Kandy-Navy: here comes the big one!

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Category: Caltex Club Rugby

Published on Thursday, 15 September 2011 22:33

Written by Sankha DLT

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With the rugby world cup hot on its heels Sri Lanka will host the interclub Clifford cup knock out final this Saturday at the Royal College Sports Complex. The number one and two sides of the current club circuit, Kandy Sports club and Navy Sports club will vie for a place at being number one in the knock out arena.

Match facts

Date: 17^th September Saturday

Venue: Royal College sports Complex

Time: 04:30pm

Big picture

The much awaited final is set to be a cracker as the number 1 and 2 battle it out for an all new trophy presented by the tournament sponsor Caltex. Kandy has thus far won 16 finals in 17 played during the period from 1992 to 2010. Last year Kandy was able to take Navy to the sword beating them 26-11, after having led the first half 16-6. There have been a lot of positional changes over the one year period with some moving to other clubs due to various reasons and some others unable to compete due to bans imposed by the rugby body.

The first and second place teams in the league have faced each other twice already in the league tournament and have a win each to their name with Kandy winning the first game 15-12 in Kandy, while the Navy team had a superb home outing when they triumphed 29-25 in Welisara.

This is a final by all means, with both teams winning a match apiece leading up to Saturday.

Controversies

Kandy SC has voiced their dislike with regard to the venue running up to the final of the Clifford cup tournament. The hill capital club have stated that they would prefer to have the finals played at the CR&FC grounds but the SLRFU has not acknowledged their request and have strictly stated that they will host the finals at the Royal College sports complex this Saturday.

The defending champs also requested the local rugby body for a foreign referee to officiate the finals on Saturday but the short notice might not see it taking place. Last year’s finals however was officiated by foreign referee Scott Hubert.

Line up’s

Kandy Sports club

The Kandyans have been thrown in to a lot of steep battles this year with Havelock’s and Navy being in the forefront of their fights. Their three-quarter line is the best on paper up to date and will be their main point of attack. Though the Kandyans boast of a talented backline, the inclusion of a competent forward pack will give them an edge over their opponents this Saturday.

Senaka Bandara the experienced Lankan second row forward will have a lot on his shoulders during the clash against Navy. He has a lot of players who he can call up to make an impact against the Sailors with Marija being the main one amongst them. Marija who has only gotten better over the years has taken the Kandy ship to great heights and now has developed a great combo with scrum half Roshan Weeraratne.

Pradeep Liyanage and Gayan Weeraratne have combined to bring in a lot of flair in the mid section while Sajith Saranga still stands tall at number 8. The back three without experienced Saliya Kumara have done a pretty reasonable job with Mohomed Jabbar, Dinesh Kumara and Tharindu Chanaka filling up the 11, 14 and 15 positions respectively.

Navy Sports club

Navy SC with a rapid growth to the helms of rugby have relied a lot on their three-quarters as well with fly half Dev Anand taking center stage with his kicks. The bulky but talented footballer who has pinpoint accuracy with the boot also has some hard runners in the form of Dinusha Chathuranga and Kosala Thisara playing in mid field.  Chula Susantha, Eranda Weerakkody and Samantha Lakshan have impressed over the years and will look to bring their ‘A’ game.

The third row has to be their main strength with former CR forward Bilal Hassen taking charge in the number eight position. The number 6 and 7 positions also look very solid for the Sailors with skipper Yoshitha Rajapakse and Danushka Perera occupying these positions. Kalana Amarasinghe has been the favoured jumper for the Navy team and will give some stiff opposition to experienced Senaka Bandara.

Their front row has been a worry for coach Ronny Ibrahim during the league tournament with the front three being shoved even during their 'put-in' to the scrum. Sathya Ranatunga a national cap will have to hold the pressure asserted by their Kandy counterparts and will have to go in low and hard.

Close battles

Saranga vs. Hassen – Both Sajith Saranga and Bilal Hassen represented the Sri Lanka youth team just three years back and will have a lot of know how about each other. The two 22 year old number eights have been a huge component in their teams and the battle upfront will have a huge barring on the outcome of the game.

Dev vs. Fazil – A family battle! Dev Anand and Fazil Marija who are from the same family will battle it out in the number 10 slot come this Saturday. Marija the running fly half out of the two will look to take the challenge to his younger cousin brother while his opposite number Dev will have a lot to do with the kicking in the final.

Ranatunga vs. Kishore: two of the biggest blokes on field, Kishore Jehan and Sathya Ranatunga have been rock solid in the scrums for both teams in the league and will look to continue their dominance in the set pieces.

With this being the final showpiece in the interclub rugby arena, both teams will look to end their campaign on a high with Kandy SC looking to retain their status as the number one team in the Island while Navy will look for their first taste of the Clifford cup knock out tournament.

Click here for live action of the Clifford cup finals

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