Soldiers overpower Sri Lions
Army Sports Club kept their Plate Segment hopes alive in the SLR-MasterCard Club Rugby League with a dominant second-half performance, defeating Sri Lions by 35-16 at the Racecourse Stadium in Colombo yesterday.
Trailing 12-16 at halftime, the Soldiers came out strong in the second half, scoring 23 unanswered points to claim a bonus-point victory. Army scored from four tries, three conversions and three penalties against the two unconverted tries and two penalties posted by Sri Lions.
The match kicked off with a bang as Army’s flanker Kasun Bandara crossed the line early in the second minute, putting Army ahead 5-0 with an unconverted try. However, the Soldiers’ discipline was tested when winger Manoj Kumara was sin-binned in the 10th minute for a high tackle. Sri Lions capitalised on the numerical advantage, with centre Dinuk Amarasinghe scoring an unconverted try in the 14th minute to level the scores at 5-all.
Sri Lions took control with their second try from lock Denuwan Silva in the 17th minute, which was also unconverted. A penalty from flyhalf Chanaka Chandimal in the 22nd minute saw Sri Lions extend their lead to 13-5. Army responded swiftly, with prop Dhanilsha Dissanayake crossing for a try, converted by fullback Isuru Medagedara, bringing the score to 12-10 in favour of the Soldiers.
Sri Lions continued to press, with another successful penalty from Chandimal pushing their lead to 13-12 in the 26th minute. Another penalty from Chandimal in the 33rd minute saw Sri Lions head into the break with a narrow 16-12 lead.
The second half saw a complete turnaround. Army’s flyhalf Gayan Salinda reduced the deficit to just one point with a penalty in the 51st minute, still trailing by 15-16. Moments later, Sri Lions were reduced to 14 men as No.8 Mohamed Nizran was sin-binned. Army seized the opportunity, with Salinda converting another penalty to give Army the lead at 18-16 in the 52nd minute.
The game was sealed in the 60th minute when prop Dissanayake broke through the Sri Lions defence to score a try. Salinda’s excellent kick from a tight angle made it 25-16. A knock-on from Sri Lions in the 77th minute gave Army a scrum on their try line, and they pounced, with flanker Bandara crossing for his second try to make it 32-16.
At the stroke of full time, centre Lahiru Ratnayake added a penalty to complete the 35-16 victory for the Soldiers, who dominated the second half with Salinda’s boot and Dissanayake’s powerful runs putting the game beyond reach. With 23 points in the second half, Army sealed a comprehensive win with a bonus point.