HONG KONG—The annual Hong Kong Hockey 5’s started last week with the youth tournament being held last week and the adult competition is now in full swing at Mega Ice, Kowloon Bay.
The Youth 5’s ran from Monday April 25 to Saturday April 30 with age group competitions for Atoms, Mini Squirts, Squirts, Pee Wees and Bantams. Hong Kong Selects won at Mini Squirts A, Pee Wee A and Bantam A divisions. Singapore Ice Dragons won Mini Squirts B and Pee Wee B divisions, HKIHAX won the Atoms and Bantam B titles, Kaosiung Rapid Eagles lifted the Squirt A trophy and International North Stars won at Pee Wee B.
Hong Kong Selects were dominant through the week in all divisions entered, often winning by big margins but just missing out in the Squirts A final 2-1 to Kaosiung Rapid Eagles.
In the adult competition started on Monday May 2 and goes through to Saturday May 7, with 35 teams in total: International (12), International B 40+ (4), Asian A (5), Asian B (12) and Women’s division just 2 teams. The International A division of previous years did not get sufficient support, but in the International division there are many strong teams to watch including the HK Tigers, Pandoo Nations, Shanghai Tinderwolves, Nordik Vikings and Kung Fu Kings. Action starts early in the morning and goes on until late evening each day.
Action generally starts in the early morning and goes through to late at night. Reflecting the fewer teams this year, Monday and Tuesday only has afternoon and evening sessions and on Friday there is a morning session and evening session, with a break during the afternoon. Semi-finals and Finals take place on Saturday May 7.