Fuzhou Tiger rugby team and Xiamen Typhoon rugby team have a fierce rugby match at Xiamen's Jimei Institute of Physical Education on November 3.[Photo by Yang Jie/China Daily]

There was a fierce rugby match at Xiamen's Jimei Institute of Physical Education, Sunday afternoon, between the Fuzhou Tiger team and Xiamen Typhoon, in spite of the heavy rainfall.

This was Fuzhou's second match with the Xiamen team, following a match that took place this past March. Even though the Fuzhou lost again, it is worth noting that the team got scores this time, compared with the previous go-round.

The secretary-general of the Tigers, Wu lusheng, told China Daily that the Typhoons are mainly from overseas and that most of them started playing rugby at very early age, so they've got plenty of experience. Meanwhile, the Tigers are still new at the game and need some more practice to make them stronger and more competitive.

Zhu Yuanlong, another team member said, "The Tiger team now has more than 30 members, and the coach, Eichi is Japanese and has played rugby for many years in several foreign countries. The team consists of foreigners working in Fuzhou, Chinese students returning from abroad, or ex-servicemen, and, of course we develop our own players. It's the shared enthusiasm for the sport brings us together.”

According to Xiamen University rugby coach, the University has the first rugby team of all Fujian universities and began taking shape quite quickly, within only about a year's time.

Fuzhou Tiger rugby team and Xiamen Typhoon rugby team have a fierce rugby match at Xiamen's Jimei Institute of Physical Education on November 3.[Photo by Yang Jie/China Daily]