In December 2013, after having completed a 2-year apprenticeship with Hong Kong law firm, Tanner De Witt, Varty decided to take a sabbatical from his legal career. He was one of 40 players inducted into the Hong Kong Sports Institute, with the prospect of representing Hong Kong in the Olympics, and now works full-time as a teacher at King George V School.[5]
Play
Varty nominally plays back at 15-a-side rugby, and takes wing or full-back positions for his club, DeA Tigers, as well as at Asian level.[6] Varty led the King George V School (KGV) in their 21-5 victory over Island School in the 2004 Bill Williams Schoolboy Rugby Sevens.[7] Varty made his international début for the Hong Kong at the age of 18 when he joined a match against Singapore as a substitute.[3] Having spent considerable effort to acquire a Hong Kong passport,[4] he eventually acquired one in 2013.[2]
Varty was selected in April 2013 for the Barbarians squad to play England and the British and Irish Lions, becoming the first Hong Kong rugby player to play at this level. He appeared in the match against England, where he came off the bench and replaced Timoci Nagusa to win his first Barbarian cap.[9]
As of October 2020[update], Rowan Varty is Hong Kong national team's highest all-time scorer with 120 points as well as their all-time leader in top try with 24 of them.[citation needed]