1. The Hong Kong Scottish Folds touch team launched in 2019, can you tell us a little about how it all started? Can you also touch on your association with Hong Kong Scottish (For those who aren’t aware)
It all started back in 2016, the same year that the HKS Phoenix team was formed. Simon, Andie and Kei Kei decided to set up a touch team for the summer off-season, with players both from the men’s and women’s teams. The team first appeared at the summer touch league that year.
I joined HK Scottish RFC in 2012, after the HKRU Summer Course. I was first introduced by Dave Whiteford, Bryan Rennie, John Aikman, Andrew Brown and Chris Lin to assist with the Photography and Videography production for HK Scottish and the Hong Kong Rugby Union. I really appreciated the opportunity that they had offered me and how much they trusted my skills. HK Scottish has allowed me to develop my skills, alongside my studies and career.
2. How were you involved in the set up of the Folds? Who else played a key part in it?
The HKS Leopards was the preceding team, which was set up by Kei Kei, Simon and Andie. I got involved in the summer league after Simon invited me. Some of the founding members who played a key role in that are Diu, Milk, China, Tommy, Manling, Veronica, Lu, Michael.
3. For those who aren’t aware, can you tell us about how the team name came about? Are you a big fan of cats?
In early 2018, I was thinking whether there are actually leopards in Scotland. And Yes! There are indeed Snow Leopards in the Highlands, but there is also another kind of creature which I think is more interesting – the Scottish Folds! Scottish Folds is a mutation of Scottish domestic cats which have cute folded ears. I thought it would be interesting to have a cute team rugby compared to most of the masculine team names (i.e. Pirates, Pumas and Bravehearts etc.)
After some creative drawing and brainstorming, the HKS Folds first appeared in the 2019 Summer League. With HKS’ support, the Folds has quickly developed into two mixed teams – “HKS Folds Longhair (Seniors)” and “HKS Folds Shorthair (Newbies)”.
We also have several cat-owners/lovers in our team and hence the loyalty to the team Folds.
4. You’ve grown your membership very quickly, which is brilliant. What has been key to that in your opinion?
It may sound a bit cliché, but ultimately it comes down to the Club’s support.
Secondly, Cats. Have you ever seen those cat calendars and post cards that are always sitting somewhere in a book store? No matter how it looks or how much it costs, people would still want to check out those cute and lovely kitty photos and pay anything for them.
The graphic design, memes and parody are the main elements of the Folds’ branding. They can always show the characteristics of the team.
The team’s kit and merchandise are also an attractive selling point.
5. For those unfamiliar / new to the sport, what is it about the touch rugby that you love both the most?
Personally, I would say the accessibility and team spirit. People can easily get involved after basic training. Touch rugby can also be played all year around, and all you need are players, rugby boots, pitch and a rugby ball.
In Folds, we always welcome new players to join, who will then bring their friends and family along. When I was coaching, I would always find myself teaching siblings, schoolmates, colleagues and partners of our team members, some of them have become our team core players now!
6. We know you guys run a lot of social events (normally) and have such a vibrant community. What has been the most memorable Folds social and why? Are there any stories you can share with us…
Yes, before the pandemic we had social events twice a month, such as beach day, hiking, home gathering and etc. We hope we don’t need to wait too long for the next league and have our social events back.
The most memorable experience was in the summer of 2019. It was a hot and sunny afternoon. We had a small group and went kayaking near the Green Egg Island, which is located in Clear Water Bay.
On that day, two of our team members, Hang and Jon put themselves at risk and saved a drowning boy. The boy was taken later by helicopter to the hospital and Hang had a cut to his foot. Great people make great players.
7. How have you adapted and kept morale high over the past year with the various disruptions to your season?
The credit goes to all the members, who have been supporting each other at all times.
Even though we only had limited trainings and game time, we had a great turnout at every training (37 players is the highest record so far) and players turning up to the winter league.
8. What does the future have in store for the Folds? We hear you have recruited a new coach to join the coaching team….
For the Folds, it is just a beginning of a touch team. We would like to keep developing, based on this great community.
We are excited to announce that Shing, the ex-Hong Kong national touch team captain will help to coach the team. We believe his experience and knowledge will be invaluable to our young team and pushing us to the next level.
In addition, we are now working on a charity project with a volunteer group involving homeless dogs and cats. The project is still at the beginning stage. We will provide more info on our Instagram @hkscottishfolds shortly. Please let us know if you are interested!
Rabbit In Black is my design company name. Why rabbit… I think it is because I was jumping around like a rabbit while I was playing soccer in secondary school. Also, I love the movie Men In Black when I was a kid. So…. Rabbit in Black
Actually, we have a few interesting nicknames in our team, like Lion, Deer, Fatball, and Diu sir (his real last name)…. The best one would be Hang Over.
10. Finally, how can people get involved with the Folds?
Find us on Instagram! @hkscottishfolds. It doesn’t matter if you are an experienced player, rugby rookie, cat lover or even want to sponsor our team, hit us up and lets have fun together! Meow!
