The Hong Kong Dragons hosted their enormously successful and inaugural HAFL & HAFLW Grand Finals on the weekend, as both the HK Darkside & the Kowloon Cobras lifted the premiership cup for the very first time.
The whole club celebration had a genuine family feel about it as the Grand Final day proceedings kicked off with the 2018-2019 South China Australian Football League (SCAFL) premiers the Lantau Lizards Football Club taking on an Auskick Hong Kong father/son combination.
The HAFLW has been a monumental development in the HK Dragons history books, as it’s given the power club an opportunity to launch AFLW domestic football in a structured league for the first time! The HK Darkside (Red) were able to maintain their unbeaten rein over the HK Dragons (Blue) and did so in style, running out winners in the inaugural Grand Final 6.6 (42) to 3.7 (25). After two runner-up podium finishes at the 2018 & 2019 AFLW Asian Championships, the Lady Dragons look to be a force for many years to come once normality returns.
The much anticipated and inaugural HAFL lived up to all the pre-GF hype and was an action packed encounter between the pre-game favourites, the HK Typhoons and the Kowloon Cobras Football Club. After going into the half-time break with a 20-point lead, it looked a forgone conclusion that the HK Typhoons would cruise to Grand Final glory, however that certainly wasn’t the case as the Cobras clawed back the deficit in the premiership quarter and reduced the margin to within a goal. In a tightly tussled final quarter, the ‘Phoons could only muster an inaccurate 8 behinds and essentially kicked themselves out of the game as the Cobras made the most of their opportunities in front of the big sticks kicking 3 majors and in doing so were able to hoist their first ever premiership cup in SCAFL/HAFL history as they got up in a nail biter by 4 points. Final Scores Kowloon Cobras 8.16 (64) to HK Typhoons 7.18 (60).
The inaugural HAFL & HAFLW seasons have revitalized enthusiasm amongst the HK Dragons faithful and has been the silver lining to come out of the ever changing world we currently live in. The HK Dragons HAFL & HAFLW has been one of the successful stories and models of establishing a domestic league for other countries to learn from within the region.
