On behalf of the HKRFU and the whole rugby community we would like to express our condolences to the Forsgate family on the sad news of the passing of Betty, wife of our former President Gerry. The contribution of them both to the growth and development of rugby in Hong Kong was immense, and we will forever owe a debt of gratitude to them. In accordance with the family's wishes the Union will be making a donation to the chosen charities of the China Coast Community and Enlighten.

I'm not sure what Santa has planned for this evening, but the rugby community certainly had a plethora of sporting gifts last weekend to enjoy at King's Park…
In the Asian Under 20s Sevens Tournament the Hong Kong boys showed their silky skills as they went through both days of competition unbeaten, took the cup and with it the overall Asian Series title – read more here http://www.hkrugby.com/eng/news/4689.php
We also hosted a Girls Under 18 Sevens Triangular competition, with two Hong Kong teams taking on the Russian national side for the "China-Russia Year of Youth Friendship Cup" – some very close games resulted in the silverware going back on the plane to Siberia, but it was a great experience for all.
Saturday also saw the first sanctioned international Touch match here, as Hong Kong took on China. The series ended 1 win each, but Hong Kong became the inaugural winners of the ANZ Cup anyway…home advantage I suppose. This was the first official event under the new ANZ sponsorship of Touch, and also marked an important milestone on the road to the Touch World Cup in Australia next April.
Still on Touch, down at Shek O Beach it was the annual Disciplined Services Beach Touch Tournament on Saturday – Fire Services won the men's division and Immigration the women's.

Next up – the world's most effective hangover cure, the Prudential New Year's Day Youth Tournament! Join us for mulled wine, mince pies and red-hot rugby action at Hong Kong Football Club on 1st January – flyer attached and schedule below!
1000 "Robert's Shield" - Ladies Under 12 Island Lions vs Peninsula Dragons
1055 "Waterford Bowl" - Boys Under 12 Island Lions vs Peninsula Dragons
1150 "Overton Cup" - Ladies Under 14 Island vs Peninsula
1255 "Stuart Leckie Cup" - Boys Under 14 Lions vs Dragons
1400 "Naylor Cup" - Ladies Under 16 Lions vs Dragons
1515 "George White Trophy" - Boys Under 16 Hong Kong Dragons vs Overseas Lions
1630 "Lassies' Quaich" - Ladies U19 Hong Kong Dragons vs Overseas Lions
1800 "Naylor-Wright/Middlesex Cup" - Boys U19 Hong Kong Dragons vs Overseas
1930 Presentation of the Larry Abel Trophy for Best & Fairest Player of the Day
Rugby Calendar

Dates for Diary
28th December - St John's Touch Tournament, King's Park
1st January – Prudential New Year's Day Youth Tournament- HKFC
3rd/4th January – Standard Chartered Invitational Tertiary 7s Tournament at King's Park
10th January – League competition resumes

Cathay Pacific/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens
Don't forget the Sevens Public Ticket Ballot is still open for registration http://www.hksevens.com/eng/news/4611.php until 31st January 2015...don't delay, register today!
Also, to provide a secure platform to protect rugby fans from around the world from ticket fraud, the Union have announced an exciting new partnership with viagogo, the world's largest ticket marketplace – read all about it and how the system works here http://www.hkrugby.com/eng/news/4672.php This initiative should provide choice, convenience and consumer protection; viagogo will ensure that tickets retailed on its site are genuine with sellers not paid until the buyer has successfully gained entry to the event.

Seeking Sevens Stars!
Do you…
Compete in ANY sport at a high level?
Dream of representing Hong Kong in the Olympics?
Want to be part of an incredible team and see the world through sport?
The HKRFU and HKSI are looking for talented sportswomen with desire and determination, no rugby experience required, minimum of 17 years old…
Register for the HKRFU-HKSI Women's Sevens Team Talent ID Day on 26 January at King's Park, 6.00-9.00pm, on https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1Ta0Y3uSycvUEUoznP-mg1j7UWHyHbPpOamriAqFnEuk/viewform?usp=send_form

Communications
With more and more exciting events taking place in the rugby and touch communities we'd like to make sure that everyone who wishes to is being communicated with by the Union on a regular basis.
In addition to this newsletter, the Union website is regularly updated, and is also a good source for the major news stories in both English and Chinese (www.hkrugby.com) while we have Facebook pages in both English https://www.facebook.com/hkrugby and Chinese https://www.facebook.com/hongkongrugbian

When it comes to photos, you can follow our Instagram account "HKRUGBY" for daily interesting/amusing/topical snaps, and you can find extensive galleries of photographs here https://www.flickr.com/photos/hkrugby
We also have our own Youtube channel at https://www.youtube.com/user/hongkongrfu and of course you can listen to the official Rugby Podcast here http://www.hkrugby.com/eng/news/3710.php

There is a separate website and social media channels dedicated to the Cathay Pacific/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens which are currently being upgraded – we will send out more info on these in the New Year.

So there are many ways to keep in touch with what's going on – the list below gives you a brief idea of how much activity is out there, and of course if you/your team/your club have got something organized we want to hear from you as well, contact either Stephanie.au@hkrugby.com or Robbie@hkrugby.com with details!

Rugby on TV
Follow the English Premiership and Guinness Pro 12 on Setanta, and French Top 14 on Eurosports

Rugby in SCMP
If you haven't yet visited the fantastic SCMP-HKRFU website, delay no more! All the top local and international rugby stories plus some superbly written blogs, all on mobile-friendly platform…what more could you ask for?http://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby

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2015 New Year's Day Youth Rugby Tournament

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