Kandy and Navy wait for their big game at Nittawela

Monday, 26 January 2015 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

By Shamseer Jaleel The inter-club league campaign is set to heat up as Kandy go up against defending champions Navy on March 25 at Nittawela. But both teams are aware that CR&FC and Havies are two obstacles on their way to the rugby league crown this time around. Kandy is at an advantage as they are playing against Navy in Kandy after beating them at Welisara during the first round. One more advantage for the Upcountry team is that they are left with five home matches against two away games against CR&FC and Havies.

Fazil Marija on his way to scoring against Police Last week saw Sri Lanka Air Force bounce back with a convincing 68-15 win over the Hambantota Sharks courtesy of their foreign players who lost their way during the last two months. Kandy, playing after a break of almost five weeks, came out on top against the cops, beating them in a one sided affair 37-3. Kandy were forced to do nothing special apart from sticking to their basics to subdue Police. Kandy dominated proceedings through the speed of their three-quarter line. Their playmaker Chris Colette, who was injured later in the first round, made a bold comeback and at present has scored nine tries. With talisman Fazil Marija, supported by Gayan Weeraratne, Lavanga Perera, Roshan Weeraratne and one of the most knowledgeable leaders in the game, Sean Wijesinghe, Kandy are all out to claim the trophy this year. They are well supported by the three overseas players: Chris, Koto Pongi and Oscar Ouma. Next weekend they will see South African Number 8 Marcel Gorenwarld make his Kandy debut against CR&FC. Navy too continued their dominance when they thrashed Army to obtain a bonus point win. The last game of the weekend saw Havies beating CR&FC 21-19.