After nine years in the Hong Kong rugby community — starting on the sideline as a minis parent, then assistant coach, team manager, head coach, board member, and (believe it or not) playing the game myself for the first time — I cringe every time I see a minis parent-coach screaming down the touchline at a festival. I cringe because I used to be him.
The realisation came late. These days, in a youth team-manager role, I actually enjoy watching the rugby. We walk past the U12 sidelines and quietly wish we'd known earlier.
My turning point was a sign at the entrance to King's Park, put up by the then-HKRU:
"These are children. This is a game. The coaches are volunteers. The referees are human. This is not the World Cup."
I felt stupid. Nine years in, do I still grumble at the ref? I'd be lying if I said no — but it's quieter now, with a sprinkle of banter and an apology after the whistle if I crossed a line.
What's finally hit me is the word community. It gets thrown around in chat groups and on club websites until it sounds like marketing. Most of us — especially those who didn't grow up in rugby families — don't feel it the first time we step into it. And that's the beauty of HK rugby: an eclectic mix of rugby families, total newbies, and parents who turned up because minis is the cheapest sport going. We're all in the same scrum.
That's what I want this publication to be — a community editorial, written from inside the community, in a positive and constructive voice. The goal is a stronger, more respectful HK rugby that grows from the grass roots up — to the point where our premiership clubs are graduating more of their own.
I love rugby in Hong Kong. I love the seven-year-olds turning up in shorts three sizes too big. I love the parent-coaches who give up their Sundays for not enough thanks. I love that on a winter weekend, King's Park, Tin Shui Wai and Po Kong Village all hum with the same sound — kids running into each other, and coaches pretending they're not hungover.
I also think a lot of it could be better. Not in the angry "everything's broken" way — in the specific, fixable, "we've been doing this for decades and still haven't sorted X" way. The youth pathway that's clearer in Singapore than it is here. The clubs quietly carrying too much of the cost. The sideline behaviour we all know about and nobody calls out, partly because we've all been guilty of it.
So that's the publication. A slow, honest publication about Hong Kong rugby. Celebrating what's good. Explaining what's complicated. Proposing fixes — proposals, not hot takes.
What you can expect
One piece every ten to fourteen days. On purpose.
Not weekly — I have a day job and three kids who play. The cadence is deliberate; one well-reported piece beats four rushed ones.
The opening run, roughly in order:
- Don't Be That Parent — already live. Fifteen touchline archetypes, a volunteer wheel, the 19 HKMRFU clubs and what they cost. Free to read, free to download.
- Sideline Parents — the shorter, sharper companion. Why we shout. Why we shouldn't. What the research actually says.
- Youth Coaching in Hong Kong — who's coaching our kids, what qualifications they hold, and where the gaps are.
- Youth Development & Pathways — the route from a King's Park mini-tag pitch to the national team. Clearer than it was. Not as clear as it could be.
- Club Sustainability — the real economics of running a HK rugby club. Who pays for what. What's quietly breaking.
After that: the senior game, schools rugby, the Sevens, the women's game, governance, the occasional interview and data piece. Bilingual eventually. Founder-edited throughout. Over time, I want a bench of contributors — including a voice from our youth players.
What it isn't
Not a fan blog. Not a press-release republisher.
Not a place that takes club or academy money for editorial coverage — that's in the charter and it's load-bearing. When sponsor slots open, they'll be marked SPONSORED in capital letters.
Think Gossip Girl meets Lady Whistledown for HK rugby — minus the gossip and the destructive agenda. I'm a busy HK professional, a youth rugby parent, and a club volunteer. When I write about something I'm involved in, I'll say so. When I get something wrong, I'll correct it in public. The rules I'm holding myself to are in the voice guide and charter.
Why now
Because the topics are hot.
Youth pathways are being redrawn. Clubs are under quiet pressure. The Sevens has just had its second year at Kai Tak and the conversation about what the tournament is for has shifted. The women's game is on a different trajectory than the men's. There's a lot to write about — and not enough people writing from inside the community without an axe to grind.
I'm not the right person for all of it. I'm one person. But I'd rather start than wait until I'm the right person.
What I'd ask of you
Three things, in descending order of importance.
- Read the first piece carefully. Don't Be That Parent is on the site now. If something is wrong — a club detail, a number, a characterisation — tell me. I'd rather fix it than be polite about it.
- Tell me what I'm missing. Coach, volunteer, parent, player, referee, former international, HKCR or HKMRFU — if I miss the obvious thing, write back. This email replies to me directly.
- Forward this to one person. Not a list. One person you think would actually read it. That's how this grows.
The next piece — Sideline Parents — drops in roughly two weeks.
Until then,
Editor, The Tryline