Kandy dismantle Singapore national rugby team

By Shamseer Jaleel  

Kandy Sports Club - 44 points

Singapore - 14 points

Defending club and knockout rugby champions Kandy Sports Club outclassed the Singapore national rugby team for a 44 points (6 tries, 4 conversions, 2 penalties) to 14 points (2 tries, 2 conversions) win at the Nittawela Rugby Stadium in Kandy.

At halftime the home team led 22-7.

Kandy Sports Club Fly Half Fazil Marija on his way to score one of his tries against Singapore

The game was played in perfect conditions and saw the visiting Singaporean team dishing out good rugby in patches. They especially showed a marked improvement in their play in the latter half which rattled the Kandy outfit on more than a few occasions. Their forwards play was outstanding but the Kandy three-quarter line looked threatening with their moves. 

Singapore also missed out on their captain Gaspar Tan, who pulled out of the tour at the last moment, plus three more senior players who could not make this short tour. The Kandy team lost out on their skipper Gayan Weeraratne and his brother Roshan Weeraratne, both of whom were nursing injuries, along with Buwanka Udangamuwa.

Returning from national Sevens duty Jason Dissanayake, Dhanushka Ranjan, Srinarth Sooriyabandara, Richard Dharmapala and Dhanushka Dyan all looked in peak form while on attack. The workhorse of the Kandy outfit for more than a decade, Fazil Marija, also stood out with some dashing moves which kept the Singapore defence in check while Nigel Ratwatte’s accurate kicking earned points which piled the pressure on the visiting side.

Kandy drew first blood in the 12th minute of the game when their Fly Half Marija split the Singaporean defence to score. Fullback Ratwatte added the extra two points to take an early lead. Soon afterwards Dharmapala made a dashing run from the centre of the field to touch down. Ratwatte added the extra two points. 

Kandy SC fullback Nigel Ratwatte on his way to score the final try for Kandy

Three minutes later Ratwatte was on target with a penalty kick when the Singaporean outfit was caught offside. Kandy scored their last first half try through winger Anurudha Wilwara’s brilliance after he showed that he was in fine running form after his injury layoff.  Singapore, who did attack well, scored through their full back Jonathan Barber. He added the extra two points to cut the deficit to 22-7. Singapore kept attacking Kandy’s 22 but they missed out on a certain try when their winger Nasrul Hadi Bin Hanafi dropped the ball five meters from the try line. 

After the turnaround Singapore did play well through their forwards who were rock solid in defence and made a number of very good moves towards Kandy’s tryline.  Although they had the territorial advantage they failed to convert this into points. 

This made Kandy to do their part when Ratwatte was on target with a penalty kick plus Marija scored his second try of the game. Winger Dhanushka Ranjan scored his first try when he brushed past a few Singapore players to touch down. Ratwatte, who was in good kicking form throughout the game, added the extra two points. Singapore, who never gave up, scored through a forwards rush when their burly number 8 Peter Wiliam Mcfeely went over the line. Once again fullback Barber, who had a great game, added the extra two points. But Kandy had time for one more try when Ratwatte registered his name on the score sheet through a try this time. Arshard Jamaldeen added the extra two points. The game was refereed by Priyantha Gunaratne while the assistant referees were Ishantha Abeykoon and Sarath Madugalle. The match commissioner was Tuan Dole.