Henry Cheng Siu Wai (, born 27 December 1981) is a former Hong Kongese professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who played as a striker.

Early life

Cheng Siu Wai is born to a Hong Kongese father and a Thai mother. They separated when he was a young boy, his mother returned to

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

and he grew up in a single parent family in a housing estate in

Sheung Shui Sheung Shui (, literally "Above-water") is an area in the New Territories, Hong Kong. Sheung Shui Town, a part of this area, is part of the Fanling–Sheung Shui New Town in the North District of Hong Kong. Fanling Town is to its southea ...

. There was a 5-a-side football field at the estate and he started playing there since primary school. He finished his studies after reaching Form 3. He was working as an electrician and playing amateur football in

Yuen Long Yuen Long is a town in the western New Territories, Hong Kong. To its west lie Hung Shui Kiu (), Tin Shui Wai, Lau Fau Shan and Ha Tsuen, to the south Shap Pat Heung and Tai Tong, to the east Au Tau and Kam Tin (), and to the north Nam Sang W ...

, when he was asked if he wanted to play football as a professional. He is popularly known as

Henry Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) * Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...

because of his uncanny physical resemblance to the French striker.

Club career

Double Flower

Cheng Siu Wai made his

Hong Kong First Division League The Hong Kong First Division League () is the second-highest division in the Hong Kong football league system. Established in 1908, it is the third oldest in Asia. The league was formerly the highest division in Hong Kong until the formation o ...

debut in 2002 with Double Flower. He scored his first goal on the same day with a volley at Mong Kok Stadium.

Rangers

Cheng Siu Wai was released by

Buler Rangers Hong Kong Rangers Football Club (), often abbreviated to Rangers, currently known as Biu Chun Rangers due to sponsorship reasons, is a Hong Kong football club which currently competes in the Hong Kong Premier League. They have won the Hong Kong ...

one month before the end of the 2004–05 Hong Kong First Division League season because he failed to reach the club's expectations.

South China AA

When Cheng Siu Wai first joined South China, his monthly salary was only HK$4,000 (approx US$500). By the time he left in 2008, it went up to HK$11,000 (approx US$1,375). Because of his difficult financial situation, he lived in the club's quarters and only returned home once a week. He was a member of the squad that got South China relegated at the end of the 2005–06 Hong Kong First Division League season. But the club was retained in the first division upon

Steven Lo Steven Lo Kit-Sing (, born 8 June 1959) is a Hong Kong and Macanese businessman, investor, filmmaker, and philanthropist. Born in Hong Kong, Steven Lo had his upbringing and education in Macau. After graduation from high school, he worked in ...

's appointment as the club's convener. On 11 March 2008, Cheng Siu-wai scored two goals for South China against

Home United FC Lion City Sailors Football Club, commonly referred to as The Sailors or LCS, is a Singaporean professional football club competing in the Singapore Premier League, the top tier of the Singapore football league system. Since the 2021 season, the ...

of Singapore, at Mongkok Stadium in an

AFC Cup The AFC Cup is an annual continental club football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Under its current rules, the competition is played primarily between clubs from nations that did not receive direct qualifying s ...

group game. However, South China lost in the end by 2–3. Cheng Siu Wai was made captain of the South China invitation XI to face

Manchester City FC Manchester City Football Club are an English football club based in Manchester that competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English football. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's (West Gorton), they became Ardwick Association Footba ...

in the Premier League/Serie A Football Day.

TSW Pegasus

Cheng Siu Wai moved to

TSW Pegasus FC Hong Kong Pegasus FC () are a Hong Kong football club based in Yuen Long. Founded in 2008, the club currently competes in the Hong Kong Third Division. History TSW Pegasus was established in June 2008, and they had their first season in 2008� ...

when the club was formed at the end of 2008. He was named the club's captain. Cheng claimed he moved to get more playing time. Cheng scored against

South China AA South China Athletic Association (known simply as South China, SCAA, ) is a Hong Kong professional football club that competes in the Hong Kong First Division, the second-tier league in Hong Kong football league system. The club is histori ...

in the 2008–09 Hong Kong Senior Challenge Shield Cheng claimed beating South China was one of the teams' targets and he was very happy with the goal and victory. The club went on to win the tournament by beating

Sun Hei SC Sun Hei Sports Club () is a Hong Kong football club which currently competes in the Hong Kong Third Division. The club has a long history in playing in the top flight, but decided to self-relegate in the 2013–14 season after declining to parti ...

3:0 in the final. But after just one season at the club, he was loaned to

Kitchee Kitchee Sports Club (; ; ) is a Hong Kong professional football club based in Kowloon. It was founded in 1931 and currently competes in the Hong Kong Premier League. The club has won championships in Hong Kong 11 times, including 6 Hong Kong ...

Kitchee

On 9 May 2010, Cheng Siu Wai scored two goals and helped Kitchee beat Happy Valley 6:0. On 31 May 2010, Cheng Siu-wai scored the equaliser for Kitchee against Beijing Guoan Talents in the

2010 Singapore Cup The 2010 Singapore Cup (known as the RHB Singapore Cup for sponsorship reasons) started on 24 May 2010. It was the 13th staging of the annual Singapore Cup soccer tournament. 12 S.League clubs and 4 invited foreign teams played in this edition. ...

, forcing extra time which Kitchee won 2:1 in the end. In the league, on 21 February 2011, Cheng Siu Wai scored in the 87th minute to help Kitchee beat

Tai Po FC Tai Po Football Club (), also known as Wofoo Tai Po due to sponsorship reasons, is a Hong Kong professional football club which currently competes in the Hong Kong Premier League. In the 2018–19 season, Tai Po successfully won their first t ...

2:1 to stay ahead of South China. Kitchee eventually beat South China to win the 2010–11 league title.

Sun Hei

Cheng Siu Wai signed to play for

on 27 June 2011. Cheng said he has won numerous trophies in the past but never any individual awards. In the new season he hopes to win an individual award. He scored his first goal for Sun Hei on 17 September 2011 in a 2:1 win away to

Tuen Mun SA Tuen Mun Sports Association (; also known as Tuen Mun) is a Hong Kong football club which currently competes in the Hong Kong Second Division. It is run by the Tuen Mun District Council. The club plays its home matches at Siu Lun Sports Ground ...

. On 16 October 2011, Cheng Siu Wai became the first player to score a goal at the newly renovated

Mong Kok Stadium Mong Kok Stadium () is a stadium in Mong Kok, Kowloon, Hong Kong. With a capacity of 6,664 (comprising four stands of 1,666), it hosts Hong Kong Premier League football matches, with Southern and Kitchee currently sharing the venue. The stadiu ...

, in a 5–0 win against

Sham Shui Po SA Sham Shui Po Sports Association () are a Hong Kong professional football club based in Sham Shui Po District which currently competes in the Hong Kong Premier League. History In the 2011–12 season, the club was promoted to the top-tier Hong Ko ...

. On 22 October, Cheng Siu Wai scored the winning goal against Biu Chun Rangers, just 1 minute from the end, to secure a 1–0 win. On 27 November, Cheng Siu Wai scored a goal against

in the 2011–12 Hong Kong Senior Challenge Shield quarter-final second leg match and was named Player of the month for October.

Kitchee SC

general manager

Ken Ng Ken Ng (; ; born 1 March 1951) is the president of Hong Kong Premier League club Kitchee. He is a former referee and a former member of the Hong Kong First Division board. Ng, along with Steven Lo, Chan Man Chun, and Chan Tin Yau, formed the p ...

announced that Cheng Siu Wai will return to

after spending a season in Sunray Cave JC Sun Hei.

Eastern

Cheng joined Eastern in 2013 and made 26 appearances for the club. He retired from football in 2017 with his final match coming in Eastern's 3-0 win over Southern in the 2016-17 season playoff.

International career

He has been capped 11 times at international level for Hong Kong, and he has scored 7 goals. One of them a diving header against

Bahrain Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...

in the

2011 AFC Asian Cup The 2011 AFC Asian Cup was the 15th edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The finals were held in Qatar from 7 to 29 January 2011. It was the fifte ...

qualifier. It was the only goal Hong Kong managed in six qualification matches. In December 2011, Cheng Siu Wai was recalled to the Hong Kong team after consistent good performances for

, to play in the 2012 Guangdong-Hong Kong Cup. He scored with a header from a

Jack Sealy Jonathan Jack Sealy (born 4 May 1987), commonly known as Jack Sealy (), is an English-born Hong Kong professional footballer who currently plays for Hong Kong Premier League club HKFC. Early years Jack Sealy is the son of former Queen's Park ...

pass in the first leg and the match ended 2–2.

Personal life

Cheng Siu Wai grew up in a single parent family in

. He is the eldest son. He has a longtime girlfriend but does not plan to get married until he reaches 35 years old. Despite his resemblance to

Thierry Henry Thierry Daniel Henry (born 17 August 1977) is a French professional football coach, pundit, and former player who is an assistant coach for the Belgium national team. Considered one of the best strikers of all time and one of the best players ...

, his favourite player is

David Beckham David Robert Joseph Beckham (; born 2 May 1975) is an English former professional footballer, the current president and co-owner of Inter Miami CF and co-owner of Salford City. Known for his range of passing, crossing ability and bending fr ...

, after meeting him in an exhibition match between

and

Los Angeles Galaxy LA Galaxy, also known as the Los Angeles Galaxy, are an American professional soccer club based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Galaxy competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), as a member of the Western Conference. The club began play ...

in 2008.要事業家庭皆得意亨利愛碧咸
''Apple Daily''. 29 December 2011.

Honours

South China *

: 2006–07， 2007–08， 2008–09 *

Hong Kong Senior Challenge Shield The Hong Kong Senior Challenge Shield (), known commonly as the Senior Shield, is the football knockout inter-club competition held in Hong Kong and the fourth oldest football tournament in Asia. Traditionally, only the teams in the Hong Kong Pr ...

: 2006–07 *

Hong Kong FA Cup Hong Kong FA Cup () is a knockout cup competition in Hong Kong football, run by and named after The Hong Kong Football Association. The first edition of the competition was held in 1975, before then the cup was known as the Golden Jubilee Cup. Th ...

: 2006–07 *

Hong Kong League Cup Hong Kong Football Association League Cup () is an annual football competition contested by clubs in the top-tier Hong Kong domestic football league (currently Hong Kong Premier League). The cup was relaunched for the 2014–15 season after being ...

: 2007–08 TSW Pegasus *

: 2008–09 Kitchee *

: 2009–10， 2010–11 *

: 2012–13 *

Hong Kong Community Cup Hong Kong Community Cup (), formerly known as Hong Kong Community Shield (), is the football super cup competition in Hong Kong played between the winners of the Hong Kong Premier League (previously the Hong Kong First Division League) and the ...

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

* Hong Kong Season Play-offs: 2012–13 *

HKFC Soccer Sevens The HKFC Soccer Sevens, formerly known as the International Soccer Sevens, is an annual invitational seven-a-side football tournament which is organised and hosted by Hong Kong Football Club. Held since 1999, many young professional players have m ...

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

Sun Cave JC Sun Hei *

: 2011–12 Eastern Long Lions *

Hong Kong Premier League The Hong Kong Premier League () is a Hong Kong professional football league organised by the Hong Kong Football Association. It is currently sponsored by BOC Life and officially known as BOC Life Hong Kong Premier League (). The inaugural seaso ...

: 2015–16 *

: 2013–14 *

: 2014–15， 2015–16 *

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

Hong Kong * Hong Kong-Guangdong Cup: 2009，2012，2013 *

Hong Kong–Macau Interport Hong Kong Macau Interport is an annual association football match between Hong Kong and Macau. The matches are hosted by the two alternatively each year. Results Winners Table See also * Hong Kong national football team results – unofficial ...

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

Career statistics

International career

:''Updated 7 December 2012.''

References

External links

Cheng Siu Wai's Yahoo blog

Cheng Siu Wai
at HKFA
Player Information on TSW Pegasus website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cheng, Siu Wai 1981 births Living people Hong Kong footballers Association football forwards Hong Kong First Division League players South China AA players Hong Kong Rangers FC players Double Flower FA players Hong Kong Pegasus FC players Kitchee SC players Sun Hei SC players Eastern Sports Club footballers Hong Kong international footballers