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Would the Park Club be Kandy’s Waterloo?
The Dialog League Rugby Championship 2016 season ends next weekend. However, to all intents and purposes, the winner could emerge after today’s blockbuster between Havelocks SC and Kandy SC at the Park.
It is fitting that these two clubs, which are by common consent, the best among the participants, take each other on in a no-quarter-asked, no-quarter-given battle. Barring a loss to Kandy in the first round, the Havies have beaten all and sundry to be in the present position. Inexplicably, Kandy dropped a game to the Air Force, and then were edged out by the Navy. But those two glitches have been cancelled out by their recent stunning performances — beating Army 50-19, Navy 50-22 and the Air Force 73-13.
Toe-to-toe, how do these two teams stand? With about ten Sri Lanka players in their ranks, Kandy is ahead in terms of brilliance and experience. Their back division is a completely Sri Lankan one. Besides, in Lavanga Perera and Kanchana Ramanayake, they have got two spare national players. Danushka Ranjan and Richard Dharmapala are not mere national players. They are sensational, and can win a game on their own. En passant, have the Havies put behind them the disappointment of the first-named cross over? Has the bad blood already been spilt?
Significantly, Kandy’s pack, though having its share of good players, is not exactly bristling with brilliance. To add a little piquancy to the situation, Ganuka Dissanaike, a Havelocks player last year, now finds himself in Kandy’s front row. It seems to be one way street, as no Kandy player has “deserted”. Even if they do, they try to come back as soon as possible. Owe it the climate in Kandy? Here, it must be stated that the Nittawela Club has a reputation for treating their players well.
Going back to the first round game which Kandy won 39-30, many felt that the Havies had good reason to feel aggrieved. The scales, it appeared, were tilted against them. But it was a magnificent game of rugby between, possibly, the two best teams in the business. If the Havies pack was superb, Kandy’s pack was not that far behind. The way the latter held on to deny the Havies when the Park Club side was straining every nerve and sinew to cross the line, was just great.
The Havies back division does not have the glitter and the lustre associated with their Kandyan counterparts. Yet, Chamara Dabare, Kevin Dixon, Nishan Perera etc. are almost as good. Given an inch or two of space, they can hurt the champs. Ay! There’s the rub! The Kandy defence is water-tight.
Hooker Prasath Madusanka is currently experiencing a try-drought. Sharo Fernando, in particular, is a tough customer. The young Lasindu Karunatilleka is on his way. The Jewel in the Park Club Crown is the former Thomian Sudarshana Muthuthantri. A superb, gutsy No.8, who never knows when he’s beaten, Muthuthantri will be feared by the opponents. However, the rugged No.8 is living on borrowed time. He has already picked up his fair share of yellow cards.
The two full backs, Dulaj Perera and Thilina Wijesinghe, have done wonders for their clubs. If anything, Wijesinghe attacks better. His up and unders are well-executed and he has the speed to get there in time and pressure the defence. Perera has been forced to do some roaming. He’s played at stand off and, even at centre. Having the Club’s interests at heart, Perera is whole-hearted and one hundred per cent committed to his team’s success.
Now for the venue. Nittawela is usually the grave-yard of Kandy’s opponents. The grounds, over the years, have been liberally littered with the scalps of Colombo’s Elite Clubs. Havelock Park does not, as yet, have such an awesome reputation. Yet there’s no going-saying that playing at the Park (under lights, too) will make the Havies a little more comfortable.
Crystal-ball gazing is not my forte. But I suspect that the Kandyan Kingdom is not about to crumble.