Back to the Topic!
A point to be remembered is that Dragonair will recruit to suit their demographic profile. As a fairly young company they probably already have a solid batch of well qualified F/Os who are on the seniority list awaiting command opportunities.
Far better to recruit low time guys who won't have a problem being in the RHS for quite some time. Older, more experienced ex captains may not settle so eaily?
Sure, they interviewed some ex AN pilots, possibly had a couple of slots for more experienced people but it is my guess that by far and away their largest requirement is for the low time candidates that can be easily groomed to the Dragonair model and who are less likely to have a problem with being F/Os for a considerable time?
Just my two cents worth.