Philippine rugby boys topple Hong Kong rivals

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine U19 rugby development team delivered a sterling performance to outclass the Hong Kong Junior Warriors, 36-12, in the opener of their two-match International Development Series dubbed First Pacific Cup over the weekend at Southern Plains Field in Calamba, Laguna.

Lyndon Adlao and Reymarc Faller Bustillo led the way as the Young Volcanoes jumped the gun on their counterparts from powerhouse Hong Kong for the first time in three years and grabbed the upperhand entering the second outing this week.

Adlao of the Eagles RFC scored back-to-back tries as the home side wiped out an early 0-5 deficit and wrested control, 12-5, after 20 minutes. Sub Bustillo of the Makati Chiefs created a huge impact with his speed and agility upon his entry and spiked his heroics with two tries in either half plus a penalty to help Phl break the game open.

Raphael Barberis joined the fray and added five more points in the corner off a quick tap for the MVP Sports Foundation-backed Phl team before the Junior Warriors scored a late try for the final count.

“This is the first time I have seen our local development team play this outstanding, to put on 36 points against a team like the Hong Kong Warriors, it’s tremendous to see. Reymarc Bustillo for me was outstanding, strong runner and very fast off his feet, he had an outstanding game,” said Philippine Rugby general manager Jake Letts.

Now on its  fourth year, the competition aims to develop and foster more homegrown talents from both Phl and Hong Kong.

“It’s a great way to ensure our junior homegrown talents are exposed to international rugby,” said Letts. “Hong Kong has always been a team we look to gain experience from as they are one of the top nations for rugby in Asia. Hong Kong Rugby runs a similar program to our development team so it’s a positive relationship our unions have,” said Letts.