Fiji stars full of fire, Hong Kong leave it late, as ‘sisters’ put on WXV Global show

City team beat Brazil at the death while Fiji score comeback win over Spain as the WXV Global Series Challenger gets under way at Kai Tak

It was watching Fiji shock South Africa in a 2021 Women’s World Cup pool match that steeled the 18-year-old Alfreda Fisher’s determination to play international rugby.

Or more accurately, it was hearing her father telling his sons at full time that one day he would watch them on the global stage that really got Fisher ticking.

“Yeah, that’s when I thought I’m going to play for Fiji,” Fisher said, at Kai Tak Youth Sports Ground after her team’s rousing 38-32 WXV Global Series Challenger victory over Spain on Sunday.

“I thought, ‘women are strong and we can play rugby, too’. I knew then that he’d be watching me.”

The six-team tournament has been introduced this year, alongside an elite WXV Global Series, as World Rugby seeks to “accelerate the growth of the women’s game”.

And its masterminds could not have asked for a more compelling start. Hong Kong followed the Fiji drama with a grandstand finish of their own, being awarded a penalty try in the last play of the game to beat Brazil 29-24. It was the first time they had led.