Japanese footballer torn over Hong Kong passport decision after domestic cup success
Southern's Sapling Cup triumph on Thursday has thrust two of their Japanese-born players into the Hong Kong selection conversation, with one hoping he enhanced his chances and the other torn over his eligibility.
Advertisement
Sohgo Ichikawa, who was earmarked as a future star when he played for Hong Kong under-15s as a 13-year-old in 2018, capped a fabulous individual display with the last goal in his side's astonishing 4-0 final rout of Lee Man.
Captain Shu Sasaki delivered the pinpoint cross for Ichikawa to crown an incisive counter-attack, before orchestrating the raucous celebrations after full-time.
'At Southern, we're not special players, but everyone has spirit and helps each other – everyone has Southern blood,' wide player Sasaki said.
He has been with the club for five years, after coming to Hong Kong from homeland Japan in 2018 to join Rangers. Sasaki, 34, who has also played for Pegasus, reached seven years' residence in February this year.
Advertisement
He is now wrestling with the decision over whether to swap nationality by applying for a passport. 'I was born in Japan and grew up there, but Hong Kong is my second home,' Sasaki said. 'I would love to play for Hong Kong but it's not an easy decision, I'm thinking about it.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RTHK
29-05-2025
- RTHK
England hammer West Indies in Brook's first ODI
England hammer West Indies in Brook's first ODI Brook celebrates his half-century after the first one day international match against West Indies. Photo: AFP Harry Brook made a winning start as England's permanent white-ball captain as the hosts hammered the West Indies by 238 runs in the first one-day international at Edgbaston. Victory ended England's seven-match ODI losing streak and put them 1-0 up in the three-match series. The success was built on a commanding total of 400-8 – the highest total in any ODI without a hundred – after Jacob Bethell (82), Ben Duckett (60), Brook (58) and Joe Root (57) all made fifties. West Indies collapsed to 79-5 in reply and were eventually dismissed for 162 as their bid to become only the second side in ODI history to score more than 400 runs to win ended with more than 23 overs remaining. Last man Jayden Seales was the West Indies' top score with 29 not out, one of just three contributions above 20 in the innings. This was England's second-largest ODI win in terms of runs, exceeded only by their 242-run rout of Australia at Nottingham in 2018. Saqib Mahmood took a trio of top-order wickets Thursday on his way to 3-32, with England's impressive fielding display exemplified by the one-handed boundary catch Brydon Carse held off his fellow fast bowler to remove West Indies captain Shai Hope for 25. As Clive Lloyd, the West Indies' captain when they won the first two World Cups in 1975 and 1979, looked on from the stands, Adil Rashid took two wickets in his 150th ODI with the veteran leg-spinner ending the match when he bowled tailender Alzarri Joseph. England – sent in to bat by Hope – had looked as if they might fall short of a truly imposing total after several batsmen got out when well set. But Barbados-born left-hander Bethell, back from the Indian Premier League and on his Warwickshire home ground, continued to punish a wayward West Indies attack in which fast-bowler Seales took four wickets but conceded an expensive 84 runs in nine overs. Bethell and Will Jacks (39) put on exactly 100 runs in seven overs late on to take England from 287-5 to 387-6. The 21-year-old Bethell, still without a hundred in any form of senior cricket, fell off the first ball of the last over when he edged Seales to wicketkeeper Hope to end a 53-ball innings that included eight fours and five sixes. New ODI opener Jamie Smith scored freely on both sides of the wicket until, on 37, his hard-hit pull off first-change Alzarri Joseph was well caught at midwicket by Brandon King. Left-hander Duckett cashed-in with a 34-ball fifty before he was superbly caught by Roston Chase at backward point off seamer Justin Greaves. Duckett's exit brought in the 26-year-old Brook, appointed full-time skipper after Jos Buttler stood down as captain in February following a woeful Champions Trophy in Pakistan where England lost all three of their matches. Brook struck Greaves for two superb sixes in three balls – a lofted off-drive followed by an audacious sweep on one knee over his shoulder. Just when Brook was ready to cut loose, he carved Seales to deep cover where Keacy Carty held a fine low catch Bethell ensured there was no respite for the bowlers, clubbing both Matthew Forde, whose eight wicketless overs went for a costly 88 runs, and Joseph for six before lofting Seales high over long-off. The series continues at Cardiff's Sophia Gardens on Sunday before finishing at The Oval on Tuesday. (AFP)
Asia Times
28-05-2025
- Asia Times
Australian rugby the way to tackle China's PNG police play
It may look like a normal sports story – Australia expanding its National Rugby League into Papua New Guinea (PNG) – but it's far more than that. This is one of the most impactful and strategic soft power plays by an Australian government since Australia saw its former PNG colony gain independence in 1975. It's cultural diplomacy at its smartest in a region where Australia is increasingly fighting for influence. With this move, Australia has played the one card China can never match: a connection between these two neighbors grounded in the PNG national religion – National Rugby League. Australia-PNG security relations go back more than a century, with PNG just four kilometers away from Australia. During World War II, Australian defense of PNG from Japanese invasion was grounded in necessity. China is already scoping out a move into PNG security, with China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi visiting Port Moresby in early 2024 to discuss a potential policing agreement. This raised serious concerns in Canberra, as the Australian Police Force has been PNG's de facto security guarantor for decades. With China's move, Australia sees that necessity return – and this time, it is playing out not on a battlefield but on a rugby field. China is building roads, bridges, ports, stadiums, empty museums and crumbling presidential palaces while Australia is pitching something more emotional. As Australian Prime Minster Anthony Albanese put it, 'no two countries have a greater passion for rugby league.' While 'shared identity' is often a diplomatic buzzword, in this case, through this shared identity, Australia has the chance to build something far deeper than contracts or aid: a sense of national PNG pride while cementing people-to-people connections, both of which would be a coup for Canberra. Australia is not a global superpower. It is a middle power – like South Korea, Mexico or a rising Indonesia. It lacks the economic clout of China, which can spend billions in infrastructure and aid to win influence through economic diplomacy. And it doesn't have the military reach of the United States, which stations troops worldwide to project force. Middle powers need something different: they need soft power. If you have ever danced to Gangnam Style or binged Squid Game – you have been one of the billions globally swept up in South Korea's cultural soft power diplomacy. Through K-pop, drama, comedy, and reality TV, South Korea has built one of the most powerful and effective soft power machines in the world – shaping global perception of South Korea without building a single bridge or deploying a single solider. However, Australia is not on a South Korean-style path to try and shape global perceptions. Australia is more focused on its region, and it is seeking to change how Papua New Guineans feel about Australia. And sport is a uniquely powerful tool to win hearts and minds. In PNG, National Rugby League isn't just popular — it's the national sport. By providing a platform for PNG to express national pride through a league team, Australia isn't just funding a sports program; it's also investing in how Papua New Guineans feel about Australia – cultural diplomacy in action. Australia wants to know that when it comes to the internal or external security of PNG, they will look to them, not to China. To be blunt, Australia does not want Chinese police or military stationed in its closest neighbor, potentially just four kilometers from its shores. Picture this: Fast forward to 2029, and the PNG league team is in its second season. A local accountant steps out of his office in Port Moresby and spots the regular Aussie police officer walking around. He can't resist a cheeky comment about how PNG thrashed the South Sydney Rabbitohs in Sydney on the weekend. They both laugh and continue their day in the PNG sun. This is people-to-people diplomacy at its finest – unprompted, unforced and totally genuine. Compare this to the Chinese-built Presidential Palace in Vanuatu, a US$31 million 'gift' to PNG's neighbor that quickly fell into disrepair after the 2024 earthquakes. Unable to afford the upkeep, the Vanuatu government all but abandoned the 'gift.' So, when the PNG government is renegotiating security agreements and it floats the idea of replacing the Australian Federal Police with Chinese officers, Australia's hope is that such a shift feels unthinkable to the PNG public. That the connection built through sporting rivalry and the resulting everyday interactions makes alignment with China unpalatable, and this public sentiment constrains the choices of the elected leaders. For PNG, this is also so much more than diplomacy. It's a shot at global sporting recognition — a chance to step onto the international stage in the sport they live and breathe. It's about national pride, visibility and taking on a major rival in a game that's as much PNG as it is Aussie. Influence in the Pacific is not about shouting louder. It's about playing the right game and playing it in a way that wins hearts and minds. Picture a young PNG girl walking through Sydney Olympic Park, proudly wearing a PNG national jersey, buzzing with excitement to see their team take on Australia's best. Maybe, just maybe, it might just be that little girl in the jersey — not a diplomat, not a defense deal, not a presidential palace — who keeps China at bay and Australia on side in PNG. Dylan Harrington is a former Australian Federal Police national security expert specializing in Pacific Island security and a former Australian government trade agreement negotiator.
RTHK
21-05-2025
- RTHK
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander wins NBA's MVP award
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander wins NBA's MVP award Gilgeous-Alexander is the Thunder's third-ever NBA MVP award winner. Photo: Reuters Oklahoma City Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been named Most Valuable Player in the NBA for the 2024-2025 season. Canadian-born Gilgeous-Alexander pipped Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets to the prize, which considers only performances during the regular season. Broadcasters TNT said that Gilgeous-Alexander won the vote 71-29 over Serbian Jokic, who has won the MVP award three times. Gilgeous-Alexander, who finished second to Jokic last year, shot almost 52 percent from the field as he led the Thunder to the best record in the league. Oklahoma City won 68 games and set a league record for scoring margin. "You try so hard throughout the season to not think about it and just worry about playing basketball and getting better and trying to win games," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "But as a competitor, as a kid dreaming about the game, it's always in the back of your mind and I am very grateful to be on this side of the ballot," he added. Gilgeous-Alexander led the league with 32.7 points per and also averaged 6.4 assists and 5.0 rebounds. The 26-year-old can yet crown his season with a championship with the Thunder 1-0 up in their Western Conference final against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Gilgeous-Alexander was quick to praise his team-mates for their role in the individual honour. "None of it is possible without the guys behind me. The amount of games we won and the fashion that we won the games is so impressive and it's probably the main reason why I get the award," he said. The last US-born player to win was James Harden in 2018. (AFP)
