2
![Not allowed!](images/buttons/down_dis.png)
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Team named:
15. Jack McGregor
14. Masivesi Dakuwaqa
13. Henry Taefu*
12. Rodney Iona*
11. Brad Lacey
10. Andrew Deegan
9. Ian Prior
8. Brynard Stander
7. Chris Alcock
6. Henry Stowers
5. Jeremy Thrush*
4. Leon Power
3. Kieran Longbottom
2. Andrew Ready
1. Harrison Lloyd
Replacements:
16. Feleti Kaitu'u
17. Cameron Orr
18. Tom Sheminant
19. Johan Bardoul
20. Tevin Ferris
21. Issak Fines
22. AJ Alatimu*
23. Clay Uyen
Coach: Tim Sampson
Last edited by Kiap; 27-03-19 at 19:39.
Thought that Ian Prior had an off day last week.
A lot of telegraphing passes and a hell of a lot going to the feet of the receiving player.
No 18 is Tom Sheminant not Chris Heiberg
GAME DAY INFORMATION: FORCE V SOUTH CHINA TIGERS
March 28, 2019
All the action and entertainment continues this Friday at the Force Field when the Western Force takes on the South China Tigers!
AROUND THE GROUND
Key times
6.10pm – Gates Open
6.20pm – Our future Rugby stars take to the field as the pre-game curtain-raiser.
6.50pm – Join Rodney Garlett for a traditional Welcome to Country message.
6.55pm – Get a sneak peek of the teams and watch them warm up.
7.15pm – Your thrilling pre-game entertainment begins!
7.40pm – Kick-off! Join in in all the rugby action!
AROUND THE GROUNDS
Join us at Gate 1 for all your family fun activities!
There will be carnival rides, sumo suits, face-painting and much more to keep the kids entertained all night long!
PRE-GAME ENTERTAINMENT
Transport yourselves to the South of China as we take on you on an experience inspired by our opposition!
There will be LIVE music throughout the night by DJ Skooby, plus dancers, stunts and fireworks galore!
The Moscow Circus is back again with their tricks and breath-taking jaw-dropping performances.
Make sure you get there when gates open to get the full experience.
HALFTIME ENTERTAINMENT
Rhino’s Rapid Catch for Cash!
Watch as four hopefuls attempt to catch as many of the 20 Rapid Fire Rhino balls they can catch!
Can You Kick It?
Thanks to Retravision, one lucky person gets the chance to win a $1000 voucher!
POST GAME ENTERTAINMENT
The Players will be available for meet and greets post game, stay tuned for more information! Don’t forget to bring your Force Merch down with you for signatures!
GETTING TO AND FROM THE GAME
Public Transport is included in your game day ticket and/or Membership card(s)!
Bus stops are located on Lord, Beaufort and Brisbane Street, with all buses servicing the Elizabeth Quay Bus Station.
Or you can catch the train with Claisebrook Station just 300m from Gate 4. McIver, East Perth and Perth Station are also roughly a 15-minute walk away.
If you wish to drive in, parking is available at all train stations as well as parking lots around the area. Brisbane Street Car Park is located a couple minutes’ walk away from the stadium, with parking lots on Beaufort and Stirling streets also just around the corner.
HOW TO WATCH THE GAME
Rapid Rugby is excited to announce: Western Force v South China Tigers will be broadcast live right throughout the Asia Pacific region and streamed around the globe at 7.30pm AWST.
In Australia, national free to air provider SBS Australia will broadcast live on its SBS VICELAND Channel, SBS On Demand and via sbs.com.au. Note in Perth only, coverage on SBS VICELAND is on-delay at 10.30pm and LIVE on SBS On Demand or via rapidrugby.com.
Australia’s one-stop TV sporting shop, FOX Sports Australia, will be broadcasting on the popular new Kayo Sports streaming service.
FOX SPORTS Asia and its multitude of local channels will broadcast live.
SKY TV will carry the match live into New Zealand.
Live online coverage will be available in all other regions via rapidrugby.com
MEMBERSHIP QUERIES
Your 2019 Membership cards will be available for collection outside Gate 4 at Membership Collection Marquee.
The Membership Marquee will be located inside Gate 4 and can be accessed by all Members
Mass Marketing campaign at Yagan Square in the city today
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bviu-W2np76/
Anyone want to predict what the crowd might be? hopefully given its the start of the Asia Showcase series lets hope its closer to 15k or more...
Anyone got any idea how ticket sales are going?
Just had a look, seems like the Western stand and Eastern stand have got good attendances from what i can see on ticketmaster.. here are a few snaps of the East and West stands right now on ticketmaster..
Hopefully if General admission packs out we do get over 15k
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Heres one on the South China Tigers
‘Chaotic and high speed’: South China Tigers unveil diverse roster for Global Rapid Rugby
A Fijian, Englishman and two Chinese nationals are named as part of the squad’s marquee players
The Tigers will kick off the condensed 2019 season in three weeks against the Western Force in Perth
Topic |
Hong Kong Rugby Union
Patrick Blennerhassett
Patrick Blennerhassett
Published: 6:15pm, 5 Mar, 2019
The South China Tigers definitely got the diversity memo. The men’s professional rugby squad on Tuesday unveiled a number of marquee players to compete in Andrew Forrest’s Global Rapid Rugby series.
The bulk of the team will be made up of Hong Kong national 15-a-side players, but also features Fiji Olympic gold medallist Samisoni Viriviri, English premiership’s all-time leading try scorer, Tom Varndell, and Chinese national players Ma Chong and Liu Junkui.
The new competition will kick off with a condensed 2019 “showcase series” as the first full season has been pushed back to 2020. The Tigers will play four games, starting on March 29 against the Western Force in Perth. They will then play the Asia Pacific Dragons on April 21 at the Aberdeen Sports Ground.
Scrum half and co-captain Liam Slatem, who is a national 15-a-side member, said it will be interesting pulling all the different players from various walks of life together in three short weeks.
Samisoni Viriviri on the charge at the 2015 Hong Kong Sevens. Photo: Felix Wong
Samisoni Viriviri on the charge at the 2015 Hong Kong Sevens. Photo: Felix Wong
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Global Rapid Rugby and South China Tigers coming to Hong Kong for two games in 2019
“That’s the first challenge, trying to find out what everyone will buy into,” said Slatem. “There’s a lot of different cultures. It’s about finding the vibe of the team.”
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Slatem said they have done some practising in terms of adapting to the new rules, which features a “power try” worth nine points if the team originates play from within their own 22 and “maintains consistent possession throughout”.
Read more
Enter the South China Tigers, Hong Kong’s new team in Andrew Forrest’s Global Rapid Rugby series
Hong Kong to enter ‘Tigers’ in new Global Rapid Rugby series
Read more
Global Rapid Rugby and South China Tigers coming to Hong Kong for two games in 2019
South China Tigers will make their Hong Kong debut in April
Members of the South China Tigers at the Hong Kong Football Club. Photo: Ike Li
Members of the South China Tigers at the Hong Kong Football Club. Photo: Ike Li
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The adapted rules also feature shorter halves at 35 minutes and 10 rolling substitutions.
“There will be a lot more running than kicking in certain positions of the field as well,” said Slatem. “So we’ve been training to play a more chaotic style of rugby, a high-speed game.”
The squad will also feature 33-year-old Varndell, who plays for Leicester Tigers in England’s Premiership. Varndell left France after a brief stint with Soyaux Angouleme to sign with the Tigers, who he last played for in 2009.
“Literally a month into my contract (with Leicester), the Tigers contacted me about Rapid Rugby. It was an opportunity I couldn’t turn down. When you get to this stage in your career and you’ve played for such a long time in the UK, these opportunities are few and far between.”
England’s Tom Varndell starring at the Hong Kong Sevens in 2005. Photo: Felix Wong
England’s Tom Varndell starring at the Hong Kong Sevens in 2005. Photo: Felix Wong
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Varndell came to the Hong Kong Sevens in 2006 and always wanted to return. He asked Leicester head coach Geordan Murphy if he could come to Hong Kong for three months and then return to the squad afterwards.
“As a life experience, it’s going to be pretty fun,” he said.
The team also features Chong, a former captain of China’s national 15s and sevens teams who represented his country at the 2014 and 2018 Asian Games.
Liu scored six tries in the opening two legs of the 2018 Asian Rugby Sevens Series and also represented China at the 2018 Asian Games in Indonesia.
And another...
Tom Varndell said the chance to come to Hong Kong was too much to pass up.
Meet Tom Varndell, the South China Tigers’ expat try-scoring machine raring to go in Hong Kong
The English Premiership’s all-time leading try scorer comes to Hong Kong to take part in Andrew Forrest’s Global Rapid Rugby
Thirty-three-year-old says he is delighted to be in the city and is looking at further opportunities here
Topic |
Hong Kong Rugby Union
Patrick Blennerhassett
Patrick Blennerhassett
Published: 4:30pm, 15 Mar, 2019
At this point in his career, Tom Varndell, the English Rugby Premiership’s all-time leading try scorer, is as concerned about life off the pitch as on it.
The 33-year-old, who has had a decorated career for various clubs and country, just signed with the South China Tigers, the Hong Kong Rugby Union’s team that will compete in Andrew Forrest’s Global Rapid Rugby. He recently axed a short stint in France to play for that very reason.
Varndell said the cultural barrier was too high for he and his family, and thus after six games with Soyaux Angouleme, a team based in the southwest of France, he headed back to familiar territory: the Leicester Tigers, the squad he played for last in 2009.
Varndell’s French excursion is well documented and the challenges of life outside the major cities in the country is well known for foreigners, and so the towering, powerful winger who stands 1.88 metres tall said it is all in the past and he is amped to be in Hong Kong for a new adventure.
“I’m fresh off the boat as they say,” said Varndell, who is currently rooming in Wan Chai with Fiji Olympic gold medallist Samisoni Viriviri, who was also brought in to play for the Tigers. “I just felt this was an opportunity I couldn’t say no to.”
Tom Varndell playing for England in 2006 when his team won the Hong Kong Sevens tournament. Photo: Ricky Chung
Tom Varndell playing for England in 2006 when his team won the Hong Kong Sevens tournament. Photo: Ricky Chung
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Varndell was contacted by Hong Kong Rugby Union national men’s backs coach Scott Sneddon, and said after a few weeks, decided to talk to Leicester Tigers head coach Geordan Murphy, who gave his blessing for a three-month hiatus.
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The South China Tigers will play their first game in GRR’s condensed 2019 “showcase series” on March 29 against the Western Force in Perth. They will then play the Asia-Pacific Dragons on April 21 in Hong Kong at the Aberdeen Sports Ground, and then head to Singapore to play the Dragons on April 28. The Tigers will round out with a final game against the Force at Aberdeen Sports Ground on May 12.
Read more
‘Chaotic and high speed’: South China Tigers unveil diverse roster for Global Rapid Rugby
South China Tigers unveil culturally diverse roster for rugby series
Read more
‘We don’t want it half-cocked’: Global Rapid Rugby, featuring Hong Kong-based South China Tigers, pushed back a year
‘We don’t want it half-cocked’: Global Rapid Rugby delayed for a year
South China Tigers winger Tom Varndell said he is enjoyed Hong Kong so far. Photo: Jonathan Wong
South China Tigers winger Tom Varndell said he is enjoyed Hong Kong so far. Photo: Jonathan Wong
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Varndell, who has been to Hong Kong three times previously with the English sevens squad for the Hong Kong Sevens, won the tournament in 2006 when his squad beat Fiji 26-24. Although he said his time exploring the city was limited, as he was either at Hong Kong Stadium, at the Marco Polo Hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui recovering, or riding the ferry across the Victoria Harbour.
Varndell added part of the reason he picked Hong Kong is the potential to possibly look beyond his playing career here in the city. He said he is obviously focused on doing the one thing he does best – scoring tries with his speed and size for the Tigers in GRR’s fast-paced, rule-bent rugby game – but is cognisant he needs to start looking towards the horizon as well.
Tom Varndell, playing for England in 2006 during the Hong Kong Sevens, said he is looking forward to watching it as a fan in 2019. Photo: Felix Wong
Tom Varndell, playing for England in 2006 during the Hong Kong Sevens, said he is looking forward to watching it as a fan in 2019. Photo: Felix Wong
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“If there are opportunities to stay here longer, there is flexibility to look at that,” said the winger, noting his family will be visiting him regularly in Hong Kong from England. “Because I have to look long-term now, I’m not going to play rugby forever.”
Another selling point, Varndell said, was the people he spoke to who have migrated to the city from England originally thinking short-term, but are now inching towards permanent resident status.
“I’ve spoken to people who have come from the UK who came for a couple months and are now here for five or six years. So my experience so far in the days I’ve been here is it’s an amazing place, there’s nothing like it in the world.”
‘Chaotic and high speed’: South China Tigers unveil diverse roster for Global Rapid Rugby
Varndell said he is excited to have a few pints in the stands during the Hong Kong Sevens (April 5-7) as a fan for the first time, but first, he needs to gel with his new teammates.
“The majority of these boys play for the Hong Kong national team, so you don’t want to come in and put your mark on it straight away, you have to put your head down and work hard and prove yourself, and you prove yourself in training. You prove yourself by taking your opportunities when you get them, and wherever you go in the world that is the basic outline of rugby: you work hard and earn the respect of your teammates first, so that’s what I want to do.”
This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Varndell ready to roar with the Tigers
Hong Kong Rugby Union
And one from TheWest
https://thewest.com.au/sport/western...ng-b881149527z
Note how it mentions points are at stake! Here we go!Western Force must quell Tom Varndell in Global Rapid Rugby clash
Nick TaylorThe West Australian
Thursday, 28 March 2019 11:47AM
Tom Varndell looms large for the Tigers.
Tom Varndell looms large for the Tigers.Picture: Getty Images
England’s record premiership try-scorer Tom Varndell will pose a threat to Western Force in their Global Rapid Rugby clash with South China Tigers at HBF Park tomorrow night.
New laws to reduce kicking, keep the ball in play longer and encourage running rugby are ideal for a winger like Varndell, who scored 92 tries in England’s top-level competition.
The speedster, who was capped in both 15s and sevens for England, has been recruited from Leicester Tigers as a marquee player for the Hong Kong-based Tigers.
He said GRR was ideally placed with Asia on the verge of a rugby explosion.
“The timing of Rapid Rugby is perfect. It’s incredible how big rugby is in Asia. There is huge potential. The game could explode,” he said.
“The new laws bring a whole new complexion to the game.
“There will be no let-up in play and it will be interesting to see how it develops and how teams adjust. Rapid Rugby is going to attract a different fan base, using the sevens platform for a fast-paced spectacle with a whole different vibe.”
Tomorrow night’s game is the first in the GRR showcase series with points at stake.