Tuskers enhance prospects of top four spots in Asia
Brilliant tackling and good support play enabled the Sri Lankan Tuskers to repeat their 2nd leg win over Korea when the final leg of the Asian Rugby Sevens Series was continued at the Race Course grounds yesterday.
Kevin Dixon stole the show with two fantastic tries that put the Tuskers in the lead. After that there was just no stopping the local team who had the bit between their teeth by then. Ironically, it was the Koreans who scored first after weathering some spirited tackles in the opening minutes. Noticing that the defence was thin on the left flank,the Koreans switched play to the left and scored. Converting was not the easiest thing in the world after a terrific downpour and so it was 5-0 to the losers.
Kevin Dixon now took over, and in a stop-start run he went through the middle to dump an under the posts try. Refaideen made the simple conversion for Sri Lanka to lead 7-5. The adrenalin was flowing and the Tuskers capitalised by scoring another. An interception deep in the Sri Lankan half saw the ball being sent over to Buddima Priyaratne. He carried the ball near the line and Dixon was there to collect and go over (12-5).
The local team was now playing as though they were possessed. Skipper Danush Dayan got in on the try scoring act by touching down next. Refaideen added the extras. Danush’s men had not finished, not by a long way. Refaideen touched down for the fourth try and Dixon did the honours. 24-5 with a minute or two to go and Sri Lanka made a couple of changes. There was also a yellow card. The Koreans capitalized on that to score a last minute try. The final tally was 24-10.
The Sri Lankans threw themselves at the far more powerful Koreans, not allowing them to take off and nailing them with some ankle-tackles. They were not allowed to break free.
In their second outing, the Tuskers were brought down to earth, however, in their second match of the evening, when the very slick and efficient Hong Kong side overcame the hard-tackling Sri Lankans to post a 34-0 win. Most times, the local team countered their opponents’ moves. But when a team faces fearful odds, something has to give. On the day, the Hong Kong side was just too good, and certainly justify their high ranking in Asia. Their passing and handling were very good. Ultimately, their power prevailed. 17-0 at half time, Hong Kong added a further 17 points in the second.
On the evidence of this performance, Hong Kong seemed to be the team to beat. The Sri Lankan ladies were a total contrast. Sixth in the first leg and last in the second, their woes were never ending. They were whipped 34-0 by Japan after a first half that was a disaster. They did a wee bit better in the second. Fancied China had a battle on their hands to put down a spirited Philiphines team. The losers scored first, but the Chinese overcame the early resistance to lead 14-5 when a torrential downpour forced the match to be stopped. On resumption, the Philippines had a second wind as they stormed into the lead with two tries. It was 17-14 in their favour, but the Chinese called on all their resources and steel to produce that final, decisive try to take the match 19-17.