And the winner is…
Bacchus has been crowned Redsip HKTag Challenge Cup Winners 2018 after a tightly-fought final against Kingfish. The two teams had previously met in round 13, when Kingfish narrowly took the win 2–1, but wine-lovers Bacchus had the Gods on their side and came back in the Cup Final to steal an impressive 5 – 4 victory.
“True grit and determination”
Andrew Tasker, Bacchus Team Captain, said “Everyone in the team played fantastic today and showed some true grit and determination after having been 4-2 down in the final. Big shout out to our ladies who played the full tournament with no subs! Also to our sponsors Impact Prowear for the awesome vests and Black Kite Brewery for keeping us properly hydrated. We are looking forward to defending the cup next year!”
The top teams in Group B – HKTag stalwarts Tag Buffaloos and newly formed Kam Shan Monkeys – both played exceptional tag to make the Cup semi-finals, but Group A proved to have the stronger teams on the day, as both Kingfish and Bacchus progressed to the Final. In the Plate final, Hashtags beat Wayfoong 11 – 3, and Wan Chai Warriors took top spot in the Bowl league, beating Habitual Barbarians 8 – 4 in a heated final round.
“An overwhelming success”
The HKTag Challenge 2018 attracted more than 140 players from all over Hong Kong and represented a huge cross-section of nationalities, in the biggest event yet. Together with the HKRL Mens and Womens Nines, the tournament kicked off the HKRL and HKTag season in style. The celebrations continued into the evening with the official after party, hosted by sponsors, Wanchai Stadium.
Neville Metcalfe, Chairman HKRL and HKTag, said,
“I couldn’t be more thrilled with the turnout this year – our biggest HKRL Nines and HKTag Challenge tournament yet. The best part for me is that for, the first time ever, we were able to put on a hugely successful women’s rugby league game, won by Hong Kong North.
Tag rugby is an ideal entry point for rugby league – for both men and women – and this year’s Redsip HKTag Challenge demonstrates just how far we have come in achieving our mission to develop a diverse and supporting sporting community.
I want to congratulate the Redsip HKTag Challenge winners – Bacchus – and express a huge thanks to the HKTag volunteers, our sponsors, the referees and of course all the players for helping make this event an overwhelming success!”
The next event in the HKTag calendar is the Hong Kong Battle of Origin. This domestic tournament, taking place on Saturday 7 July, sees residents of Kowloon and the New Territories compete against Hong Kong Islanders in a NRL-style north vs. south competition.
Results
| ROUND | TEAMS | SCORE |
| Round 1 | Hashtags bt Toy Story | 6 – 0 |
| Tag Buffaloos bt PoWerCheetahs | 8 – 0 | |
| Round 2 | Kingfish bt Wayfoong | 4 – 2 |
| Kam Shan Monkeys bt PoWerCerveza | 3 – 2 | |
| Round 3 | Bacchus bt Habitual Barbarians | 6 – 0 |
| Mayer Brown JSM drew Wan Chai Warriors | 2 – 2 | |
| Round 4 | Kingfish bt Hashtags | 5 – 3 |
| PoWerCerveza bt PoWerCheetahs | 7 – 1 | |
| Round 5 | Wayfoong bt Habitual Barbarians | 6 – 2 |
| Kam Shan Monkeys bt Mayer Brown JSM | 8 – 2 | |
| Round 6 | Bacchus bt Toy Story | 5 – 1 |
| Tag Buffaloos bt Wan Chai Warriors | 5 – 2 | |
| Round 7 | Kingfish bt Habitual Barbarians | 10 – 0 |
| Mayer Brown JSM drew PoWerCerveza | 3 – 3 | |
| Round 8 | Wayfoong bt Toy Story | 11 – 0 |
| Tag Buffaloos bt Kam Shan Monkeys | 5 – 4 | |
| Round 9 | Bacchus bt Hashtags | 8 – 2 |
| Wan Chai Warriors bt PoWerCheetahs | 8 – 2 | |
| Round 10 | Kingfish bt Toy Story | 6 – 2 |
| Tag Buffaloos bt PoWerCerveza | 6 – 2 | |
| Round 11 | Bacchus bt Wayfoong | 7 – 3 |
| Kam Shan Monkeys bt Wan Chai Warriors | 4 – 3 | |
| Round 12 | Hashtags bt Habitual Barbarians | 8 – 0 |
| Mayer Brown JSM bt PoWerCheetahs | 4 – 1 | |
| Round 13 | Kingfish bt Bacchus | 2 – 1 |
| PoWerCerveza bt Wan Chai Warriors | 5 – 3 | |
| Round 14 | Hashtags bt Wayfoong | 6 – 3 |
| Kam Shan Monkeys bt PoWerCheetahs | 8 – 0 | |
| Round 15 | Habitual Barbarians bt Toy Story | 7 – 3 |
| Tag Buffaloos bt Mayer Brown JSM | 6 – 1 | |
| Bowl Semi-Final | Habitual Barbarians bt PoWerCheetahs | 5 – 4 |
| Bowl Semi-Final | Wan Chai Warriors bt Toy Story | 4 – 2 |
| Plate Semi-Final | Wayfoong bt PoWerCerveza | 10 – 5 |
| Plate Semi-Final | Hashtags bt Mayer Brown JSM | 6 – 5 |
| Cup Semi-Final | Bacchus bt Tag Buffaloos | 6 – 3 |
| Cup Semi-Final | Kingfish bt Kam Shan Monkeys | 10 – 5 |
| Bowl Final | Wan Chai Warriors bt Habitual Barbarians | 8 – 4 |
| Plate Final | Hashtags bt Wayfoong | 11 – 3 |
| Cup Final | Bacchus bt Kingfish | 5 – 4 |
