West Ham United made a strong start to their HKFC Citibank Soccer Sevens campaign on Saturday, taking five points from their three games to top their group.
A young Hammers side are competing in the Hong Kong tournament and will now take part in the top-tier Cup competition on Sunday.
Mark Phillips’ team made the perfect start, defeating HKFC Captain’s Select 1-0 in their opening match, with Djair Parfitt-Williams setting up Jaanai Gordon for the only goal of the game.
A 0-0 draw with Chinese outfit Shanghai SIPG followed, leaving the Hammers with a final-game decider against local team Kitchee.
The winners were guaranteed to top the group, although at is it turned out West Ham only needed the point they gained thanks to Parfitt-Williams’ strike. The youngster also missed a penalty, but has impressed on the tournament’s opening day.
West Ham will return to action on Sunday when they take on Yau Lee League Select in the Cup Quarter-Final.
Check whufc.com on Sunday for a full report from the second day of competition.