HONG KONG—Former English Premier League and International goal keeper David James (Portsmouth, Liverpool and England) was in town last week to play in the Hong Kong Football Club Citi Soccer Sevens. Now in its 19th year the tournament is carving out a niche for itself as a great place to see former footballing legends as well as a host of future stars, as an assortment International teams’ Academy players and former professionals, converge on Hong Kong to compete for the competition’s Cup, Shield and Plate trophies.
James and fellow former EPL professionals (including Emile Heskey Mikael Silvestre and Colin Hendry) were in Hong Kong as part of the PlayonPROS team, competing in the tournament’s Masters Competition. The team was set up recently to help tackle the issues faced by professional athletes after they retire, and selected the HKFC Citi Soccer Sevens as the venue for their competitive footballing debut. There were a total of ten teams competing in the Masters tournament included the Hong Kong Football Club Chairman’s Select, Yau Yee League Masters, Wallsend Boys Club and the defending 2016 champions Citi All Stars. The PlayonPROS put in a good showing in their first competitive outing beating Discovery Bay 3-2 in the Plate Final. Top honours though went to defending champions Citi All Stars who beat Wallsend Boys Club 3-2 in the Cup Final.
