The second week of the Dialog Rugby League provided a thrilling upset that was totally unforeseen. The game between CR&FC and Navy was tipped to be the pick of the matches while Kandy SC’s first away game to be played in the scenic Air Force grounds in Ratmalana was expected to be a mere formality for the Champion side.
However, after 80 minutes the Airmen had done the unthinkable edging Kandy out by 3 points to win the game 24 – 21, leaving many who did not witness the game seeking confirming before accepting the news.
The conditions at Ratmalana for the Air Force Vs Kandy game was perfect for running rugby, unlike the previous weeks where games were hampered by wet and sluggish outfields.
It seemed almost a foregone conclusion that Kandy SC would win the game and the return of Fazil Marija from injury only bolstered their chances further. Marija who missed better part of last season due to injury was unavailable for the first game against CH&FC as well. As for the Sri Lanka Air Force, Coach Leonard De Zilwa had made two changes with Ramdas Rumesh and Ashok Vijekumar getting their first starts of the season, a decision that paid rich dividends in the end.
There was a superlative performance by a Scrum half in this game. Ironically it was not by Kandy SC skipper & national scrum half Roshan Weeraratne or his replacement, sevens sensation Srinath Sooriyabandara, but by the young Air Force scrum half Ashok Vijekumar, who played for Royal College earlier this year and had just received his debut club rugby start on the day.
It is fair to say that the first scrum was somewhat of a catalyst in the game not only because Air Force ended up scoring a try, but also due to a lot of other aspects surrounding the set piece.
When the first scrum of the game was awarded to the Air Force, Vijekumar strutted up spinning the ball in one hand preparing to engage, a complete in your face confidence from the young man. Meanwhile his opposite number Weeraratne, placed himself a few feet behind the Kandy #8. Weerarathne could have and should have put Vijekumar under pressure by a simple shoulder jolt and a few whispered words reminding the young scrum half that he was now in the big league which would have possibly rattled the him and created some element of pressure. Saraka Weralla of the Air Force made a No 8 break from the scrum and was not tackled by the opposite flanker or the Weerarathne who was on the same side as Weralla. When he was finally brought to the ground Vijeykumar was right beside him in support and delivered the ball out with Rumesh Ramdas scoring the first try for Air Force two passes later. This try, which left the Kandy defense in disarray, must have given the Airmen, particularly Vijekumar and Weralla a massive boost in confidence.
Kandy managed to equalize through a Dhanush Dayan try but were made to work hard for it as the Airmen held them out for 8 phases.
Air Force SC were a class apart with their set pieces. While Weralla was in control at the back of the scrum, Thilina Bandara, the youngster from Vidyartha was impressive in the air at the line-outs. The agility, competitiveness and control young Bandara brought to the line-out was putting Kandy under pressure in the set piece as they attempted to take short/front man throw-ins. Ten minutes before half time, a well collected line-out by Bandara paved the way for Lahiru Udayanga to score off the back of a maul. Charith Seneviratne, who had nailed an almost touchline conversion was on point yet again, giving the Airmen a 7 point cushion going into the break.
Vijekumar, who had settled nicely into the game, was brilliant kicking from the base. While he kicked the ball deep into the unmarked territory of the opposition half, the rest of the Air Force back line was fiercely committed to chasing down his kicks. This put Kandy under pressure as they had to run from their own 22 with a threatening Air Force defense that held, or were forced to kick the ball back to Airmen, which in turn deprived them of possession.
Ten minutes into the second half, Kandy SC made a few changes too with Sooriyabandara and Lavanga Perera entering the field as Coach Wijesinghe tried to spark up an attack but Kandy conceded another try shortly after.
The Airmen received the ball from a line-out through the secure hands of Bandara and skipper Gayantha Iddamalgoda put the ball up high for his backs to chase. Chasing his own kick, Iddamalgoda managed to boot the idle ball behind the rushing defenders and Rumesh Ramdas touched down for the second time in the game. Charith Senevirathne, who was on top of his kicking game, bisected the post from a difficult angle.
Coach Wijesinghe decided that it was time his trump card, Fazil Marija – arguably Sri Lanka’s best fly half, came to the party. This was Marija’s first appearance after sustaining an injury mid-season last year. Marija’s quality was evident from his 1st touch as he managed to create an opportunity for Sashika Jayawardane to score immediately after his introduction to the field. He touched down in a few minutes to equalize and the difference in the body language of the Kandy players was evident after his introduction.
However as the old saying goes, ‘fortune favors the brave’ and Air force was definitely the braver outfit on the day. They received a penalty minutes away from full-time and Charith Seneviratne, who had kicked three out of three difficult conversions, was determined to give his team a famous victory over the giant Kandy outfit as he maintained his 100% kicking record, putting Air force in the lead with only a couple of minutes to go for the final whistle.
While the Airmen showed that no team is unbeatable in the current league, Kandy was handed a rude shock, showing that no matter how many stars they have to fill up their XV, hunger to win, heart and consistency is crucial to excel at the level they are expected to perform. There were 11 knock-ons and 02 forward passes from the Kandy team and that is simply not acceptable from an outfit which has so much quality within the team.
The game has now thrown the Dialog Rugby league 2016/17 wide open in just the second week of competition as it has proved that no team can be complacent no matter the names that make up the XV. The rugby enthusiasts of the country will no doubt be silently rejoicing in the fact that there is still hope of this being a tightly contested season.
