2019–20 Hong Kong Sapling Cup

The 2019–20 Hong Kong Sapling Cup was the 5th edition of the Hong Kong Sapling Cup, and was the second time in history without name sponsorship. The Cup was contested by the 10 teams in the 2019–20 Hong Kong Premier League. The objective of the Cup was to create more potential playing opportunities for youth players. Each team were required to field a minimum of three players born on or after 1 January 1998 (U-22) and a maximum of six foreign players during every whole match, with no more than four foreign players on the pitch at the same time. ^[1]

2019–20 Hong Kong Sapling Cup

Tournament details
Country	Hong Kong China
Dates	18 September 2019 – 27 September 2020
Teams	10
Final positions
Champions	Kitchee (2nd title)
Runners-up	Southern
Tournament statistics
Matches played	41
Goals scored	160 (3.9 per match)
Top goal scorer(s)	Manuel Gavilán (7 goals)
Awards
Best player	Shinichi Chan
← 2018–19 2020–21 → All statistics correct as of 27 September 2020.

Lee Man were the defending champions, but were eliminated after failing to progress further from group stage. Kitchee became the champions for the second time after beating Southern in the final.

Calendar

Phase	Round	Draw Date	Date	Matches	Clubs
Group stage	Matchday 1	11 September 2019	18, 24 September 2019 23 October 2019 6 November 2019	40	10 → 2
	Matchday 2		22, 26–27 October 2019
	Matchday 3		26–27, 29 October 2019 11 January 2020
	Matchday 4		5–6, 14–15 December 2019
	Matchday 5		29 December 2019 4 January 2020
	Matchday 6		5 January 2020 1, 3 February 2020
	Matchday 7		2, 4, 22 February 2020
	Matchday 8		22–23 February 2020 3 March 2020
	Matchday 9		7–8 March 2020
	Matchday 10		10, 12 January 2020 14–15 March 2020
Knockout phase	Final		27 September 2020 at Tseung Kwan O Sports Ground	1	2 → 1

Group stage

Group A

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Kitchee (A)	8	6	1	1	20	6	+14	19	Advance to Final
2	Eastern	8	5	1	2	14	5	+9	16
3	Pegasus	8	4	0	4	19	20	−1	12
4	Lee Man	8	2	1	5	17	22	−5	7
5	Rangers	8	1	1	6	10	27	−17	4

Source: Hong Kong Football Association
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Goal difference; 5) Goals scored.
(A) Advance to a further round

24 September 2019 (2019-09-24)

20:00

Rangers	0–3 Awarded[N 1]	Eastern
Bazán 20'	Report	Moser 6'

Mong Kok Stadium, Mong Kok

Attendance: 511

Referee: Wong Po Sing

23 October 2019 (2019-10-23)

19:00^{[N 2]}

Kitchee	2–2	Lee Man
Wellingsson 30' Buddle 47'	Report	N'dri 11' Ngan Lok Fung 80'

Mong Kok Stadium, Mong Kok

Attendance: 627

Referee: Tang Hing Fu

---

26 October 2019 (2019-10-26)

14:30

Rangers	1–2	Pegasus
Au Yeung Yiu Chung 38' (pen.)	Report	Méndez 45+2', 58'

Siu Sai Wan Sports Ground, Siu Sai Wan

Attendance: 448

Referee: Ng Chiu Kok

27 November 2019 (2019-11-27)

20:00

Eastern	2–0	Lee Man
Diego 87' Everton 90+3'	Report

Mong Kok Stadium, Mong Kok

Attendance: 382

Referee: Luk Kin Sun

---

27 October 2019 (2019-10-27)

17:30

Eastern	2–1	Kitchee
Harima 32' Eduardo 86'	Report	Barak 79'

Tsing Yi Sports Ground, Tsing Yi

Attendance: 721

Referee: Ho Wai Sing

29 October 2019 (2019-10-29)

14:30

Lee Man	1–3	Pegasus
Jordi 43'	Report	Lazari 37' Sasaki 60' Lui Kit Ming 83'

Mong Kok Stadium, Mong Kok

Attendance: 430

Referee: Law Bik Chi

---

5 December 2019 (2019-12-05)^{[N 3]}

19:00^{[N 3]}

Pegasus	1–4	Kitchee
Lee Oi Hin 4'	Report	Bleda 1', 60' Fernando 84', 90+3'

Yuen Long Stadium, Yuen Long^{[N 3]}

Attendance: 306

Referee: Yu Kin Fung

15 December 2019 (2019-12-15)

14:30

Lee Man	6–0	Rangers
Diogo 30' N'dri 42' Shapoval 60' Gil 71' Acosta 74' Jordi 87'	Report

Sham Shui Po Sports Ground, Sham Shui Po

Attendance: 405

Referee: Tang Hing Fu

---

4 January 2020 (2020-01-04)

14:30

Rangers	0–1	Kitchee
	Report	Wellingsson 11'

Tai Po Sports Ground, Tai Po

Attendance: 407

Referee: Woo Chun Sing

4 January 2020 (2020-01-04)

17:30

Pegasus	2–1	Eastern
Sasaki 37' Chang Hei Yin 88'	Report	Eduardo 18'

Mongkok Stadium, Mongkok

Attendance: 877

Referee: Tang Hing Fu

---

11 February 2020 (2020-02-11)^{[N 5]}

13:00^{[N 5]}

Kitchee	3–0	Rangers
Cleiton 53' Buddle 56' Bleda 82'	Report

Jockey Club HKFA Football Training Centre No. 3, Tseung Kwan O^{[N 5]}

Attendance: 0^{[N 5]}

Referee: Wong Kei Hoi

18 February 2020 (2020-02-18)^{[N 5]}

13:00^{[N 5]}

Pegasus	2–3	Lee Man
Chan Siu Ki 59' Glassrock 80'	Report	N'dri 35', 45+2' Jordi 90+2'

Jockey Club HKFA Football Training Centre No. 3, Tseung Kwan O^{[N 5]}

Attendance: 0^{[N 5]}

Referee: Liu Kwok Man

---

14 February 2020 (2020-02-14)^{[N 5]}

16:00^{[N 5]}

Kitchee	1–0	Eastern
Fernando 89'	Report

Jockey Club HKFA Football Training Centre No. 2, Tseung Kwan O^{[N 5]}

Attendance: 0^{[N 5]}

Referee: Yu Kin Fung

14 February 2020 (2020-02-14)^{[N 5]}

13:00^{[N 5]}

Pegasus	9–3	Rangers
Awal 14', 51' Lee Oi Hin 60' Chan Siu Ki 71', 73' Sasaki 75' Chan Wai Ho 79', 84' Law Hiu Chung 90+1' (pen.)	Report	Pereira 20', 31' Bazán 56'

Jockey Club HKFA Football Training Centre No. 3, Tseung Kwan O^{[N 5]}

Attendance: 0^{[N 5]}

Referee: Law Bik Chi

---

11 February 2020 (2020-02-11)^{[N 5]}

16:00^{[N 5]}

Lee Man	1–3	Eastern
Jordi 58'	Report	Lucas 21', 82' Everton 50'

Jockey Club HKFA Football Training Centre No. 2, Tseung Kwan O^{[N 5]}

Attendance: 0^{[N 5]}

Referee: Tam Ping Wun

23 February 2020 (2020-02-23)^{[N 5]}

13:00^{[N 5]}

Kitchee	4–0	Pegasus
Wellingsson 61', 70' Bleda 72' Li Ngai Hoi 85'	Report

Jockey Club HKFA Football Training Centre No. 3, Tseung Kwan O^{[N 5]}

Attendance: 0^{[N 5]}

Referee: Ng Chiu Kok

---

25 February 2020 (2020-02-25)^{[N 5]}

16:00^{[N 5]}

Rangers	6–3	Lee Man
Pereira 22', 36', 45' Bazán 58', 62', 90+6'	Report	Acosta 41' Cheng Siu Kwan 57' Jordi 67'

Jockey Club HKFA Football Training Centre No. 2, Tseung Kwan O^{[N 5]}

Attendance: 0^{[N 5]}

Referee: Woo Chun Sing

28 February 2020 (2020-02-28)^{[N 5]}

13:00^{[N 5]}

Eastern	3–0	Pegasus
Chen Hao-wei 1' Chung Wai Keung 57', 67'	Report

Jockey Club HKFA Football Training Centre No. 3, Tseung Kwan O^{[N 5]}

Attendance: 0^{[N 5]}

Referee: Law Pik Chi

---

12 January 2020 (2020-01-12)^{[N 4]}

14:30^{[N 4]}

Eastern	0–0	Rangers
	Report

Mong Kok Stadium, Mong Kok^{[N 4]}

Attendance: 759

Referee: Wong Kei Hoi

10 January 2020 (2020-01-10)^{[N 4]}

20:00^{[N 3]}

Lee Man	1–4	Kitchee
Shapoval 72' (pen.)	Report	Fernando 4', 44' Wellingsson 39' Chan Shinichi 64'

Mong Kok Stadium, Mong Kok^{[N 3]}

Attendance: 783

Referee: Luk Kin Sun

Group B

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Southern (A)	8	4	3	1	8	5	+3	15	Advance to Final
2	R&F	8	4	1	3	18	12	+6	13
3	Yuen Long	8	3	3	2	19	17	+2	12
4	Happy Valley	8	2	2	4	13	17	−4	8
5	Tai Po	8	1	3	4	18	25	−7	6

Source: Hong Kong Football Association
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Goal difference; 5) Goals scored.
(A) Advance to a further round

18 September 2019 (2019-09-18)

20:00

R&F	0–1	Southern
	Report	Chan Siu Kwan 23'

Mongkok Stadium, Mongkok

Attendance: 545

Referee: Wong Kei Hoi

6 November 2019 (2019-11-06)

20:00

Happy Valley	0–3	Yuen Long
	Report	Fábio 20' Wang Ruei 59' Tang Tsz Kwan 84'

Mongkok Stadium, Mongkok

Attendance: 349

Referee: Luk Kin Sun

---

22 October 2019 (2019-10-22)

20:00

Tai Po	3–5	R&F
Sandro 11' Dudu 34' Kim Min-ki 45'	Report	Yuen Chun Sing 30' Adriel Chan 50' Emmersón 56', 80' Déblé 90+1'

Mongkok Stadium, Mongkok

Attendance: 469

Referee: Lau Fong Hei

27 October 2019 (2019-10-27)

14:30

Southern	1–0	Happy Valley
Major 13'	Report

Sham Shui Po Sports Ground, Sham Shui Po

Attendance: 583

Referee: Luk Kin Sun

---

26 October 2019 (2019-10-26)

17:30

Yuen Long	2–2	R&F
Mikael 55' Kessi 88'	Report	Sean Tse 50' Mak Fu Shing 89'

Siu Sai Wan Sports Ground, Siu Sai Wan

Attendance: 448

Referee: Tam Ping Wun

11 January 2020 (2020-01-11)^{[N 4]}

14:30^{[N 4]}

Southern	1–0	Tai Po
Major 76'	Report

Mong Kok Stadium, Mong Kok

Attendance: 578

Referee: Woo Chun Sing

---

6 December 2019 (2019-12-06)^{[N 3]}

20:00^{[N 3]}

Southern	0–0	Yuen Long
	Report

Siu Sai Wan Sports Ground, Siu Sai Wan

Attendance: 169

Referee: Tam Ping Wun

14 December 2019 (2019-12-14)

14:30

Happy Valley	4–2	Tai Po
Gavilán 35', 78' Chu Wai Kwan 37' Van Meurs 72' (o.g.)	Report	Ho Chun Ting 8' Kim Min-ki 53'

Siu Sai Wan Sports Ground, Siu Sai Wan

Attendance: 233

Referee: Woo Chun Sing

---

29 December 2019 (2019-12-29)

14:30

Yuen Long	6–3	Tai Po
Mikael 4', 35' Juninho 61' Santana 67', 75', 79'	Report	Kim Min-ki 8' Hui Ka Lok 81' Chan Man Fai 87'

Yuen Long Stadium, Yuen Long

Attendance: 401

Referee: Law Pik Chi

29 December 2019 (2019-12-29)

17:30

R&F	0–1	Happy Valley
	Report	Luciano 90+3'

Mongkok Stadium, Mongkok

Attendance: 352

Referee: Wong Wai Lun

---

5 January 2020 (2020-01-05)

14:30

Happy Valley	0–0	Southern
	Report

Hammer Hill Road Sports Ground, Diamond Hill

Attendance: 449

Referee: Wong Po Sing

5 January 2020 (2020-01-05)

17:30

R&F	5–1	Yuen Long
Giovane 26', 88' Leung Nok Hang 41' Mak Fu Shing 47' Leonço 67'	Report	Bai He 90+2' (o.g.)

Mongkok Stadium, Mongkok

Attendance: 453

Referee: Law Pik Chi

---

12 February 2020 (2020-02-12)^{[N 5]}

13:00^{[N 5]}

Tai Po	4–4	Happy Valley
Michael Luk 5', 90+2' (pen.) Ho Chun Ting 80' Nakamura 85'	Report	Gavilán 15', 28', 36' Luciano 70'

Jockey Club HKFA Football Training Centre No. 3, Tseung Kwan O^{[N 5]}

Attendance: 0^{[N 5]}

Referee: Wong Ka Ho

29 February 2020 (2020-02-29)^{[N 5]}

13:00^{[N 5]}

Southern	1–2	R&F
Dhiego 7' (pen.)	Report	Déblé 34', 72'

Jockey Club HKFA Football Training Centre No. 3, Tseung Kwan O^{[N 5]}

Attendance: 0^{[N 5]}

Referee: Ho Wai Sing

---

29 February 2020 (2020-02-29)^{[N 5]}

16:00^{[N 5]}

Tai Po	2–2	Yuen Long
Juninho 40' Lai Kak Yi 57'	Report	Mbome 71' Kim Seung-yong 88' (pen.)

Jockey Club HKFA Football Training Centre No. 2, Tseung Kwan O^{[N 5]}

Attendance: 0^{[N 5]}

Referee: Wong Po Sing

19 February 2020 (2020-02-19)^{[N 5]}

13:00^{[N 5]}

Happy Valley	1–3	R&F
Gavilán 79'	Report	Sartori 37', 55' Déblé 68'

Jockey Club HKFA Football Training Centre No. 3, Tseung Kwan O^{[N 5]}

Attendance: 0^{[N 5]}

Referee: Woo Chun Sing

---

16 February 2020 (2020-02-16)^{[N 5]}

13:00^{[N 5]}

Tai Po	2–2	Southern
Sun Ming Him 9', 63'	Report	Major 28' Rehman 86'

Jockey Club HKFA Football Training Centre No. 3, Tseung Kwan O^{[N 5]}

Attendance: 0^{[N 5]}

Referee: Poon Chun Kit

15 February 2020 (2020-02-15)^{[N 5]}

16:00^{[N 5]}

Yuen Long	4–3	Happy Valley
Tang Tsz Kwan 15' Santana 20' Mikael 56', 87'	Report	Wong Chi Hong 25', 32' Gavilán 45+1' (pen.)

Jockey Club HKFA Football Training Centre No. 2, Tseung Kwan O^{[N 5]}

Attendance: 0^{[N 5]}

Referee: Ho Wai Sing

---

12 February 2020 (2020-02-12)^{[N 5]}

16:00^{[N 5]}

Yuen Long	1–2	Southern
Lai Kak Yi 57'	Report	Major 5' Kawase 85'

Jockey Club HKFA Football Training Centre No. 2, Tseung Kwan O^{[N 5]}

Attendance: 0^{[N 5]}

Referee: Woo Chun Sing

25 February 2020 (2020-02-25)^{[N 5]}

13:00^{[N 5]}

R&F	1–2	Tai Po
Giovane 59'	Report	Kim Seung-yong 39' (pen.), 77'

Jockey Club HKFA Football Training Centre No. 3, Tseung Kwan O^{[N 5]}

Attendance: 0^{[N 5]}

Referee: Wong Wai Lun

Final

The final will take place on 27 September 2020 at Tseung Kwan O Sports Ground.^{[2] [N 4] [N 5] [N 6]}

27 September 2020 (2020-09-27)^{[N 5] [N 6]}

15:00^{[N 5] [N 6]}

Kitchee	3–1	Southern
Matt Orr 35' (pen.) Wellingsson 65' Barak 75'	Report	Beto 44'

Tseung Kwan O Sports Ground, Tseung Kwan O^{[N 6]}

Attendance: 0^{[N 6]}

Referee: Tam Ping Wun

Top scorers

Rank	Player	Club	Goals[3]
1	Manuel Gavilán	Happy Valley	7
2	Wellingsson	Kitchee	6
3	Fernando	Kitchee	5
	Mikael	Yuen Long
	Jordi Tarrés	Lee Man
	Stefan Pereira	Rangers
	Leandro Bazán	Rangers
8	Maicon Santana	Yuen Long	4
	Travis Major	Southern
	Michaël N'dri	Lee Man
	Manolo Bleda	Kitchee
	Serges Déblé	R&F

Remarks

1. ^
   Since Rangers violated Sapling Cup’s Competition Regulation Article 13 “A minimum of 3 local youth players (born in 1 January 1998 or after) must be fielded at any one time of a Sapling Cup match. A player being sent-off by referee (red card or two yellow cards) shall be deemed to be a player on the field.” The Disciplinary Committee of HKFA had resolved to declare a 0–3 victory for Eastern.
^[4]
2. ^
   The previously scheduled football match, which was originally held at 8:00pm, will be rescheduled due to the request made by both teams.
^[5]
3. ^
   The previously scheduled football matches in 2019-20 Sapling Cup – Hong Kong Pegasus vs Kitchee and Kwoon Chung Southern vs Best Union Yuen Long, which were originally held at 8pm on 6 December and 2:30pm on 7 December at Siu Sai Wan Sports Ground, will be rescheduled in order to accommodate the Hong Kong Representative Team to prepare for the EAFF E-1 Football Championship 2019 Final in Korea Republic.
^[6]
4. ^
   The previously scheduled football matches in 2019-20 Sapling Cup were rescheduled due to public events and transportation arrangement, and requests of clubs earlier.
^[7]
5. ^
   Further to the public health situation and temporary suspension of the venues of Leisure and Culture Services Department (LCSD), the matches of Sapling Cup will be rearranged. All matches held at Jockey Club HKFA Football Training Centre (FTC) will be played behind closed doors (Only authorized team players, staff, guests and media are allowed to enter).
^[8]
6. ^
   Regarding the remaining matches of BOC Life Hong Kong Premier League, Sapling Cup Final, FA Cup Final and Senior Shield Final, Hong Kong Football Association (HKFA) has received official confirmation from Home Affairs Bureau today that 6 participated teams would be allowed to resume the remaining matches under required hygiene measures.
^[9]