[23 March 2010] It was a case of old rivals coming together on the pitch to help youngsters in Hong Kong today as Rory Underwood, Gavin Hastings and Frank Hadden joined forces to coach over 150 Chinese and expatriate children in the build up to this year’s HSBC Asian 5 Nations.

Former England winger Rory Underwood took to the pitch with Hastings, who was his British & Irish Lions captain in 1993.  The two were often on opposing sides for England and Scotland during their careers, but put all former rivalry aside today.

Underwood said, “It is always a pleasure to come back to Asia - especially if it is Asia plus rugby! Rivalries have been firmly put to one side today - I have been here today with Gavin to make sure these kids get out there, really enjoy themselves and develop a genuine love of the game.”

At an HSBC A5N Youth Rugby Festival staged at the Hong Kong Football Club today, 150 boys and girls from across Hong Kong and over here from China were put through their paces by the former professionals. Speaking at the event, Frank Hadden, HSBC A5N Coach said, "It is absolutely right that HSBC and the Asian Five Nations are investing in the development of the game here and I’m really happy to come back to the grass roots of the sport as a coach. As part of the HSBC A5N programme, I’ll be delivering a mixture of youth coaching and coach education clinics to leave a sustainable legacy in emerging rugby nations across Asia. I see myself as a ‘coach doctor’ and am really looking forward to the next four months. The exciting pace of activity bodes well for the future of the game in this part of the world”.

Hastings has been involved with the HSBC Rugby Festivals programme for several years, having helped coached thousands of children across the UK and Ireland under HSBC’s sponsorship of the British & Irish Lions Tour last year.  He shared Frank’s view that enjoyment is vital to the future growth of the sport in the region. “I’ve been here today with my old teammate and A5N ambassador Rory Underwood as well as fellow HSBC Ambassador John Kirwan, sharing some of the skills we once had with these kids! The most important thing about rugby at this level is that the children have fun and we’ve had a lot of that today. On a serious front, the HSBC A5N youth rugby programme is reaching out to new parts of the region and will be fundamental in spreading the game to many more people.”

Asked on what it was like to play alongside former rival Underwood, Hastings added, “It has been good fun to be on the field with Rory again – he is still pretty quick!  Hopefully one of things we have helped demonstrate to the kids here today is that rugby is about teamwork and friendship - even though Rory and I were playing against each other for our countries, we are still friends off the pitch and look forward to catching up.”

Giles Morgan, HSBC Group Head of Sponsorship said, “All our sponsorships around the world look to give something back to local communities and today’s A5N Youth Rugby Festival is the first of a series under the HSBC Asian 5 Nations that we are supporting to develop the game throughout this part of the world.” Further A5N Youth Rugby Festivals will take place in April and May around the Hong Kong v Korea game (24 April) and Hong Kong v Kazakhstan game (8 May). “Asia is a cradle for the future growth of rugby and that is a future in which we are investing,” added Morgan.