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Friday, March 26, 2021, 10:09
Hong Kong Premier League rattled by sexism row
By Tobias Zuser
Friday, March 26, 2021, 10:09 By Tobias Zuser

Gigi Law Bik-chi (third from left) has officiated games at international level. (PHOTO COURTESY OF JFA)

Despite another weekend of action-packed football, the Hong Kong Premier League once again made headlines for all the wrong reasons. Following the match between Pegasus and Happy Valley on March 21, the defeated Valley side seemed particularly upset about the refereeing. However, instead of articulating a professional critique, Happy Valley coach Pau Ka-yiu questioned the suitability of the referee due to her gender.

In his post-match interview, an infuriated Pau told the present media: “Will you please write to the HKFA and tell them not to assign any more female referees? I’m not being sexist, but they simply can’t keep up with the speed of the game.”

The match was officiated by FIFA-accredited Gigi Law Bik-chi, who is registered as Class 1 referee with the Hong Kong Football Association and has been in charge of male top-tier competitions since 2018. She also served internationally at the Asian Games, the Women’s Championship, and the EAFF tournament.

Besides Pau’s derogatory comments, Law was also insulted by Happy Valley player Lam Hin-ting after the final whistle. Meanwhile, the referee has filed an official complaint with the Hong Kong Football Association, and the incident is currently under investigation.

Soon after the public outcry, Happy Valley released an official statement in which they apologized for the behavior of their club members and vouched to address this issue in the team. However, according to the rule book, Happy Valley could face very harsh penalties, all the way to point deductions.

For now, the incident has at least shifted some attention to the women’s game in Hong Kong, which has made great strides in the last years. The Women’s Football League also resumed last weekend, with Tai Po beating Chelsea FC Soccer School 4-1, and Citizen claiming a 2-0 win over HKFC. However, two games had to be abandoned on short notice, after the referee noticed a height difference between the two goals at the newly renovated Tsing Yi Northeast Park.

Besides another four women’s games on Saturday evening, the weekend will also feature the seventh round of the Hong Kong Premier League, with all eight clubs in action.

Rangers held another title hopeful to a goalless draw. (PHOTO COURTESY OF HKFA)

RANGERS vs EASTERN, Premier League, Hammer Hill Road Sports Ground, Mar 27, 3 pm

Rangers will host Eastern at Hammer Hill Road on Saturday afternoon and they will try to continue their recent run of major upsets, holding both Kitchee and Lee Man to goalless draws. Following these results, Rangers climbed all the way up to fifth in the league table, leaving behind Resources Capital, Happy Valley, and Southern. Hence, Eastern will be well advised not to underestimate their opponents, especially when the club struggles to produce the necessary goals at times despite having one of the strongest attacking lines at their disposal. Following the 0-0 draw with Pegasus, the Blues also had to share points in the recent derby with Kitchee, which ended 1-1, with Everton Camargo’s “Goal of the Season” contender only being a small consolation. This also means that the pressure for Eastern is slowly mounting. Albeit still one game in hand, they are trailing league leaders Kitchee by four points now, and another slip-up could soon see them dropping out of the title race altogether, with Pegasus and Lee Man lurking from behind.

HAPPY VALLEY vs SOUTHERN, Premier League, Mong Kok Stadium, Mar 27, 5:30 pm

There is a special cloud over the game of Happy Valley and Southern on Saturday evening at Mong Kok Stadium, as both teams battle a crisis of their own. The Greens, distracted by financial difficulties and now also discrimination charges, find themselves all of a sudden behind newcomers Resources Capital, which means the encounter with Southern will decide which of them will sink to the very bottom of the table. Currently, this place is still occupied by the Aberdeeners, who – like Happy Valley – were also defeated by RCFC. If the results for Southern are not improving soon, player coach Zesh Rehman may find himself under pressure as early as next week. Ever since he has taken over from Ricky Cheng last year, the district side has dropped from a club with trophy ambitions to a relegation candidate. Admittedly, it is still unlikely that relegation would be executed in this pandemic year.

Kitchee celebrated a 2-1 win over Pegasus on Wednesday night. (PHOTO COURTESY OF HKFA)

PEGASUS vs LEE MAN, Premier League, Yuen Long Stadium, Mar 28, 3 pm

The clash between Pegasus and Lee Man should be the most intriguing match of the round, featuring the only two teams besides Kitchee and Eastern that still can harbor title hopes. While Lee Man should be indeed up there with the best of the rest, the sudden ascent of the Flying Horsemen comes at least somewhat surprising. After holding Eastern to a draw, Pegasus then defeated Happy Valley before succumbing to a 0-1 defeat against Kitchee on Wednesday. Nonetheless, they are third in the table at the moment, one point ahead of Lee Man, who come in fourth. Many expected the Bees to brush aside Rangers last weekend, but despite piling up a lot of pressure on the opponents, they were unable to score, lacking the efficiency and goal threat of recently retired Michael N’dri. Whoever wins this game would position themselves as the first followers in the title race.

RESOURCES CAPITAL vs KITCHEE, Premier League, Tsing Yi Sports Ground, Mar 28, 5:30 pm

Last but not least, Resources Capital are facing top-of-the-table Kitchee on Sunday afternoon. With a total capacity of just about 680 people at Tsing Yi Sports Ground due to current COVID-19 regulations, the match will most likely be another sell-out. This also becomes a recurring experience for Kitchee now, who played the latest derby against Eastern in front of 3,101 people at Mong Kok Stadium, with the red flag being hoisted before kick off, as it is tradition in this city for every sold out game. Unsurprisingly, it was again 39-year-old striker Dejan Damjanovic that scored for Kitchee in this 1-1 draw, which also marked his fourth goal of the season.


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