CH captain Rohitha Rajapakse(middle) tries to fend off Police defenders
CH & FC continued their winning streak to make it 6 consecutive wins in the Dialog Rugby League 2018/19 after they defeated Police Sports Club 38-25, having trailed at half time at the Police Park.
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Fortunes have turned in favour of the CH & FC lads led by Rohitha Rajapakse as they cemented the third spot in the Dialog Rugby League table.
Sachith Silva drew first blood for Police off a penalty to which CH & FC fought back in the very next minute with a score from Hirantha Perera. (Police 3 – 7 CH)
Silva added a further three points to his team’s tally to cut the deficit to just one point. The newly-wed captain of CH, Rohitha Rajapakse made certain that his team retaliated as an overall team effort saw Rajapakse scoring the team’s second. (Police 6 – 14 CH). Samuel Maduwantha converted both.
ICYMI: CH & FC hold off Air Force in a game of two halves
The breakthrough for Police in the first half came in the 34th minute when Vageesha Weerasinghe broke away from the forwards to score and even the game out. (Police 11 – 14 CH)
Minutes before lemons, CH’s continuous infringements as Police retained possession near the try line saw referee Priyantha Gunaratne awarding a penalty try in favour of the home team as the Cops went into lemons with a slender lead.
Half time – Police SC 18 lead CH & FC 14
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The second half was a different affair in contrast to what transpired in the first with CH taking control of the game. Maduwantha, in customary fashion, kicked things off, adding 3 points to CH’s aggregate. (Police 18 – 17 CH)
Anuradha Herath, who is undoubtedly having one of the best club rugby seasons of his career, was the next to get his name on the score sheet for a try. (Police 18 – 24 CH)
Minutes later, it was Rajapakse who crossed over for his second of the day, following up Herath’s try. Maduwantha’s kicking was on point with a 100% success rate as he added the extras for both tries. (Police 18 – 31 CH)
In reply, Police’s forwards managed to cough up some points, with Danushka Edirisooriya barging through to score a converted score. (Police 25 – 31 CH)
With minutes to go for the full-time whistle, Sudam Sooriyarachchi went over for the team’s 5th as the referee called time on the game. (Police 25 – 38 CH)
CH & FC have shown promise that they are a capable outfit after their initial set back in the first round. With this challenge ticked from their bucket list, they prepare for the bigger weekends with Kandy Sports Club and Havelock Sports Club lined up for the coming weeks.
For Police, the story has been bitter after their triumph over CR & FC in the opening week. Continuous infringements seem to hurt the side and that has been the case all season.
Full time score: CH & FC 38 (5T 5C 1P) defeat Police SC 25 (3T 3C 2P)
Breakdown:
CH – Tries by Rohitha Rajapakse (2), Hirantha Perera, Anuradha Herath and Sudam Sooriyarachchi. Conversions (5) and Penalty by Samuel Maduwantha
Cautions and Dismissals: Sudarshana Muthuthanthri (Red)
Police SC – Tries by Vageesha Weerasinghe, Danushka Edirisooriya and a penalty try (1T 1C). Conversions (2) and Penalties (2) by Sachith Silva
