[May 7th 2010] In parallel with the excitement of the 2010 HSBC Asian 5 Nations Division I Tournament more than 150 young rugby players got the chance to hone their skills at the HSBC A5N Youth Rugby Festival in Singapore, thanks to the generous support of A5N title sponsors HSBC and tournament organizers ARFU.

The Singapore clinic continued the innovative youth coaching format – begun in Hong Kong earlier in the year – that is fast becoming a hallmark of the Asian 5 Nations series.  The Youth Rugby clinics complement the glamour of the top-level contests with a precious investment of time and experience by today’s rugby ambassadors in the players of tomorrow.

In keeping with HSBC’s support for rugby across different cultures and communities, the workshops were filled with the spirit of the game, as young players and newcomers benefited from the deep experience of former Scotland head coach Frank Hadden and his team of HSBC Penguins and HSBC A5N coaches together with the captains of the participating test nations: Singapore, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Chinese Taipei.

 On the game days, around 100 young players put their rugby skills on display in a series of youth matches, further enabling grassroots rugby to strengthen the game in local communities across Asia.

 Alongside the youth coaching were a coach-the-coaches clinic with Frank Hadden and an elite training course for ARFU A-panel referees.  Saturday’s finals were kicked off with the first ever women’s test match held as part of the HSBC Asian 5 Nations series with Malaysia pipping Singapore 10-5 in a match that had to be aborted due to lighting storms early in the second half.