Club league first round poised for interesting denouement
Saturday, 3 January 2015 03:38
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By Shamseer Jaleel
The first round of the inter-club rugby season will come to an end this week with three matches to be decided today and tomorrow.
Today Kandy and CH&FC will lock horns at Havelock Park. Kandy, which is making a major comeback in order to secure the league and knockout titles, will be in action and is expected to have an easy run of things and finish with a bonus point win.
This will take them to the top of the table. They have a former Tongan player who is residing in Japan at present. Koto Pongi who can fill in as flanker, winger or number 8, will be an asset to the Kandy outfit. They will also have overseas players Chris Colette and Oscar Ouma to add power and strength to their line-up. Their winger Anurudha Wilwara looks a doubtful starter for this game as he is yet to recover from his knee injury.
CH&FC, who are going through a lean patch, will find it tough to contain the three-quarter line of Kandy. This game will be controlled by a referee from Singapore.
A CR&FC unit which has had a tough run of things of late will host Sri Lanka Air Force at Longdon Place on 4 January.
The Red Shirts hold some talented players within their ranks, such as Murad Ramzeen and Kanchana Ramanayake. Former Sylvestrian Aruna Rankothge will referee the encounter.
The last game of the week will be between Army SC and Police SC at Police Park tomorrow. This will be a close affair with both teams matching each other.
In addition to several outstanding Fijian players, Army also boast of high-calibre players such as Randika Alwis, Sheshan Mohamed and Prince Chamara. Police will depend heavily on Apasi Nagavitia. Police are coached by Hafeel Marso, who will be all out to end the first round with a win. This game too will be handled by a referee from Singapore.
