Kandy determined to smash CR today

by Jatila KARAWITA

RUGBY: Unbeaten Kandy SC led by Sri Lanka Sevens skipper and inside-centre Pradeep Liyanage, will be firm favourites to win against unbeaten CR and FC, when the two giants of the local inter-club rugby circuit, go head to head, in their vital Caltex `A' Division first-round showdown at Longden Place today.

Kandy SC, the title-holders for the past nine successive years, have cruised through their first six matches so far and are yet to be tested fully this-year. But, today, the men from Nittawela, will be up a against another formidable team in CR and FC, and a fascinating contest will be on show for a large crowd that is expected at CR grounds.

Kandy SC have so far struggled only against Air Force SC, who they beat (27-6), while they `steanrolled' over other teams - Navy SC (36-5), Police SC (67-16), Army SC (30-9), CH and FC (37-3) and Havelocks SC (73-10) all by sizeable scorelines. The defending champs have assembled a crack XV to serve them this-year, and it will be exciting to see how CR and FC would tackle the visitors, given the current form of the two sides.

Kandy SC Chairman of Rugby Committee and Manager, Lasantha Wijesuriya airing his views to `Sunday Observer' in the lead upto the crunch fixture, said that his team has begun to hit their straps just about at the right time. Wijesuriya, a former Sri Lanka and Kandy SC captain cum centre, noted that the first 20 minutes of the contest will be crucial for both camps, and was optimistic of his `charges' coming through a stern examination unscathed. The Kandy SC Manager further emphasised that the input of head coach Johann Taylor, also cannot be ignored, and opined that the Irishman's expertise for his men could be decisive in this encounter.

Meanwhile, CR and FC led by Sri Lanka `lock' forward Ashen Karthelis, will be under tremendous pressure to overcome the visitors and be in prime form, ahead of the make or break second-phase of the league tournament.

The `Red Shirts' who have also been unbeaten so far this season, beat Air Force SC (16-0), Police SC (54-3), Havelocks SC (57-12), Navy SC (32-10), Army SC (43-8), and CH and FC (17-10). They, however, have not won the league title for the past 11 years.

They last clinched league title way back in 1998 under scrum half Champika Nishantha and it will be interesting to see how the `Red Shirts' would fare against the reigning champs this evening.

The home-side on paper are well balanced in all facets of the game, but, as in the past, when pitted against Kandy SC, the CR has struggled to match the Kandy side be it in Colombo or Kandy.

Hence, the pressure will be on the lads from Longden Place, to make the running in this clash of the big guns, and their chances of an upset win will greatly hinge on how they manage to overcome that mental barrier of matching champs Kandy.

CR and FC Manager Rohan Chinthaka, though, brimming with a certain amount of confidence said that his men were raring to go.

Teams

CR and FC (from):

Dhanushka Botheju, Anuja Perera, Terrence Henry or Shamil Mohhamad, Ashan Karthelis (Capt), Ishan Noor, Dhanushka Perera, Kasun de Silva or Pavithra Fernando, Dushanth Lewke, Srinath Sooriyabandara or Zulki Hamid, Ashan de Costa or Dev Anand, Lasintha de Costa or Niroshan Karunanayake, Chamara Vithanage or Dinusha Chathuranga, Dinesh Kumara or Mohamed Jabbar, Nishan de Silva or Ravindra Wekadapola, Reza Mubarak.

Kandy SC (from): Suranga Swarnathileka, Anuranga Walpola, Kishore Jehan, Senaka Bandara, Sumedha Jayasinghe, Dilip Selvam, Sean Wijesinghe or Buddhika Thalagampola, Sajith Saranga, Saliya Kumara, Fazil Marija, Sameera Silva, Pradeep Liyanage (Capt), Gayan Weeratne, Sanjeewa Jayasinghe and Radhika Hettiarachchi.

Referee - Nizam Jamaldeen.

Rugby website launched

A comprehensive rugby website, www.rugbysl.com, which is aimed at serving the interests of the Sri Lankan rugby fraternity, was launched recently, providing the latest coverage of the on-going schools and club rugby season here.

The rugby website has been designed with a quadruple navigation system, aimed at addressing the interests of schools, clubs as well as national and international rugby. The promoter of the newly designed website is Web Channel Partners.

The site will also provide articles from contributors and writers dedicated to rugby football. The new rugby website also features a wide range of rugby related stories including match information, such as fixtures, results, team details, and match reports.

JK