Favourites in line for the gold
Defending champions Havelocks SC and Kandy SC are in good shape and are likely to go for the main title after their impressive performances on the first day of the Dialog InterClub Rugby 7s, which kicked off at the Racecourse ground yesterday.
Havelocks, fielding two sides, claimed the highest score for the day, alongside Army while Kandy, winning both their games became the third team to score a half ton. The Havelocks ‘ A’ side thrashed minnows Petersons 66 for nothing, while their ‘B’ side suffered the same fate with a similar score line against Army ‘A’ later in the day. Kandy, comprising most of the national 7s players, played cosily in their opening game against Police ‘B’ to win it by 50-nil and ended the day with a resounding 28-nil win against the strong Navy ‘A’.
The anticipated red letter weekend in the domestic rugby calendar kicked off yesterday at 4.00pm where a stunning display of runs and nippy sidesteps wowed the spectators who flocked in to the Racecourse ground. The first match of the day was between Army ‘B’ and Petersons, where the military men equalised at the final whistle, thus starting the day with a 5-all drawn game. The second match was a battle between the forces but where Police ‘A’ dominated with a stunning try from the youngster Mohammed Afzal, who received a quick offload and drove through to place a remarkable try giving his team an extra 5 points to add to their impressive stack of 24.
The favourites, Kandy SC made a rather guest appearance to demolish and retreat back to their den with notable double digit win against Police ‘B’ by 50-nil with Lavanga Perera, Richard Dharmapala, Vishvamithra Jayasighe, Nigel Ratwatte and Fazil Marija crossing the try line. Havelocks ‘A’ secured a 66-nil win against Petersons, who didn’t manage to put a single point on the board. Although that match seemed pretty much predictable, it still produced stellar runs from the speedy Dhanushka Ranjan, who never fails to impress. The last few games piqued the interest of the crowd when Havelocks ‘B’, with the likes of youngsters Nishon Perera, made a valiant effort to take down the mighty Army ‘A’, who thrashed the young guns 66-0.
Quite a familiar rivalry took the field when Kandy took on Navy ‘A’ in the last match of the day. Kandy dominated from the very begin-
Army ‘B’ drew Petersons 5-5, Police ‘A’ beat Air Force 24-5, Navy ‘B’ beat Havelocks ‘B’ 21-7, Navy ‘A’ beat Police ‘B’ 33-5, Havelocks ‘A’ beat Petersons 66-0, CR&FC beat Air Force 24-0, Navy ‘B’ beat Army ‘A’ 24-17, Kandy beat Police ‘B’ 50-0, Havelocks ‘A’ beat Army ‘B’ 40-0, CR&FC beat Police ‘A’ 10-0, Army ‘A’ beat Havelocks ‘B’ 660, Kandy beat Navy ‘A’ 28-0. (starting from 2.50pm):
Havelocks ‘A’ vs Navy ‘A’, Navy ‘B’ vs Police ‘A’, Kandy vs Army ‘B’, CR&FC vs Havelocks ‘B’. Shield semi-finals: Petersons vs Havelocks ‘B’, Air Force vs Police ‘B’ ning; they did not waste any time with their sprinter Anuruddha Wilwara, who breezed through to give Kandy their first five points. Richard Dharmapala, with some fancy footwork scored the second try and the tone was set for a handsome win. Kandy beat Navy 28-0 not letting the Sailors to put down their anchor in the Kandy territory.
The tournament winds up today with the Cup final set for 7.30 in the evening under lights. The first game for today, at 2.50pm, will be between Havelocks ‘A’ and Navy ‘A’ followed by the three remaining Cup quarter-finals of Navy ‘B’ vs Police ‘A’, Kandy vs Army ‘B’ and CR&FC vs Havelocks ‘B’. From 4.10pm the two Shield semi-final games -- Petersons vs Havelocks ‘B’ and Air Force vs Police ‘B’ -- are set to be played.