By Julian Linden, OCA Media
Nagoya, Japan, October 2, 2026: Proving that strong defence counts for as much as attacking flair, Hong Kong, China advanced to the semi-finals of the men’s rugby 7s tournament without conceding a single point at the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games on Friday.
While the two-time defending champions are box-office entertainers with the ball in hand, racking up a total of 165 points from three pool games and one knockout match, it is the 0 points they have conceded that is most impressive.
“It just shows our determination and ruthlessness and our grit of sticking to our structure, our plan, and being assertive when we go on the pitch,” said Hong Kong, China winger Juan Oyana.
“I think we’re in the right spot right now. There’s a little bit of error that we need to fix, but we’re determined.”
While praising his team’s resilient defence, Oyana has also been in irresistible form when his team has possession, scoring a hat-trick of tries in Hong Kong, China’s 50-0 quarter final drubbing of Malaysia.
Next up for Hong Kong is Korea, in a repeat of the last Asian Games gold medal final in Hangzhou.
The Koreans earned their place in the semis at Nagoya City Mizuho Park Rugby Field
with a 29-12 victory over the United Arab Emirates after a brilliant solo performance from Jang Jeong-min.
If anyone can find a way through Hong Kong, China’s defence, it could be Jang because the veteran wing has speed to burn and has already chalked up seven tries in the tournament.
The other semi-final will be between China and Japan. The same two teams met in the bronze medal playoff at the last Asian Games.
China booked their place in the last four with a hard-fought 19-12 win over Sri Lanka while Japan joined them after defeating Philippines 28-7.
Japan’s Fijian-born forward Josua Kerevi said he was expecting a torrid battle against China.
“They are a physical team. We’ve lost to them a couple of times. They’re always a challenge. They’re big boys, big and strong runners,” Kerevi said.
“We’re still a really young side, and especially there’s pressure playing here at home, controlling our emotions. But if we can control our emotions and do what we prepared to do, we should get the job done.”
Semi finalists in three of the last four Asian Games, China has never made it through to the gold medal match but coach Li Yang was hopeful this would be the year.
“The Japanese team is a powerhouse in Asia. We have to do our best, and we have to get our tactics right,” he said.
“We only have three players who played in the previous Asian Games in Hangzhou, but we have turned up. Our ambition is to create history.”
