Bangkok, Thailand - Top seeds Japan and Hong Kong, ranked first and second respectively in Asian sevens, are on a collision course to reach the Cup final at the HSBC Asian Sevens Series tournament in Bangkok.

Originally scheduled for November 2011, the Bangkok Sevens was postponed to this weekend after the severe flooding in Bangkok last year. The new tournament dates set-up the possibility of a mouth-watering clash between Asia's number one and two sevens teams ahead of the Cathay Pacific/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens and the inaugural Japan Sevens next month.

Japan, top seeds in Pool A, are fielding two teams in international sevens this weekend with a Japan Sevens squad also in action at the HSBC Sevens World Series tournament in Las Vegas. As a result, Japan has drawn a team of primarily professional players from the Top League for this weekend's competition in Thailand. Four of the team come from Kobe Steel, while two players come from Yamaha with others drawn from across the Top League and from Japanese Universities.

Lacking the significant sevens experience of the Japan team in Las Vegas, the Brave Blossoms in Bangkok had a lackluster start against Laos on their HSBC Asian Sevens Series debut. Laos struck first with an early try before Japan managed to right the ship, eventually coming through with a 34-10 win against Laos, the surprise package of the tournament.

Gaining familiarity with the abbreviated version of the game, and with each other, Japan went on to post a 47-nil win over UAE Shaheen, a national development side consisting of entirely Emirati players, and a 43-7 win over Pool A second seeds Philippines in its remaining pool matches. At the end of day one, Japan has posted 124 points while conceding just seven. Their results see Japan through to tomorrow's Cup quarter final against Pakistan, also on their debut in the HSBC Asian Sevens Series. Pakistan, who are fielding eight new caps and two U20 players this weekend finished fourth in Pool B after losses to Hong Kong, Malaysia and Thailand.

Hong Kong, top seeds in Pool B, posted strong wins over Pakistan, Thailand and Malaysia, notching 144 points, while conceding just seven. Hong Kong beat Pakistan 45-0, Thailand 42-7 and Malaysia 57-nil in pool play and will face Laos in their Cup quarter final. Hong Kong Rugby Football Union (HKRFU) Head of Performance and National Coach Dai Rees commented on the early results from Bangkok saying, "The scorelines represented a bit of one-way traffic today, but it wasn't about the results it was about the performance. We set some goals for each player as part of building up to the Hong Kong Sevens and they've come through. It has been a real team contribution and we made some good strides today."

Pool B runners-up Malaysia lost to the hot hands from Hong Kong but beat Pakistan 24-nil and Thailand 26-17 and will now face UAE Shaheen, the third place finisher in Pool A, in tomorrow's first Cup quarter final.

Like Pakistan, the Philippines have also opted for youth as they continue selection for their debut appearance in the Cathay Pacific/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens next month. The Philippines booked their place in the Hong Kong Sevens after finishing fourth on this year's HSBC Asian Sevens Series. The Volcanoes beat UAE Shaheen 24-17 and Laos 24-5 before dropping their final pool match to Japan 7-43 and will face the hosts Thailand, third place finishers in Pool B, in what is shaping up to be the most competitive of tomorrow's Cup quarter finals.

Laos continued their impressive Series debut in their final pool match this afternoon, pushing UAE Shaheen, (who already have one Series tournament under their belt in last year's Goa Sevens), to the brink. Laos was leading the Shaheen 14-12 up until the last seconds of the match but allowed a try at the death to miss out on taking their first scalp of the Series after a 14-17 loss.

Tomorrow's Cup quarter finals will begin at 12.20 (all times local time, Bangkok) with Malaysia v UAE Shaheen. Japan will play Pakistan at 12.40 while Hong Kong will face off against Laos at 13.00. The Philippines play Thailand at 13.20. The winners of the Cup quarter finals will proceed to the Cup semi finals starting from 15.20.