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| Saturday, 30 August 2003 |
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Kandy out to retain Clifford Cup Defending champions Kandy Sports Club will go all out to retain club rugby's richest prize - the Clifford Cup for the fifth successive year when they confront the formidable Colombo Hockey and Football Club in the final of the Caltex knock-out Tournament at Nittawela today. Kandy SC entered the final by beating Air Force (50-3) in the quarter-final and Havelocks (37-26) in the semi-finals while CH and FC overcame Navy (41-8) and CR and FC (37-21) in the quarter-finals and semi-finals respectively. Both teams have enjoyed excellent seasons this year having lost just one match each in the 'A' Division League. Kandy beating CH by 35-13 in the first round game at Nittawela while the lads from Mainland Crescent won the return match by 36-22 in Colombo and a terrific tussle for supremacy can be expected today. Up front a close battle for supremacy can be expected with the marauding Kandy forwards Galgamuwa Hettiarachchi, Basnayake, Selvam, Wijesinghe and Tavita Tulagaese being confronted by equally good forwards in Ranaweera, Wijeyesinghe, Bandara, Lewke, Wijesekera and 'Man Mountain' Fred Moe. In the set scrums Sameera Wijeyesinghe should get the better of his vis-a-vis Malith Silva while in the line outs the Kandy duo of Basnayake and Ranasinghe should hold sway. Kandy SC boasts of a superior back division. In Amjad Buksh and Sajith Mallikarachchi they have a superb halves combination. Centres Chamara Vithanage and six foot four inch tall Englishman Ryan O'Neill are bound to test the CH defence to the hilt with their daring runs but the biggest threat to CH and FC will be posed by the two wingers Radhika Hettiarachchi and Danushka Pushpakumara with their power-packed runs down the flanks with full back Nalaka Weerakkody joining the line to form the overlap. It is left to be seen how CH's halves combination of Milinda Jayasinghe and Dinuka Jayasinghe fare today. If they click then the lads from Maitland Crescent too could make maximum use of the 'good ball' that comes their way as they too have hard and penetrative runners in Alex Tolea, Saranga Jayakody, Sivakantha and Dinesh Kumara in addition to an attacking full back Nalin Dissanayake. Kandy SC have won the Clifford Cup four years in a row by beating CR and FC (21-18) in 1999, Army 39-15 (2000), Army 17-16 (2001) and Army 26-19 (2002) while CH last clinched the Clifford Cup in 1994 by beating CR and FC (15-10) at Nittawela in the final. KANDY SC - Jeewa Galgamuwa, Malith Silva, Sarana Hettiarachchi, Pradeep Basnayake, Neranjan Ranasinghe, Dilip Selvam, Sean Wijesinghe, Tavita Tulagaese, Amjad Buksh and Sajith Mallikarachchi (Captain), Radhika Hettiarachchi, Chamara Vithanage, Ryan O'Neill, Danushka Pushpakumara, Nalaka Weerakkody. CH AND FC - Sashika Cooray, Sameera Wijeyesinghe, Jayantha Ranaweera, Senaka Bandara, Bertie Jayasekera, Fred Moe, Dilanka Wijesekera, Dushan Lewke, Milinda Jayasinghe (Captain) and Dinuka Jayasinghe, Dinesh Kumara, Alex Talea or Jim Bolokero, Saranga Jayakody, Pradeep Sivakantha, Nalin Dissanayake. Referee: Dilroy Fernando (R.S.) |
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