HAVELOCK PARK, Colombo, December 19 (ePRESS) – Havelock Sports Club played the percentages and cashed in when it mattered to grind out a 20–5 win over a brave but wasteful Air Force Sports Club in their Maliban SLR Inter-Club ‘A’ Division League rugby clash at Havelock Park on Friday.
Leading 13–0 at the breather, the Park Club showed cool heads under pressure, holding firm in defence and striking at key moments, even as Air Force enjoyed long spells of possession in the second half. In the end, it was a clear case of one side taking its chances while the other let the game slip through its fingers.
Havelock set the tone early. In the fourth minute, their forwards laid the platform before winger Janidu Wijeratne finished with pace in the left corner. Fullback Samuel Maduwantha failed to add the extras from a tight angle, but the hosts were off the blocks at 5–0.
Air Force were handed a golden chance to hit back midway through the half, but fullback Gayantha Iddamalgoda pushed a long-range 45-metre penalty wide, a miss that summed up their day in front of the posts.
The Park Club kept the scoreboard ticking in the 36th minute when Maduwantha made amends by calmly landing a 25-metre penalty to stretch the lead to 8–0.
Just before the lemons, Havelock landed a body blow. Prop Abdullah Faiz muscled his way over close to the uprights after sustained pressure. Maduwantha again missed the conversion, but Havelock still went into the break with a healthy 13–0 cushion.
Air Force were dealt another setback early in the second half when lock Maleesha Weerakoon was sent to the sin-bin in the 48th minute, reducing the visitors to 14 men at a crucial stage.
The Airmen finally found a way through in the 54th minute when scrum half Vishal Akalanka sniped around the fringes to score in the mid-left. Iddamalgoda, however, missed yet another conversion, and Havelock remained in control at 13–5.
From there, Air Force threw everything into the attack and camped deep inside Havelock territory. But for all their territory and possession, they failed to turn pressure into points, wasting two kickable penalties and a routine conversion, leaving their supporters shaking their heads.
Havelock, by contrast, kept their nerve and delivered the killer punch late on. In the 75th minute, replacement Yehan Bulathsinhalage read the play perfectly, collected a clever short kick by fullback Samuel Maduwantha and dotted down under the posts. Maduwantha made no mistake with the simple conversion to seal the contest at 20–5.
In the last move, Wijeratne thought he had crossed for his second try in the left corner, but the referee Raveen Alexander ruled he had stepped into touch, denying Havelock a possible bonus point.
When the final whistle blew, Havelock Sports Club walked off as deserved winners, having stayed on the right side of the scoreboard battle to beat Air Force Sports Club by 20 points to 5.
Fullback Samuel Maduwantha Key in Havelock’s Clinical Edge
