The rugby sevens tournament of the 49th National Sports Festival concluded at the CR & FC grounds recently. There were seven provincial teams in the fray for glory in the two-day tournament. After some displaying some quality rugby Western men and Southern women claimed the gold medals.
Men’s tournament
After an action-packed couple of days, the Western, Central, Sabaragamuwa and Southern sides sealed their spots in the semi-finals. There was one-way traffic in the first semifinal as the most consistent performer in the tournament history, Western Province, thrashed Southern with a 33-00 margin. In the other semi-encounter, the Central rugby powerhouse posted a dominating victory over the emerging talents of Sabaragamuwa.
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In the bronze medal game, the magnificent performance of the Southern side was too good for the Sabaragamuwa ruggerites, as they suffered a 24 – 12 defeat after battling hard to earn a podium finish.
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In the much-awaited men’s final, the two local rugby powerhouses, Western Province and Central Province, clashed for supremacy in the game. The initial minutes of the game went by without troubling the scorers, as both teams displayed equal talent and techniques. Finally, Western lads managed to break the deadlock by working the ball to score near to the left corner flag. In the second half Western scored their second through a chip and chase kick, and the kicker himself planted it under the post. Later, the Western Provincial side was reduced to six men, and with the numerical advantage, the Central lads struck back with an unconverted try. Then the Central ruggerites needed a converted try to equalise the points, but the strong Western outfit struck back with their blistering winger at the left corner to plant the final try of the game. Hence, Western Province managed to defeat the defending champions and to claim the gold medal.
Men’s Gold Medal – Western Province
Men’s Silver Medal – Central Province
Men’s Bronze Medal – Southern Province
Quarter finals
North Western 00 – 29 Southern
Uva 00 – 35 Central
Sabaragamuwa received a walk over against Eastern Province
Western received a bye
Semi finals
Western 15 – 00 Southern
Central 26 – 05 Sabaragamuwa
3rd place match
Southern 24 – 12 Sabaragamuwa
The finals
Central 05 – 17 Western
Women’s tournament
After some exhaustive play during a couple of days, Southern, Western, Central and Uva Provinces booked their places in the semifinals. In the first blockbuster encounter, the strong Western Provincial side resisted well to the challenge from the cradle of rugby, Central Province, to grab a 12 – 00 victory. In the other game, Southern Brigade hammered the Uva outfit with 33 unanswered points.
In the bronze medal game a close tussle was expected, and the game could not live up to its billing as energetic Uva women steamrolled Central ladies with a six-try win.
In the final, the energetic Southern Provincial team battled with the formidable Western side for supremacy. In the initial minute Southern had an opportunity as the centre made a break at the midway mark with a show-and-go technique, but she was brought down and was short of a few inches from the whitewash. But the supporting play sealed them the first try. Before the short whistle, Southern struck back with another unconverted try. The Southern lasses started the second half in an ideal manner with scoring their third try. The Western girls showcased some grit and scored their first after excellently working the line. But Southern women had the last laugh by scoring their fourth in the final minute and clinched the gold medal.
After a couple days filled with blistering sprints, ferocious tackles and magical passes, H. A. T. Gimhan Perera from Western Province and Nipuni R. Warusawitharana from Southern Province emerged as the best players from the men’s and women’s segments, respectively.
The ex-Sri Lankan player and past Kingswood captain and veteran coach Malith Hettiarachchi was the main organiser of the tournament.
Women’s Gold Medal – Southern Province
Women’s Silver Medal – Western Province
Women’s Bronze Medal – Uva Province
Quarter finals
North Western 05 – 24 Central
Uva 46 – 00 Sabaragamuwa
Western received a bye
Southern received a bye
Semi finals
Western 12 – 00 Central
Southern 33 – 00 Uva
3rd place match
Uva 32 – 00 Central
The finals
Southern 22 – 05 Western
