South China Tigers

The South China Tigers is a professional rugby union team from Hong Kong that plays in the Global Rapid Rugby competition.[1]

For the animal found in China, see South China tiger. For the basketball club, see Guangdong Southern Tigers.

South China Tigers
UnionHong Kong Rugby Union
Founded2018 (2018)
LocationHong Kong
Ground(s)(Cap: 40,000) Hong Kong Stadium
(Cap: 11,981) Siu Sai Wan
(Cap: 9,000) Aberdeen Stadium
Coach(es)(Head coach) Craig Hammond
(Team manager) Andrew Hall
Captain(s)Liam Slatem
League(s)Global Rapid Rugby
Official website
southchinatigers.com

The team was launched in 2018 to participate in the inaugural Global Rapid Rugby season.[2]

For the naming of the team, South China tigers are considered as the most distinctive of all tiger subspecies. The population once numbered more than 4,000 in the wild, distributed from Hunan, Jiangxi in the north to as far south as Hong Kong.[3]

History

The inaugural Global Rapid Rugby season was played as a showcase series in 2019, with the South China Tigers playing four matches in the Asia Showcase.[1] In the first Rapid Rugby match, Glyn Hughes scored the Tigers' first try in the ninth minute against the Western Force in Perth on 29 March 2019.[4] The team secured their first Rapid Rugby victory a month later in a home match against the Asia Pacific Dragons, winning 29–19 at the Aberdeen Sports Ground.[5]

Players and personnel

Squad

The squad for the 2020 season includes:

South China Tigers – 2020 Global Rapid Rugby [upper-alpha 1]
Hooker
  • Dayne Jans
  • Alexander Post
  • Callum Tam
  • Jamie Tsang
Prop
  • Mitchell Andrews
  • Daniel Barlow
  • Thomas Bristow
  • Keelan Chapman
  • Ben Higgins
  • Tau Koloamatangi
  • Callum McFeat Smith
  • Jack Parfitt
  • Faizal Solomona Penesa
  • Campbell Wakely
Lock
  • Fin Field
  • Patrick Jenkinson
  • Craig Lodge
  • Mark Prior
  • Kyle Sullivan
Backrow
  • Kane Boucaut
  • James Cunningham
  • Josh Dowsing (c)
  • Joshua Hrstich
  • Callum McCullough
  • Michael Parfitt
  • Cris Pierrepont
  • James Sawyer
  • Sam Tsoi
  • Luke van der Smit
Scrum-half
  • Ruan Du Plooy
  • Bryn Phillips
  • Liam Slatem (c)
Fly-half
Centre
  • Ben Axten-Burrett
  • Mike Green
  • Conor Hartley
  • Tom Hill
  • Guy Spanton
  • Tyler Spitz
  • Lewis Warner
Wing
  • Harry Sayers
  • George Watkins
Fullback
  • Nathan De Theirry
  • Whiia Meltzer
  • Sean Taylor

Notes:
  1. There were 47 players included in the initial squad at the start of the 2020 season.[6]
Bold denotes player is internationally capped. (c) Denotes team captain. 1 denotes marquee player.

Staff

Appointments for the 2019 season:[7]

NamePosition
Craig Hammond Head Coach
Scott Sneddon Assistant Coach
Sam Hocking Assistant Coach
Brett Wilkinson Assistant Coach
Andrew Hall Team Manager

Records

Season standings

Global Rapid Rugby

Year Pos Pld W D L PF PA +/− BP Pts Play-offs
2019 * 3rd 410393145−5226 N/A

Notes:

^* 2019 Rapid Rugby matches in the Asia showcase.

Head coaches

  • Craig Hammond (2019–present) [7]

Captains

  • Liam Slatem and James Cunningham (2019) [7][8]
  • Liam Slatem and Josh Dowsing (2020)

See also

References
  1. "Rapid Rugby 2019 Schedule on show" (PDF) (Press release). Global Rapid Rugby. 1 March 2019. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 March 2019.
  2. "HKRU confirms involvement in Global Rapid Rugby" (Press release). Hong Kong Rugby Union. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 15 November 2018.
  3. "HKFP History: A brief history of South China tigers in Hong Kong" (Press release). Hong Kong Free Press. 30 April 2016. Retrieved 15 November 2018.
  4. "Force power their way past Tigers". Global Rapid Rugby. 29 March 2019. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  5. "Global Rapid Rugby: South China Tigers win first home match as they beat Asia Pacific Dragons". South China Morning Post. 21 April 2019. Archived from the original on 18 January 2020.
  6. "One Tean, One Dream". South China Tigers. Retrieved 11 March 2020.
  7. "Tigers ready to roar". The Standard. Hong Kong. 6 March 2019.
  8. Blennerhassett, Patrick (5 March 2019). "'Chaotic and high speed': South China Tigers unveil diverse roster for Global Rapid Rugby". South China Morning Post. Archived from the original on 5 March 2019.
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