CR challenges Kandy’s dominance at crunch game today
Last season CR nearly overcame Kandy at Longdon Place - File pic
Today, the crucial game in the SLR Nippon Paint Club Rugby League between Kandy Sports Club and Ceylonese Rugby and Foot. The kickoff will take place at 4.00p.m., with one team set to complete the first round unblemished, while the other will be compelled to taste their first defeat thus far, when the long whistle is blown 80 minutes later.
So far, both Kandy SC and CR&FC have being featured in six games, winning all, in the eight-team elite club rugby competition that has a rich tradition in Sri Lanka. Hosts Kandy SC have maintained their stronghold for many years running, perhaps experiencing a defeat or two during the past decade to retain the country’s most celebrated club rugby silverware.
CR&FC, on the other hand, have come near to beat their today’s opponents once or twice, but this season they have quite an optimistic opportunity to topple the reigning champion’s unblemished record. For years, even when the league competition was played in two rounds, Kandy have easily overcome their main nemesis from Colombo.
Last season, the Red Shirts nearly pulled out a famous win, but Kandy managed to prevail by 13-11 in a low scoring game mostly dominated by hosts CR&FC. They will surely be eyeing to end the almost decade long hoodoo of defeats at the hands of the country’s famous and most professional rugby outfit when both sides take on each other this evening.
Kandy has played six games without a loss, earning a total of 36 points, including six bonus points. They have scored 193 points and conceded 88 points against their opponents. However, some of their wins this season have come after unimpressive performances, which is unusual for a team like Kandy, coached by their former ace flyhalf Fazil Marija.
Their season began with a 22-13 win against CH&FC at Nittawela, followed by a below-par performance against Army SC, which still resulted in a 33-14 win at Panagoda. The third week’s match against Police SC at Nittawela was similar to the previous week, ending with a 33-19 score.
The game against Air Force, the fourth bottom half team they played, was unimpressive despite Kandy winning 30-13 at Ratmalana. At Nittawela on the fifth week, Havelocks provided the greatest challenge Kandy had faced, despite the game ending 27-22, before Kandy regained momentum against Navy SC last week with a resounding 48-7 win at Welisara.
CR&FC’s success story has been a total contrast to previous seasons. Dushanth Lewke’s men have been fully impressive so far and have displayed greater maturity against their opponents while executing game plans effectively.
This is evident with CR’s record of six-out-of-six wins, standing behind Kandy by a mere point, with a total of 35. They earned five bonus points in six games. In comparison with other teams, CR has only given away 58 points, the lowest by any team so far, while scoring 213 points against the six opponents, the highest scored by any team this season.
They began the season strongly with a dominant 55-8 victory against Army SC at Panagoda. Their performance slightly dipped in the 19-6 win against Police SC at Police Park the following week, which was the only game where they failed to secure bonus points. The team’s gradual improvement was evident in their 29-5 victory against Air Force SC at Longdon Place a week later.
However, they faced a tough challenge against CH&FC in the fourth week, narrowly winning 28-23 at Longdon Place and conceding a bonus point to their opponent.
The team’s determination to rectify their mistakes was evident as they went on to defeat Navy SC 57-6 at Welisara before handing Havelocks a 25-10 defeat at home last week.
Kandy, led by center Lavanga Perera, boasts a star-studded lineup, but unlike previous seasons, they are yet to reach their full potential. On the other hand, CR&FC, led by lock Suhiru Anthony, has been consistently impressive despite a shaky game.
However, an encounter between Kandy SC and CR&FC has been the spotlight game of any season for many years. With what has occurred so far, and with the previous season’s close shave, today’s outing would be eagerly followed by many as to who will end the first round with a clean sheet.
If Kandy could get their act together, they have the potential of continuing their winning streak, if not, with the way the Red Shirts are steamrolling, they could pull off a famous win after many moons.