The HKRFU National U20s team will have a chance to complete an unbeaten season in Asia at both sevens and fifteens when they host the finale of the two-tournament ARFU U20s Asian Sevens Series later this month. The two-day tournament will be held at Kings Park, Kowloon on Friday and Saturday, December 19 and 20, 2014.

The U20s sevens squad won the opening series event in August in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, beating the hosts in the final 25-14. The team will now have the chance to clinch the Asian age grade sevens title at home, potentially delivering a clean sweep of Asian men's sevens titles for Hong Kong this season.

In September, the team also won the ARFU U20s (fifteens rugby) championships in Sri Lanka, booking their place at next year's Junior World Rugby Trophy tournament in Portugal.

The impact of Rugby Sevens' elite sport status at the Hong Kong Sports Institute is evident at U20s level with the HKSI Junior Rugby Sevens athletes having had a significant effect in the team's success this season.

"We have seen a tremendous improvement in the U20s programme since the inclusion of Rugby Sevens at the Hong Kong Sports Institute. We have been able to participate in more international competitions and our ability to train both full and part-time junior athletes has had a positive knock-on effect on the preparations of our U20s teams for fifteens competition as well" said HKRFU head of technical development and performance Dai Rees.

Five of the players from the squads that won the opening sevens leg and the JWRT qualifier in Colombo are already enrolled as part-time junior athletes at the HKSI including Tigers loose forward Calvin Hunter.

Full-time HKSI athlete Chris Maize are also age-eligible to take part in the U20s sevens series and both have been included in the training squad for the ARFU U20 Sevens tournament.

Reinforcing the flow of elite players from junior to senior levels since the inception of the HKSI elite rugby sevens athlete programme, Tigers former U20s sevens captain Jack Capon has now graduated to full-time senior athlete status. Jack had a significant impact on the senior men's sevens squad's Asian championship run this season.

A 18-man training squad is currently preparing to contest the second leg of the U20s series. Ten of the squad are veterans of the opening win in Malaysia, while eleven players were involved in the successful fifteens tour to Sri Lanka for the JWRT qualifiers.

U20s players are also starting to make their mark in HKRFU domestic competition with Calvin Hunter and Erik Kwok Pung Nga have both figured prominently for the Borrelli Walsh USRC Tigers.

A number of the wider squad have also been integrated into the Hong Kong senior men's XV squad with several invited to train in the build-up to the Ustinov Cup series versus Russia.

The seven-team ARFU U20s Asian Sevens Series finale will feature the national U20 teams of China, Chinese Taipei, Malaysia, South Korea, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates.

Tigers players make up half of the training squad a great achievement and include:

Ron SIEW
Chris MAIZE
Calvin HUNTER
Rupert PHILLIPS
Jason JEYAM
Tomos HOWELLS
Eric KWOK Pung Nga
Oscar KURTEN
Daniel DAVIDSON