2021–22 Hong Kong Premier League

Hong Kong Premier League
Season2021–22
Dates23 October 2021 – 12 December 2021 (season cancelled)
ChampionsNone
RelegatedNone
Matches played15
Goals scored65 (4.33 per match)
Top goalscorerStefan Pereira
(7 goals)
Biggest home winKitchee 6–0 HK U23
(30 October 2021)
Biggest away winResources Capital 0–4 Southern
(31 October 2021)
Highest scoringResources Capital 3–5 Rangers
(24 October 2021)
Longest winning run4 matches
Southern
Longest unbeaten run4 matches
Southern
Kitchee
Longest winless run4 matches
HKFC
HK U23
Longest losing run3 matches
Resources Capital
Highest attendance3,163
Kitchee 1–0 Eastern
(23 October 2021)
Lowest attendance260
HK U23 2–2 HKFC
(21 November 2021)
Total attendance12,580
Average attendance973
All statistics correct as of 12 December 2021.

The 2021–22 Hong Kong Premier League (also known as the BOC Life Hong Kong Premier League for sponsorship reasons) was an abandoned season of the Hong Kong Premier League, the top division of Hong Kong football.

Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic

On 5 January 2022, the Hong Kong government announced a tightening of social distancing measures between 7 January to 20 January in order to control the Omicron outbreak.[1] Public recreation facilities, such as football pitches, were closed and members of the public were barred from gathering in groups of more than two, making it impossible for the season to continue. The Hong Kong Football Association announced on the same day that it would also postpone any scheduled matches in the successive two week period.

After the measures were extended several times in the following weeks, the government announced on 22 February that it would extend the measures until 20 April, making it nearly impossible to complete the season before most player contracts expired on 31 May.[2] The HKFA held an emergency meeting with the clubs on 25 February, after which it was determined that the remainder of the season would be cancelled.[3]

Teams

A total of 8 teams contest the league, including six teams from the 2020–21 Hong Kong Premier League, one team promoted from the 2020–21 Hong Kong First Division and one newly established team. Pegasus and Happy Valley decided to self-relegate to amateur leagues due to lack of funds.

Club Founded Position
Last Season
Kitchee 1931 1st
Eastern 1932 2nd
Lee Man 2017 3rd
Southern 2002 5th
Rangers 1958 6th
Resources Capital 1982 7th
HKFC 1886 1st in First Division
HK U23 2021 N/A
  • Pink denotes a newly promoted/established club entering the league this year.

Stadia and locations

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Locations of the Hong Kong based teams.

Primary venues used in the Hong Kong Premier League:

Kitchee
Eastern 		Rangers Lee Man
Mong Kok Stadium Sham Shui Po Sports Ground Tseung Kwan O Sports Ground
Capacity: 6,664 Capacity: 2,194 Capacity: 3,500
HK U23
Resources Capital 		HKFC Southern
Tsing Yi Sports Ground HKFC Stadium Aberdeen Sports Ground
Capacity: 1,500 Capacity: 2,750 Capacity: 4,000

Personnel and kits

Team Chairman Head Coach Captain Kit Manufacturer Main sponsor
Eastern Lam Kin Ming Spain Roberto Losada Hong Kong Leung Chun Pong Adidas Upbest Group
Kitchee Ken Ng Hong Kong Chu Chi Kwong Hong Kong Huang Yang Nike EDPS Systems Ltd.
Lee Man Norman Lee Hong Kong Chan Hiu Ming Hong Kong Fernando Recio Adidas Lee & Man Chemical
Rangers Peter Mok Hong Kong Chiu Chung Man
Hong Kong Wong Chin Hung
Hong Kong Lai Ka Fai 		Hong Kong Lam Ka Wai Ucan Biu Chun Watch Hands & Parts Manufacturers Ltd.
Southern Matthew Wong Pakistan Zesh Rehman Japan Shu Sasaki[4] Macron Isuzu
Resources Capital Hanson Wong Spain Joan Esteva Hong Kong Cheng King Ho Future Hong Kong Football Development Charity Limited
HKFC Tony Sealy England Tony Hamilton-Bram Netherlands Freek Schipper Adidas The Executive Centre
HK U23 Eric Fok Hong Kong Cheung Kin Fung Hong Kong Wong Wai Lotto Key Connect

Managerial changes

Team Outgoing manager Manner of departure Date of vacancy Position in table Incoming manager Date of appointment
Kitchee Hong Kong Chu Chi Kwong Change of Role 2 August 2021 Pre-season South Korea Kim Dong-jin 2 August 2021
Kitchee South Korea Kim Dong-jin Change of Role 3 March 2022 2nd Hong Kong Chu Chi Kwong 3 March 2022

Foreign players

The number of foreign players is restricted to six per team, with no more than five on the pitch during matches, the fifth player must be a marquee player.

According to the decision made by Hong Kong Football Association Board of Directors on 15 July 2020, the marquee player must fulfil one of the following criteria:

i) played for a club which is in a world's top professional league of one of the top 50 associations in the FIFA ranking published by FIFA on 11 June 2020 for at least 1 season or ii) fielded by his association in an international match, which his association is one of the top 50 associations in the FIFA ranking published by FIFA on 11 June 2020.

Marquee Player
Club Player 1 Player 2 Player 3 Player 4 Player 5 Player 6 Former/Unregistered Players
Eastern Spain Marcos Gondra Brazil Mikael Spain Víctor Bertomeu Kyrgyzstan Tamirlan Kozubayev Spain Toni Dovale
Brazil Everton
Brazil Eduardo Praes
Kitchee Spain Manuel Gavilán Spain Raúl Baena Montenegro Dejan Damjanović South Korea Park Jun-heong England Charlie Scott Brazil Cleiton Turkmenistan Ruslan Mingazow
Lee Man Brazil Gil Brazil Junior Dutra Argentina Jonathan Acosta Spain José Ángel South Korea Kim Seung-yong Spain Manolo Bleda
Southern Brazil Stefan Pereira Pakistan Zesh Rehman Brazil Dudu Brazil Luciano Japan Shu Sasaki Japan Kota Kawase
Rangers Ukraine Oleksii Shliakotin Brazil Juninho Argentina Leandro Bazán South Korea Kim Min-kyu Japan Ryota Hayashi
Resources Capital Spain Albert Canal Brazil Felipe Sá Spain Carles Tena Spain Joan Esteva England Jordon Brown Spain Diego Peláez

There are no restrictions on the number of foreign players HKFC can register. However, the team must have at least nine Hong Kong players in the squad, with no less than three on the pitch during matches.

Club HK Player 1 HK Player 2 HK Player 3 HK Player 4 HK Player 5 HK Player 6 HK Player 7 HK Player 8 HK Player 9
HKFC Hong Kong Christopher Chung Hong Kong Brian Fok Hong Kong To Chun Kiu Hong Kong Oliver Laxton Hong Kong Poon Ka Ming Hong Kong Chan Wai Hin Hong Kong Hardikpreet Singh Hong Kong Lucas Yan Hong Kong Tristan Cheung
HK Player 10 HK Player 11 HK Player 12 HK Player 13 HK Player 14 HK Player 15 HK Player 16 HK Player 17 HK Player 18
Hong Kong Noa Fjelddahl Hong Kong Ghislain Bell Bell Hong Kong Liu Sui Man Hong Kong Yue Yixing Scotland Robert Scott Netherlands Freek Schipper Australia Stephen Liu England Robert Bacon England Matthew Hoare

HK U23 is not allowed to register any foreign players. Meanwhile, the number of overaged players is restricted to five for the team, with no more than three on the pitch during matches. The rest of the players must meet the registration status of U23 local players.

Club Overaged Player 1 Overaged Player 2 Overaged Player 3 Overaged Player 4 Overaged Player 5
HK U23 Hong Kong Wong Wai Hong Kong Law Hiu Chung Hong Kong Kwok Tsz Kaai Hong Kong Chan Ching Him Hong Kong Wong Ho Yin

League table

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation[a]
1 Southern 4 4 0 0 12 1 +11 12 Qualified to Championship Group
2 Kitchee 4 3 1 0 15 3 +12 10
3 Lee Man 3 2 1 0 9 2 +7 7
4 Eastern 4 2 0 2 8 4 +4 6
5 Rangers 4 2 0 2 11 15 −4 6 Qualified to Challenge Group
6 HKFC 4 0 1 3 4 11 −7 1
7 HK U23 4 0 1 3 3 16 −13 1
8 Resources Capital 3 0 0 3 3 13 −10 0
Updated to match(es) played on 12 December 2021. Source: Hong Kong Football Association
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Head-to-head goals scored; 5) Goal difference; 6) Goals scored; 7) Fair-play points; 8) Drawing lots (Play-off if the winner has to be decided).
Notes:
  1. ^ Teams are split into two groups (Championship Group and Challenge Group) after each have played 14 matches.

Results

Home \ Away KIT EAS LEE SOU RAN RES HKF U23
Kitchee — 1–0 16 Mar 23 Jan 5 Mar 6 Apr 2 Mar 6–0
Eastern 26 Feb — 2 Apr 0–1 4–2 4–0 5 Feb 19 Mar
Lee Man 2–2 15 Jan — 6 Feb 20 Mar 20 Feb 23 Apr 4–0
Southern 20 Mar 5 Mar 12 Mar — 15 Jan 23 Apr 3–0 4–1
Rangers 1–6 24 Apr 23 Jan 5 Apr — 27 Feb 10 Apr 6 Feb
Resources Capital 5 Feb 16 Apr 6 Mar 0–4 3–5 — 19 Mar 3 Apr
HKFC 16 Jan 13 Mar 0–3 25 Feb 1 May 23 Jan — 6 Mar
HK U23 20 Feb 23 Jan 27 Feb 17 Apr 2–3 16 Jan 2–2 —
Updated to match(es) played on 12 December 2021. Source: HKFA
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Positions by round

To preserve chronological evolvements, any postponed matches are not included to the round at which they were originally scheduled, but added to the full round they were played immediately afterwards. For example, if a match is scheduled for round 7, but then played between rounds 8 and 9, it will be added to the standings for round 8.

Team ╲ Round1234
Kitchee3232
Eastern6324
Lee Man4553
Southern1111
Rangers2445
Resources Capital7788
HKFC8666
HK U234877
Qualification for the Championship Group
Qualification for the Challenge Group
Updated to match(es) played on 12 Dec 2021. Source: Hong Kong Football Association website

Fixtures and results

Round 1

23 October 2021 (2021-10-23) Kitchee 1–0 Eastern Mong Kok, Kowloon
15:30 (UTC+8) Gavilán 14' Report Stadium: Mong Kok Stadium
Attendance: 3,163
Referee: Ho Wai Sing
24 October 2021 (2021-10-24) Southern 3–0 HKFC Aberdeen, Hong Kong
15:30 (UTC+8) Pereira 16', 21', 31' Report Stadium: Aberdeen Sports Ground
Attendance: 451
Referee: Tang Hing Fu
24 October 2021 (2021-10-24) Resources Capital 3–5 Rangers Tsing Yi, New Territories
18:00 (UTC+8) Lau Kwan Ching 5'
Ho Sze Chit 49'
Wong Wai Kwok 50'		 Report Lo Kwan Yee 54' (pen.)
Juninho 61'
Kim Min-kyu 63'
Bazán 69', 73'		 Stadium: Tsing Yi Sports Ground
Attendance: 424
Referee: Tam Ping Wun
5 December 2021 (2021-12-05) Lee Man 4–0 HK U23 Tseung Kwan O, New Territories
17:30 (UTC+8) Ángel 6'
Chang Hei Yin 40'
Dutra 60', 90+3'		 Report Stadium: Tseung Kwan O Sports Ground
Attendance: 382
Referee: Ho Wai Sing

Round 2

30 October 2021 (2021-10-30) Kitchee 6–0 HK U23 Mong Kok, Kowloon
15:30 (UTC+8) Baena 2'
Chan Siu Kwan 9'
Damjanović 12', 76', 86'
Orr 36'		 Report Stadium: Mong Kok Stadium
Attendance: 1,192
Referee: Law Bik Chi
31 October 2021 (2021-10-31) Resources Capital 0–4 Southern Tsing Yi, New Territories
15:30 (UTC+8) Report Canal 21' (o.g.)
Ju Yingzhi 29'
Ha 35'
Luciano 81'		 Stadium: Tsing Yi Sports Ground
Attendance: 514
Referee: Poon Chun Kit
31 October 2021 (2021-10-31) Eastern 4–2 Rangers Mong Kok, Kowloon
18:00 (UTC+8) Marcos 34'
Fung Hing Wa 40'
Everton 47'
Mikael 87'		 Report Bazán 38'
Juninho 86'		 Stadium: Mong Kok Stadium
Attendance: 925
Referee: Luk Kin Sun
12 December 2021 (2021-12-12) HKFC 0–3 Lee Man Happy Valley, Hong Kong Island
19:30 (UTC+8) Report Chang Hei Yin 6', 61'
Thomas Harrington 56' (o.g.)		 Stadium: Hong Kong Football Club Stadium
Attendance: 537
Referee: Luk Kin Sun

Round 3

6 November 2021 (2021-11-06) Southern 4–1 HK U23 Aberdeen, Hong Kong
15:00 (UTC+8) Pereira 5', 15', 61'
Sasaki 50'		 Report Wong Wai 45+1' Stadium: Aberdeen Sports Ground
Attendance: 396
Referee: Woo Chun Sing
7 November 2021 (2021-11-07) Eastern 4–0 Resources Capital Mong Kok, Kowloon
15:00 (UTC+8) Fernando 7'
Sun Ming Him 42'
Bertomeu 78', 88'		 Report Stadium: Mong Kok Stadium
Attendance: 908
Referee: Liu Kwok Man
7 November 2021 (2021-11-07) HKFC 2–3 Rangers Happy Valley, Hong Kong Island
19:30 (UTC+8) Sahaghian 74'
Lau Hok Ming 90+2' (o.g.)		 Report Bazán 3', 58', 68' Stadium: Hong Kong Football Club Stadium
Attendance: 441
Referee: Wong Wai Lun
21 November 2021 (2021-11-21) Lee Man 2–2 Kitchee Tseung Kwan O, New Territories
17:30 (UTC+8) Kim Seung-yong 45'
Bleda 79'		 Report Damjanović 6'
Baena 20'		 Stadium: Tseung Kwan O Sports Ground
Attendance: 1,504
Referee: Ho Wai Sing

Round 4

20 November 2021 (2021-11-20) Eastern 0–1 Southern Mong Kok, Kowloon
17:30 (UTC+8) Report Pereira 84' Stadium: Mong Kok Stadium
Attendance: 1,325
Referee: Lau Fong Hei
21 November 2021 (2021-11-21) HK U23 2–2 HKFC Tsing Yi, New Territories
15:00 (UTC+8) Wong Wai 22'
Yuen Sai Kit 76'		 Report Léo 40'
Schipper 45+2'		 Stadium: Tsing Yi Sports Ground
Attendance: 260
Referee: Tam Ping Wun
5 December 2021 (2021-12-05) Rangers 1–6 Kitchee Sham Shui Po, Kowloon
15:00 (UTC+8) Bazán 45+1' Report Tomas 2', 30'
Chan Siu Kwan 62'
Ichikawa 63'
Cleiton 82'
Roberto 90+4'		 Stadium: Sham Shui Po Sports Ground
Attendance: 1076
Referee: Liu Kwok Man
20 February 2022 (2022-02-20) Lee Man Cancelled Resources Capital Tseung Kwan O, New Territories
15:00 (UTC+8) Report Stadium: Tseung Kwan O Sports Ground

Season statistics

Top scorers

As of matches played 12 December 2021[5]
Rank Player Club Goals
1 Brazil Stefan Pereira Southern 7
Argentina Leandro Bazán Rangers
2 Montenegro Dejan Damjanović Kitchee 4
3 Hong Kong Chang Hei Yin Lee Man 3
4 Brazil Juninho Rangers 2
Spain Víctor Bertomeu Eastern
Hong Kong Wong Wai HK U23
Spain Raúl Baena Kitchee
Hong Kong Chan Siu Kwan Kitchee
Hong Kong Tomas Kitchee
Brazil Júnior Dutra Lee Man

Hat-tricks

Note: The results column shows the scorer's team score first. Teams in bold are home teams.
# Player Nationality For Against Result Date Ref
1 Stefan Pereira  Brazil Southern HKFC 3–0 25 October 2021 [6]
2 Dejan Damjanović  Montenegro Kitchee HK U23 6–0 30 October 2021 [7]
3 Stefan Pereira  Brazil Southern HK U23 4–1 6 November 2021 [8]
4 Leandro Bazán  Argentina Rangers HKFC 3–2 7 November 2021 [9]

Clean sheets

Rank Player Club Match(es)
1 Hong Kong Ng Wai Him Southern 3
2 Hong Kong Paulo César Kitchee 1
Hong Kong Wang Zhenpeng Kitchee
Hong Kong Yapp Hung Fai Eastern
Hong Kong Chan Ka Ho Lee Man
Hong Kong Yuen Ho Chun Lee Man

Attendances

As of matches played 12 December 2021
Pos Team Total High Low Average Change
1 Kitchee 4,355 3,163 1,192 2,178 +31.8%†
2 Rangers 1,076 1,076 1,076 1,076 +75.5%†
3 Eastern 3,158 1,325 908 1,053 −9.4%†
4 Lee Man 1,886 1,504 382 943 +10.7%†
5 HKFC 978 537 441 489 n/a1
6 Resources Capital 938 514 424 469 −18.4%†
7 Southern 847 451 396 424 −32.4%†
8 HK U23 260 260 260 260 n/a1
League total 12,580 3,163 260 973 +0.4%†

Source: HKFA
Notes:
1: Team did not play in the Premier League last season

Remarks

References

  1. ^ Ming Fai, Ngan (5 January 2022). "政府收緊防疫措施 1.16香港單車節取消". HK01. Retrieved 5 January 2022. (in Chinese)
  2. ^ Siu, Twinnie; Master, Farah (22 February 2022). "Hong Kong to enforce mass testing amid predicted surge in COVID infections". Reuters. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
  3. ^ Hong Kong Football Association. "Arrangement of 2021-2022 BOC Life Hong Kong Premier League and cup matches". Hong Kong Football Association. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
  4. ^ "夏志明、佐佐木周分別成為球會及球隊隊長 (James Ha and Shu Sasaki became club captain and team captain, respectively)". KC.Southern District Football Club Facebook page. 2020-10-22. Retrieved 2020-10-26.
  5. ^ "Hong Kong Football Association – Top Scorers". Hong Kong Football Association. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
  6. ^ "Southern 3 HKFC 0". Hong Kong Football Association. 25 October 2021.
  7. ^ "Kitchee 6 HK U23 0". Hong Kong Football Association. 30 October 2021.
  8. ^ "Southern 4 HK U23 1". Hong Kong Football Association. 6 November 2021.
  9. ^ "HKFC 2 Rangers 3". Hong Kong Football Association. 7 November 2021.
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