Paris Olympics: Hong Kong sevens coach Groves up for challenge of rebuild, after team falls short in Games bid

Jevon Groves said he was ready for the “daunting prospect” of building a new team, after defeat by Japan on Sunday all but ended Hong Kong’s hopes of qualifying for the Paris Olympics next year.

Hong Kong surrendered a 14-7 advantage with 70 seconds remaining, to lose 21-14 in Osaka at the Asian rugby sevens qualifiers.

While the team’s Olympic hopes are not completely dead, with a repechage tournament to come in June, the 12 teams fighting for one spot makes it a “different ask” from winning in Japan.

The Welshman said the squad’s thirtysomethings would be considering their futures following last weekend’s heartbreak, which came four years after Hong Kong suffered an overtime loss to South Korea in the 2020 Olympic qualifying final.

A handful of the Hong Kong squad that lost an Olympic qualification final will not get another Games opportunity. Photo: Hong Kong Rugby Union

“The toughest thing was knowing what reaching the Olympics meant to the players,” Groves said. “They invested so much over the past four years, and it was particularly hard, given it mirrored what happened last time.

“Some of the older guys will be thinking about their rugby futures. Four years is a long time and, for some of them, that was probably their last opportunity to go to an Olympics, which was why it hurt so much.

“We have another cycle now, and the challenge is to build a new team, which is exciting. But starting all over again, a four-year build-up to a one-off, all-or-nothing tournament, is a daunting prospect.”

There were four players older than 30 in Hong Kong’s 12-man party for the Olympic qualifying tournament, while top scorer Russ Webb will be 30 next month.

Alex McQueen and Salom Yiu Kam-shing, who was undecided about whether to continue after September’s gold medal Asian Games campaign, are both 35. Captain Max Woodward is 33 and Bryn Phillips 31.

On the flip side, the electric Max Denmark is 24, and the two players who scored Hong Kong’s tries against Japan, Liam Doherty and Liam Herbert, are 23 and 25, respectively.

Captain Max Woodward is one of the Hong Kong players with a decision to make over their international careers. Photo: Fotogramax

“We have a three-to-four year plan for some of the younger players, looking towards the next Asian Games [in 2026] and Olympic qualifiers,” Groves said. “More younger players will come in, and we need to accelerate their development.

“The older players are still playing really well. If they want to continue, we have to manage their workload, and a different transition out of the programme. But if they do not move on, right now, it is unlikely they will play in four years.”

Groves insisted he “could not be prouder of every player”, after a “successful year that puts our programme in a really good place”. Gold in Hangzhou was supplemented by another dominant Asia Rugby Sevens Series campaign, which earned a place in next year’s second-tier Challenger Series.

He admitted nonetheless that the deflation of defeat “hangs around longer” than the joy sourced from victory.

And the margins between those two outcomes could barely have been closer in Sunday’s encounter.

“It is a totally different feeling from four years ago, because of how we played,” Groves said. “I have watched the match back a couple of times. We defended too much, and Japan controlled a lot of the possession.

“It was very tough to get the ball back, and when we did, we were pretty fatigued. We still put ourselves in a good position, but could not finish it off.

“It will take some deep reflection to see where we can get more out of this group, but we need only small improvements.”