Havies prevail over Soldiers in a thriller
Havies were left as mere spectators in the last quarter of the game as Army almost pulled a off a draw
In what could be termed as one of the best comebacks to witness ever, Havelock SC almost suffered a shocker against a marauding Army SC side, as their SLR Nippon Paint Club Rugby League match ended in a thrilling 43-41 finale at Havelock Park in favour of the home side yesterday.
Despite enjoying a comfortable 33-7 lead, while already claiming bonus points at halftime, Havelocks were forced to face a rude shocker, as the Soldiers returned with vengeance to score as much as six tries after the turnaround, mainly due to the brilliance of their seasoned winger Sudaraka Dikkumbura.
At the end Havelocks were forced to defend, even after scoring an additional try in the second half, which completed their tally to six tries, five conversions and a penalty. The Soldiers on the other hand, could have easily tied the game if not for a failed conversion just before the final whistle. They scored from a total of seven tries and three conversions, while earning double bonus points – for scoring four or more tries and for losing the game by a margin of three points or less.
Havelocks would have overestimated their position after the try spree in the first half, which led to make quick replacements soon after the turnaround. Skipper and hooker Azmir Fajudeen touched down twice, in the fifth and 38th minutes while three-quarter Randitha Warnapura and No.8 Christian De Lile each braced a try in the ninth and 27th minutes respectively.
But the outstanding of the five tries in the first half came from winger Jayathu Rajaratne, who brilliantly and timely intercepted a charging Army offensive to cover almost the entire length of the field to touch down in the 33rd minute. Full back Samuel Maduwantha converted four out of five attempts, missing only the first try of the day.
Equally, the Soldiers were made to sweat by the home team, but within a glance, centre Lasantha Kumara breached the Havies defence to touch down in the 21st minute. Scrumhalf Dilshan Hettiarachchi added extra points to their solitary try in the first half.
After the turnaround, which was mostly played on underfoot conditions, the decision to replace their entire bench proved costly for Havelocks. Army winger Dikkumbura, who was partly instrumental in creating an opening to their first half try, made a gallant and solo move to score in the 43rd minute. Havelocks would go on to add only a try during this phase, as centre Shehan Dias ran through the entire Army defence to brace a try in the 49th minute. Samuel Maduwantha, who put through the conversion, later would make a vital decision to take a penalty from a reasonably challenging range in the 74th minute, which later proved to be an important factor to Havelocks’ close win.
What followed after was the brilliance of Dikkumbura and the unanimity of the Army side, which paved them the way to add five more tries. Skipper Ashan Bandara touched down in the 58th minute, followed by another blinder from fullback Lahiru Ratnayake two minutes later. Kumara, who scored in the first half, would go on to flummox the Havies defence on two occasions to follow – in the 65th and 77th minutes – with Dukkumbura making the initiative.
After Hettiarachchi failed with his kicking efforts, skipper Bandara took over the duties to put over two of the tries as Army were in close range, trailing by 36-43 by the final phase of the game. Following the final restart, Dikkumubura initiated moves that put Havelocks on immense pressure. But they were forced to commit errors one after another, to which Dikkumbura responded with a timely try on the far left to have his team the opportunity of levelling the score with a conversion pending. But Bandara’s kick was not within the range as Havies found solace, with the game ending 43-41 in their favour.