Football Club, 3 Sports Road, Happy Valley

The Cup Final will take place at the Hong Kong Stadium on Friday, 26th March 2010

Time: 7:04pm

Venue: Hong Kong Stadium, So Kon Po

Organizers of the Cable & Wireless Worldwide Hong Kong Women’s Rugby Sevens 2010 (HKWRS) last week announced the 12 participating teams to compete in this year’s event.

Due to the IRB Women’s Rugby World Cup being held in England in September, this year’s tournament field will play host to a mixed roster of highly competitive national teams from around Asia Pacific and some of the women’s rugby world’s most prestigious club and invitational sides.

The 12 participating teams include eight national representative sides from Asia, led by the reigning IRB Rugby World Cup Sevens 2009 Bowl Champions China, who recently beat the United States Eagles in a major upset at the Las Vegas Sevens, and Kazakhstan, Asia’s sole direct entry to the IRB Women’s Rugby World Cup (15s) this year in London. Other Asian teams include the Arabian Gulf, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and hosts Hong Kong.

The national team of Papua New Guinea rounds out the full representative squads at this year’s tournament. Three of the world’s premier women’s club sides are also taking part including five-time Cup champions Aotearoa Maori from New Zealand. The Aussie Amazons from Australia and Pretoria University’s Tuks from South Africa complete the competitive field.

The Tuks Rugby Club is attached to South Africa’s University of Pretoria and has been in existence for more than a century. It is one of the biggest rugby club in the country with around 55 teams and more than 100 coaches and team managers running the Tuks rugby machine.

The Cable & Wireless Hong Kong Women’s Rugby Sevens will be played from 07.30am – 06.00pm on Friday, 26 March 2010 at the Hong Kong Football Club. The Cup final will be held at 19.04 during the Cathay Pacific/Credit Suisse Hong Kong Sevens at the Hong Kong Stadium.

Now entering its thirteenth year, the Hong Kong Women’s Rugby Sevens has grown into one of the top annual fixtures in the women’s rugby world. The tournament is fully supported by the Hong Kong Rugby Football Union, the Asian Rugby Football Union and the International Rugby Board. For the fifth consecutive year, the Hong Kong Women’s Rugby Sevens is being title sponsored by Cable & Wireless Worldwide.

2009 Cable & Wireless HK Women’s Rugby Sevens Cup Finalists Australia (24) vs. China (7)

Organisers of the GFI Hong Kong Football Club Tens 2010 announced the line-up for this year’s tournment. 

Sixteen teams comprising of former and future stars will come from every corner of the globe to celebrate 25 years of the Tens alongside the best that local rugby can offer.  Started in 1986 to celebrate the centenary of one of Asia’s iconic rugby venues, the Hong Kong Football Club, the tournament has earned a reputation as the world’s premier ten-aside competition and the unofficial kick off of rugby week in Hong Kong.

Sevens fans will be excited to know that rugby legend Waisale Serevi will be returning to Hong Kong as a Tens player, lining up with the Hong Kong Barbarians.  Serevi should be a useful addition to the Barbarians, a team drawn from players that play locally in the domestic league but who fall outside of the various eligibility requirements required to represent Hong Kong. 

Speaking about his “new” team from Papua New Guinea where he is coaching the Men’s Sevens side, Serevi said “I am excited to try my hand at Tens, especially back in Hong Kong. I understand that the Baa baas won the Plate in 2008 and I want to go one better in 2010.”

Defending Cup champions Aliens, runners-up Alternative New Zealand Legends and Plate champions Penguin International RFC are all returning for another tilt at the Tens title in Hong Kong. 

Samurais International, Scatterlings of Africa, Borneo Eagles, Australian Country Invitational, Germany’s Wild Titans and the KIR Club Pyrenees are just a few of the international complement appearing at the Hong Kong Football Club at the end of the month. 

Befitting their status as returning champions, the Aliens are the tournament top seeds and head Pool Awhere they will be joined by last year’s debut side and eventual Bowl winners, Scatterlings of Africa, which will again be led by former Springbok flanker Bob Skinstad.  Australian Country Invitational and mainland side China Agricultural University, China’s first established rugby club and a nursery for Team China, round out the pool.

Scatterling of Africa at last year’s GFI HK Tens (Pics: Mike Jansen) 

Pool B sees 2009 Cup runners-up Alternative New Zealand Legends in the top slot alongside the Wild Titans from Germany, the Hill & Associates Hong Kong Barbarians and British Forces side Flying Kukris. 

Pool C is headed by the world-famous Penguin International RFC under ex-Scotland coach Frank Hadden and Steve Hill.  The Penguins will be out for revenge after reaching the final in 2007 and 2008 and being the ranked as the tournament’s top seed in 2009 only to bow out in the Cup quarter final against Aliens.  Last year’s Plate win will not be enough to satisfy this brood of hungry Penguins.

Another UK-based team features in Pool C, Samurai International, who have announced that this year they will be dedicating their performance in memory of their former manager Colin Hillman, who was also the former Technical Coach for the Wales Sevens team before passing away last summer.  2009 Shield Champions Cardiff University and hosts Hong Kong Football Club complete the Pool.

Pool D is topped by tournament fourth seeds Borneo Eagles.  Also in Pool D is the KIF French Pyrenees team featuring towering forward Patrick Tabacco who was capped 25 times for France including at Rugby World Cup 2003.  The Irish Vikings and Old Boys complete Pool D.

GFI HKFC Tens Pools

 (the number in brackets denotes seeding) 

A personal breakthorugh for a Capetonian – with the use of her whistle.

Roslyn Fortuin (38), a referee hailing from (the Western Cape Town of) Worcester will be officiating in her first international rugby game at the (Cathay Pacific/Credit Suisse) Hong Kong Sevens Tournament for women. The tournament happens in the same week as the mens’ tournament from 26-28 March 2010.

Roslyn will be the first female South African to take up the whistle at this event. She is also the number one ranked women’s referee on the South African Rugby Union’s order of merit.

According to Fortuin this is an opportunity that she has waited for a long time. “I am still overwhelmed by this opportunity and have to pinch myself often to make sure I’m not dreaming,” she gushes. “I believe in God and His plan for me. One tends to say I WANT but God determines your path in life.”

(Continue below)

Fortuin, who is a teacher at the Eden Training Centre, a school for mentally challenged kids, ascribes much of her success to Mr Ivan Pekeur, the Boland Rugby Union’s referees development officer as well as SARU’s manager of referees Mr Andre Watson.

While waiting for her international debut, Roslyn Fortuin will make sure that she is at her fittest and that she knows all her rugby rules.

Twelve womens team will take part in the Cathay Pacific/Credit Suisse Hong Kong Sevens and Fortuin thinks that she will probably officiate in about four games per day. Every game lasts for 14 minutes.

“I am very excited at the prospect of officiating on the international stage and to see how I measure up to the other international referees.” Fortuin says. “Every referee has to be rather tough. There is no place for cry-babies in sport.”

She continues: “I don’t differenciate between men’s and women’s referees. The most important aspect is to have a feel for the game.”

He mentor Ivan Pekeur says he too is excited over Fortuin’s achievement. “This time last year Roslyn had quite a setback. She was injured and subsequently lost her position on SARU order of merit. One day she told me that she wanted to stop refereeing because there were to many thing that counted against her.”

He then promised her that if she works hard, she WILL become the number-one ranked referee in South Africa. “She clung to that wish,” Pekeur added and continues: “Roslyn is a hardworker and gives only her best on the pitch. “Our next aim is to make her the best women’s referee in the world. Roslyn has all the qualities to become just that.”

“When she makes her international appearance in Hong Kong, she will eventually become number one.”

(This story was translated from an article by Carryn-Anne Nel that appeared in Afrikaans in Kaap-Rapport.  Picture by: Lizane Louw.)

Cornelius Johannes Petrus Gerhardus Van Zyl was the coach of the South African Cricket Sixes team who won the 2009 Karp Group & Inurich Jewellery Hong Kong Cricket Sixes. 

Van Zyl, who is the current coach of Gestetner Diamond Eagles, is a former National cricketer who represented his country in two One Day Internationals in 1992.

After the recent shock resignation of national cricket coach Mickey Arthur, CorrieVan Zyl was appointed acting coach for the Proteas National Cricket side for their tour to India. 

The team recently drew the 2-test-match series against the number-one ranked Indians.

Corrie Van Zyl in Hong Kong (Pic: Mike Jansen)

Everyone who were in attendance at the Kowloon Cricket Club on Sunday November 1, 2009 will remember the nail-biting Final between South Africa and hosts Hong Kong.  Set a modest target of 98 runs to win the US$55,000 first prize, the South Africans left it late with Farhaan Behardien smashing a massive six off the final delivery from Hong Kong’s Mark Wright to clinch the title.

       The advertising boards are flattened by the SA players after Behardien’s six. (Pic: Mike Jansen)

The win was a cruel blow for the hosts Hong Kong who impressed with the their performance throughout the tournament and was set for their first-ever win.

Scroll to around 7:28 of the following clip to refresh your memory. Colleen Thane and her loyal gang of Saffas are featured at the beginning, while yours truly also feature in there happily snapping away with my camera.  Papparazzi!

After the final ball, CEO of Cricket South Africa Gerald Majola suddenly appeared from a VIP Box to congratulate the team:

      “You’re the man! Fancy going to India, Corrie?”  Did they know something we didn’t?  (Pic: Mike Jansen)

However, there was no fairytale finish for the Proteas in their first One Day International on the sub-continent.  India beat South Africa in the first one-day-er under the tutelage of Corrie Van Zyl in another tense finish. 

This time there was no Farhaan Behardien when Wayne Parnell was run out off the final delivery, attempting a second run that would have tied the match, to leave the Proteas on 297 all out in reply to India’s 298-9. 

The second match in the series of One Day Internationals will be played in Gwalior on Wednesday and the third in Ahmedabad on Saturday.