Unbeaten Kandy and CR to do battle at Nittawela

Richard Dharmapala will need to get Kandy through this year with a title

By Shamseer Jaleel

Two unbeaten teams in the 2018/2019 Inter-Club League, CR & FC and Kandy, will lock horns in a vital clash at the Nittawela Rugby Stadium on 2 December.

Kandy, although unimpressive in their first two encounters against Air Force and Police, got near peak form when they met Army last weekend at Ratmalana. Kandy had complete control in the encounter, winning by a bonus point. 

As usual, their strength lies with their speedy three-quarter line. Ranjan, Jamaldeen, Dharmapala and Lavanga were all at their best. They lost out on Nigel Ratwatte in the Police game which allowed Arshard Jamaldeen to play a full game. The fullback of the side, Thilina Wijesinghe, has been the pick of the Kandy outfit this season. He has found many gaping holes for the upcountry outfit plus his territorial advantage gave Kandy many attacking opportunities which grounded their opponents.

In forwards play, Kandy need to be more mobile. They were almost humbled by Police two weeks ago in front of their home supporters at Nittawela. Yakoob Ali, Jason Dissanayake, Sayuru Anthony and Heshan Kalhara, all experienced players, need to have good coordination in their three-quarter line.

On the other hand, CR, led by Kavindu Perera, are lightning fast. With his speed, the former Vidyartha and national Sevens sensation is tough to stop. He was well supported by Tharinda Ratwatte, who had two outstanding games against Navy and CH & FC, with the Longdon Place club walking away with wins in both games. With players such as Omalka Gunaratne, Sambandaperuma and Reza Rafaideen, CR is a tough outfit to humble. Going on form it will be a close encounter between the two rival teams but Kandy hold the edge considering they are playing at their packed home ground at Nittawela. In the last two plus decades they have been humbled only twice, both times by Navy, with all the other games going Kandy’s way. 

Havies hold the edge

Havelocks, under Niroshan Fernando, will be playing their first away game when they encounter Police at Police Park on 30 November. Havies, who are unbeaten in the league, so far beating Army, CH & FC and Navy, look solid to keep their unbeaten tag for yet another week. Sharo Fernando, Niroshan Fernando, Reza Mubarak and Mithun Haougoda all played their part in putting the park club on top. Even after losing many talented players, Head Coach Sanath Martis has done a marvellous job so far.

Meanwhile, the cops will need to focus throughout the entire 80 minutes of the match without giving up in the last quarter. They produced some champagne rugby against Navy and Kandy but lost steam against CR & FC in the last quarter. They will not have the overseas player advantage as a court case is still on, preventing foreign players from appearing for the bottom four clubs. 

CH out for second win

CH & FC under Yoshitha Rajapakse will be out for their second win when they confront Army in a must-win game in order to keep their title hopes alive.

CH, after narrowly losing out to CR and Havies, won their last encounter against Air Force. They are a talented outfit with players such as Muthuthanthri, Keegale, Heenakankanmge, skipper Yoshitha and Sajith Saranga all in a positive mood after their win against the Air Force outfit.

The soldiers will depend on Rizvi, Asoka Jayalal and Gayan Salinda to take them through. Other than in the Air Force win, Army did not perform their best in their three games. Both teams are well matched but on experience CH & FC under Ronny Ibrahim’s guidance should go through but only just. 

Navy favourites

Air Force, who are yet to register a win after three encounters, will face an uphill battle in order to keep Navy at bay. Air Force were beaten by Kandy, Army and CH & FC in their three outings. Iddamalgoda, Seelaratne and Charith Seneviratne are their main weapons. The sailors on the other hand are still to produce their best rugby. Led by kicking sensation Thilina Weerasinghe, they have Pushpakumara, Dinusha Chathuranga, Buddima Piyaratne and Musheen Faleel in their starting line-up. The sailors hold the edge in this outing and are favoured to claim their second win of this season after a previous nail-biting victory over Police.