As Head Coach Craig Hammond signs for his ninth season with Hong Kong Scottish, we took a moment to ask him a few questions about his time at the club up until now as well as what the season ahead entails as we approach our 10th anniversary year.
1) Can you tell us a little about how you first became Hong Kong Scottish Head Coach in 2012 and the story behind that?
I was living in and playing rugby for Nottingham, England for eleven years and was looking for an opportunity to progress into my coaching career.
I was born in Singapore and I knew someone in the Singapore Rugby Union so I fired my CV across to them to see if there were any opportunities over there. Without me knowing, the guy sent my CV onto Robbie at the union and he passed it onto Dave Whiteford, the General Manager for Hong Kong Scottish at the time.
Dave chased me up and asked me whether I’d be interested in going over to Hong Kong to play and Coach for HKS. Boom. And here I am, STILL!
1) Can you tell us a little about how you first became Hong Kong Scottish Head Coach in 2012 and the story behind that?
I was living in and playing rugby for Nottingham, England for eleven years and was looking for an opportunity to progress into my coaching career.
I was born in Singapore and I knew someone in the Singapore Rugby Union so I fired my CV across to them to see if there were any opportunities over there. Without me knowing, the guy sent my CV onto Robbie at the union and he passed it onto Dave Whiteford, the General Manager for Hong Kong Scottish at the time.
Dave chased me up and asked me whether I’d be interested in going over to Hong Kong to play and Coach for HKS. Boom. And here I am, STILL!
2) How have you developed over your time at Hong Kong Scottish? How does Hammo 2020 compare to the Hammo who first arrived at the Club?
Haha, a lot I hope! A little bit nicer?
Like I said I came over as a player-coach so I relied a lot on my playing ability at the start. I had coached a number of teams in Nottingham so understood what I was walking into.
Back then I was kind of feeling my way through the coaching side of it and developing along the way.
I was quite a physical player so getting in trouble on the field or giving penalties away and then delivering videos and speeches on discipline at training wasn’t helping my cause!
Being a player-coach wasn’t the easiest, so when I stepped away from the playing my coaching quickly developed.
Over the eight years with HKS I have had some great opportunities to grow as a young coach within the HK Rugby Union. I’ve been involved for six years now with the Men’s National Team, ERP (Elite Rugby Programme) and South China Tigers.
Leigh Jones has been a great coaching mentor to me over the years. He pushes us all very hard to develop our coaching and always challenges us to see what’s next.
My role is always evolving with Scottish and HK rugby which is great and keeps me busy.
3) What have been some of the big developments / changes at the Club during your tenure and how have you adapted?
When I first came here eight years ago we only had two or three teams. Fast-forward and the club has grown massively.
We have a big rugby section, netball section and football section, and I know we’ve had a rugby league team and a basketball team.
The club has developed over the years which is outstanding to see from all the effort everyone is putting in throughout the club.
One thing I’m massively proud of is the community engagement our club does in schools, charities & businesses. Our board and staff help drive these within the HK community which gives kids and adults the opportunity to try rugby, have fun and stay safe. We work closely with the HK Rugby Union which is great.
4) What is your most memorable / proudest HKS moment to date and why?
My first year here I received the ‘Best Coach Award’ in HK which was pretty special.
Another would be two years ago making the Grand Championship Final and just losing in the final few minutes! (Mixed emotions but a great achievement from everyone involved.)
5) As we enter our 10th year as a club, what are you most excited about this coming season and why?
10th year…that’s big!
Everyone is pumped to make sure ‘THE WHOLE‘ club has a top year, both on and off the field. There is a lot planned and it’s going to be an exciting year. For me, it’s about building a quality squad of men that are going to put in a big shift on and off the field for us to try to win in our 10th Season.
The boys are all signed on ready to go and hopefully we can start training together soon and start to grind together.
6) What can we expect from you and the team this coming season?
Like I said above, last year we fell short in a few areas. This season we need to start well in the Challenge Cup and keep building from there. I believe with the management team and players we have we can have a great crack at some silverware this season….no pressure!
Our board, especially Stewart, Roy and Dave have been amazing to me and my family and helping us feel a big part of HKS. I’ve had 3 GM’s: Dave, Bryan and now Sarah; who have all been class to work with. The most enjoyable part of our club that makes HKS very special is the people involved within – top men and women that want the best for OUR club, Hong Kong Scottish.
