HKRU name Simon Amor Interim Coach For 2021 Asia Rugby Championship

The Hong Kong Rugby Union has announced that Simon Amor will be the men’s HKRU Interim Coach at the 2021 Asia Rugby Championship. Amor is a former England attack Coach & World Rugby Player of the Year.

The news from the HKRU follows the surprise announcement at the start of June 2021 that recently appointed Men’s National Head Coach Craig Hammond was leaving the role. The Bloomberg HK Scottish Director of Rugby and interim Hong Kong coach heads to the UK Championship league side Nottingham RFC, where he was previously a player.

Hammond will depart for the UK in July 2021, and the oft-delayed Asia Rugby Championship is scheduled for November 2021.

Amor is due to arrive in Hong Kong in August 2021 to prepare the men’s team for the ARC which also acts as a pathway to the RWC 2023 in France.

New interim HKG coach Simon Amor lifts cup at HK7s 2002

Simon Amor – Rugby Playing and Coaching Experience

Amor represented England as a player, captain and coach, and has won the Cathay Pacific/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens four times in the early 2000’s. He was also named the inaugural World Rugby Sevens Player of the Year in 2004. Amor’s club career included playing for London Irish, Gloucester, Wasps and London Scottish.

HKRU Chairman Patrick Donovan said, “We are most excited about his accomplishments as a coach and believe he will make a positive impact on the team. As we push for a third straight Asian championship, Simon’s appointment is a clear indication of our resolve to become the top team in Asia and to qualify for future world cups,”

Simon Amor HKRU Interim Coach 2021

The press release from the HKRU says that Simon Amor retired from playing in 2010, and was head coach and director of rugby for London Scottish, later coaching England Sevens (men and women) and Team Great Britain.

He was Head Coach of the England women sevens team at the 2009 Rugby World Cup Sevens and the longest-serving England 7s coach.

In the XVs game, in 2020, Amor was appointed attack coach of the England Rugby team, under Eddie Jones. The team won the 2020 6 Nations Championship and the Autumn Nations Cup. He left the RFU in May 2021.

From the UK, Amor added, “I am excited to support the team’s preparations and perhaps provide a bit of stability given the changes surrounding the team.

This is a fantastic opportunity to share the knowledge I have gleaned over a decade of coaching, but it’s much more than that, this situation is a test of my ability to build relationships and to help players fulfil their potential and be successful.

Creating the relationships that are so important for building successful teams and people goes beyond the typical coaching role, and I am keen to see how I can help the players adapt to what is a unique moment for them.”

Photo Credit: ©Press Association Simon Amor as an England Coach

RWC 2023 Qualification

The 2021 ARC is key for Hong Kong to qualify for Rugby World Cup 2023 in France. For an Asian team to qualify, they will need to win the Asian Rugby Men’s Championship 2021 and then take on the Oceania runner-up in play-off games home and away.

The winner on aggregate will qualify while the loser will go to Final Qualification – Asia / Pacific 1 in the final qualification tournament in 2022.

Asian Rugby News

• Ben Gollings: Coaching Rugby in Asia.
• Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Sevens 2021.
• Rugby World Cup 2021 Appoints ChildFund as Principal Charity Partner.
• Asia Rugby Sub Regional Sevens Competitions 2021.