Kandy SC go out favourites

Ranjeeva Seneviratne

Defending champions Kandy Sports Club which won the First Leg of the Dialog Professional Rugby Sevens with a smashing 55-7 win over Army in the Cup Championship final will go out favourites to clinch the Second Leg which will be worked off on March 1 and 2, 2008 at Royal Sports Complex and CR and FC grounds, Longden Place.

Kandy SC have been drawn into Group 'A' of the Segment One of the tournament along with CR and FC, CH and FC and Havelocks while Group 'B' will comprise Army, Air Force, Police and Jawatte Lions. Twenty four teams will battle it out in Segment two of the tournament which will be conducted at Royal Sports Complex on the first day.

Kandy Sports Club first won the Club Rugby Sevens Title in 1999 but surrendered the title in 2000 and 2001 to Havelocks but regained it in 2002 and have retained it for six years in a row.

Once again the lads from Kandy will field a virtual national team with former CR and Sri Lanka full back Radhika Hettiarachchi playing in the pack along with Sri Lanka ruggerites Imran Bisthamin, Dushanth Lewke and Dilip Selvam.

The formidable back division will comprise Prasad Chathuranga, Fazil Marija, skipper Pradeep Liyanage and Sanjeeva Jayasinghe along with Sri Lanka youth players Gayan Weeraratne and Kusal Rankothge.

The star studded CR and FC which gave a disappointing display by being relegated into the Plate Championship will miss the services of Sri Lanka centre Lasitha de Costa who is on the injured list. But the Red Shirts have been compensated by the return of Sri Lanka flanker Kasun de Silva after a three month ban imposed on him by the IRB. The Red Shirts forwards will comprise Ashen Karthelis, former Sri Lanka flanker Danushka Perera and Kasun de Silva and former Havelocks and Sri Lanka player Niroshan Karunanayake.

The star studded back division will consist of skipper Amjad Buksh, Ashan de Costa, Dinesh Kumara, Mohamed Sheriff and ex- Kandy SC winger Mohamed Jabbar.

The 1997 and 1998 'Sevens' champions CH and FC which too failed to impress at Bogambara may miss the services of Sri Lanka flanker Dilanka Wijesekera but will field a formidable team with national players Dinuk de S. Wijeyeratne, Achala Perera and Milinda Jayasinghe playing in the pack while the back division will comprise 'Sevens' specialist Tuan Shamrock, Matheesha de Silva, Niranjan Wickremaratne and skipper Lakala Perera.