Kanrich Finance wins Mercantile Rugby Sevens Plate Championship 2017

Kanrich Finance beat CDB 12-7 in the finals of the Mercantile Rugby Sevens which took place at Colombo’s racecourse grounds recently.  

Kanrich Finance possesses many great sportsmen and sportswomen and their dedication, perseverance and true sportsmanship has been displayed with the many wins they have secured over the years at numerous mercantile tournaments and matches. 

Rugby was introduced to Kanrich in 2015 and playing their first ever game in the same year for the mercantile tournament, they bagged the Mercantile Rugby Shield, displaying great skill, talent and potential. The present Kanrich rugby team, consisting of the same team members and some new players, remained unbeatable on the field.

In the Mercantile Rugby Sevens final encounter against CDB the following players were in action: Shehan Dias, Udesh Madusanka, Senal Deelaka, Harsha Maduranga, Thilini Weerasinghe, Pabasara Hewage, Sanjeewa Karandagoda, Asela Weerasekara, Amith Madusnka, Janith Chathuranga and Sahan Wijayasiri. Sudath Sampath, who serves as the coach for the women’s national rugby team and Under-20 national rugby team, was the Coach of Kanrich Finance. The Kanrich rugby team was captained by Thivanka Rathnayaka. 

Competing for the Mercantile Rugby Sevens Cup and Plate, the Kanrich team lost the first two matches of the tournament against MAS and Access, two teams possessing several national rugby players. However, their enthusiasm, team spirit and perseverance paid off when they emerged the winners of the semi-finals played against AMW. This match saw a display of skill and talent by the Kanrich team, thus enabling them to qualify for the finals. 

In the final encounter both teams exhibited great potential and scored an equal number of points at the end of the first and second halves. However, during extra time the Kanrich rugby team re-entered the game with much defence and attack and scored a much-needed try to emerge the Mercantile Rugby Sevens Plate Champions 2017. The player of the plate championship was Pabasara Hewage of the Kanrich rugby team.