Navy out to sink all before them

In the '80s and early '90s, it was the Police Sports Club who were the undisputed kings of Sri Lanka rugby. They won almost each and every title that were on offer in domestic rugby, winning the premier league title (the John Player League) for many years.

Police SC then had total dominance in local rugby arena and hardly anyone ever thought that there could be another club to challenge the dominance of the law enforcing team. But by mid '90s, the situation changed with the introduction of foreign players to domestic inter-club premier league.

It was the then Rugby Chairman of CH & FC Kishin Butani, who was subsequently honoured with the Presidency of the club, who was instrumental in revolutionising local rugby, signing Fijian Apisi Nagata to play for the Maitland Crescent club. That was the starting point of another chapter of local rugby as several other clubs, including CR & FC, Havelocks and Kandy SC 'imported' non-nationals to figure in domestic rugby.

Too hard for Police SC

But the services teams and Police SC could not do so as technically, they could not employ foreigners to do duty for them. The challenge thrown by club teams, led by CH, with 'foreign power' was too hard for Police SC, which had to depend entirely on home grown talent. Hence, the dominance of Police SC gradually faded away as foreigners became the cynosure of all eyes.

Years later, there came a move to restrict the number of foreigners playing for club teams and subsequently, the Sri Lanka Rugby Football Union (SLRFU) took a firm decision to keep foreigners entirely out of domestic rugby. Whether the standard of local players improved when playing alongside contracted foreign players is debatable and I do not intend to discus it now.

With Sri Lanka's domestic rugby losing its 'foreign flavour', club teams made every effort to maintain their standard. By then, Police SC and the services teams had lost their grip in the local arena.

It was then that Kandy Sports Club signalled its rugby revival under the able leadership of Malik Samarawickrema, who found all resources and necessary financial backing to mark the Nittawela club prominently in the domestic rugby map. Thanks to the Godfather role of the former SLRFU President to foster Kandy SC rugby, the hill capital team initially came out with some giant killing performance.

Dedicated team

Samarawickrema and his dedicated team of officials and rugby promoters offered lucrative deals to woo talented players, thereby adding more value for the talents of youth. Gradually, Kandy SC took control of domestic rugby, adding each and every trophy that was on offer to their ever-growing collection of titles. Simply, Kandy SC elevated them to the position that Police SC were enjoying in the early '90s.

Kandy SC tapped school and club talent not only from the hill capital but mostly from Colombo. There have been allegations that Kandy SC contracted talented players in excess to keep on reserve bench, thereby to block their rival teams obtaining their services. It is also a debatable issue as most players have been offered better contracts even by their Colombo clubs after Kandy SC strengthened their headhunting for the pool.

Unblemished record

Until last Saturday, there were a very few who believed that the dominance of Kandy SC in domestic rugby could be challenged. There are plenty of reasons to do so as Kandy SC has been maintaining an unblemished record as the invincible force in local rugby. They have been the undisputed premier league champions since 2001.

The lads from hill capital have not only won the league 'crown' for the last eight years in-a-row, but have also remained unbeaten in the league for the last four years. No team has beaten Kandy SC since CR & FC humbled the Nittawela club in 2005.

But those records did not matter to Navy Sports Club, which has been making a steady progress this season led by former Sri Lanka Youth player and ex-Thomian Captain Yoshitha Rajapaksa. Navy SC has obtained the services of several young and talented players, including former Sri Lanka Under-19 Captain Namal Rajapaksa.

Navy's first step towards the beginning of a new era was signalled when they humbled CR & FC two weeks ago. They were not satisfied with that and were gearing for a historic moment when they hosted Kandy SC at Welisara last Saturday. They brought down the reigning league champions Kandy Sports Club with another giant-killing performance to accomplish a 'mission impossible.

Tussle for supremacy

After a keen tussle for supremacy, Navy made Kandy SC eat humble pie, edging out the defending champions by 12 points to 11. It was a match which kept the spectators on the edges of their seats most of the time as the sailors led 6-5 at the breather. In a desperate attempt for survival after failing to handle pressure, Kandy SC made too many mistakes. Navy SC, backed by the home advantage, played a calculated game. More importantly, Navy SC had better team work and understanding to upset Kandy SC.

Navy's fullback Nuwan Hettiarachchi and fly-half Dav Anand lived up to expectations converting two crucial penalties each under tremendous pressure. Their booming kicks have been a blessing to the Navy team to add pressure on their opponents.

What is more significant in Navy's win was the fact that this marked their first ever win over Kandy SC in the history of domestic premier league. The only consolation for Kandy SC was the solitary try of the match scored by their hooker Aruna Udangamuwa shortly before half time.

Navy SC has now won six matches in the 2009 league, having earlier notched up five victories over Police (27-3), Air Force (27-3), CH and FC (18-12), Havelocks (32-3) and CR & FC (18-3). The fantastic form of Navy SC is an indication that they have better things to offer as the season progresses.