CH fight-back to hold CR to a 20-all draw
Ranjeeva SENEVIRATNE
RUGBY: CH and FC staged a magnificent fight-back in the last
10 minutes to hold CR and FC to a 20-all draw and virtually dash the Red
Shirts’ hopes of clinching the Caltex ‘A’ Division League Rugby Title in
their match played at Longden Place yesterday.
At the breather CR led 10-3. Both teams scored two goals and two
penalties each.
CR were cruising to victory and were leading 20-3 ten minutes before
the final whistle when CH came back storming to score two splendid tries
and an injury time penalty to make it 20-all at the final whistle to the
delight of their supporters.
In the 32nd minute of the second half, CH were awarded a penalty in
mid field and scrum half Tuan Shamrock took a quick short tap and slung
out a pass to substitute full back Nuwan Basnayake who sliced through
the CR defence and slipped out a pass to winger Lakala Perera who sped
over 20 metres to cross the CR goal line and ran round to score under
the posts. Matheesha de Silva added the extra points to reduce the
deficit (CR 20-10).
Four minutes later, CH fly half Sajith Bandara collected a kick by a
CR defender in mid field and burst through over 20 metres before
slipping out a pass to the omnipresent flanker Dilanka Wijesekera who
fell over under the posts for a glorious try to give Matheesha de Silva
an easy kick at goal (CR 20-17).
Then in injury time, CH were awarded a 25 metre penalty and fly half
Sajith Bandara taking the kick from a difficult angle sent the ball
sailing over the cross bar to make it 20-all at the final whistle.
The lads from Maitland Crescent played with 14 men in the last 20
minutes with hooker Achala Perera being ordered off the field by referee
Pradeep Fernando for ‘dangerous play’ having earlier sent CH No. 8
Sumedha Malewana and lock forward Manjula Ruwantilleke to the Sin Bin in
the fourth minute of the second half.
Up front, there was a terrific tussle for supremacy with CH’s
power-packed forwards Ranaweera, Adhikari, Malewana, Sanjeewa, Achala
Perera, Ruwantilleke and Wijesekera being given a torrid time by CR’s
‘eight’ with Swarnatilleke, Terrence, Wijetunge, Dharmatilleke, Senthil
Kumar and Pavithra Fernando giving of their best.
In the set scrums, CH’s Achala Perera struck a shade faster than his
vis-a-vis Senthil Kumar while the line outs were shared between the CR
duo of Dharmatilleke and Karthelis and the CH trio of Ruwantilleke,
Sanjeewa and Malewana.
CR and FC surged into the lead in the fourth minute when hooker
Senthil Kumar fired across a 25 metre penalty to make it 3-nil. Thirteen
minutes later, CH equalised when fly half Sajith Bandara made no mistake
with a 35 metre penalty.
In the 21st minute, CR won a 25 metre scrum and scrum half Zulki
Hamid made a break on the blind side and slung out a pass to winger
Dinesh Kumara who burst through to touch down by the right corner flag.
Senthil Kumar made a spectacular conversion to make it 10-3 in favour of
CR at ‘lemons’.
In the second minute after resumption, CR increased their lead when
Senthil Kumar put over a 30 metre penalty to make it 13-3.
Eighteen minutes later, CR fly half Ashan de Costa smothered a
clearance kick by his opposite number Sajith Bandara and picked up the
ball to score under the posts.
Senthil Kumar added the extra points and CR led 20-3. Then came CH’s
magnificent fight-back for the game to end in a 20-all draw.
Referee: Pradeep Fernando |
