CR&FC edge Kandy and bring Cup final to Longdon Place
In the run down to decide the venue for next weekend’s SLR-Maliban Club Rugby League 2025/26 Cup Championship grand final, CR&FC edge out Kandy by 17-15 SC in a low scoring, yet high-octane final week game played at Longdon Place yesterday. With defending champions Kandy SC already having booked their berth in the final, yesterday’s final round encounter of the Cup Segment was a mere battle to pick the venue for next week’s final, where the team that tops the table gets the opportunity to host the game.
The Red Shirts pulled off a two-point thriller after scoring from two converted tries and a penalty, while Kandy scored from three tries, with their placekicker, fullback Hirusha Sampath failing miserably with the conversions, which eventually mattered. Yet they were trailing close at halftime behind CR&FC by 7-5.
A CR player is brought down by the Kandy defence - Pic by Eshan Fernando
Though Kandy SC came down to Colombo to see their chances in taking the game to Nittawela, where they would give away a fitting finale for their followers, the Red Shirts didn’t seem to agree with that indication. They were fired up from the first whistle, forcing errors on their opponents, eventually having Kandy SC winger Gayan Perera handed a yellow card by referee James Fairbourne, from the UAE.
Yet the Red Shirt failed to penetrate the Kandy defence until winger Pasindu Bandara carved through to touch down in the 20th minute, giving centre Thenuka Nanayakkara an easy angle to convert.
Kandy retaliated with powerful forward marches, eventually resulting in Tongan lock Salesi Havea touching down in the 30th minute, before they lost No.8 Daham Wickamaarachchi for a yellow card offence in the 38th minute.
CR expanded their lead to a healthy 14-5 buffer in the 47th minute with No.8 Enesi Waqanisau barging over for a try, with Nanayakkara’s conversion, before losing lock Naveen Marasinghe and No.8 Lasindu Karunathilake in the 62nd minute on separate yellow card offences. It was the moment when Kandy forward Buwaneka Udangamuwa crashed down to close in by 14-10, before canny centre Shahid Zumri seized a moment of brilliance to touch down in the 67th minute to gain the lead by 15-14. Yet again, their usual flaw of conceding penalties became a burden when Nanayakkara put over the kick in the 78th minute to add three points and seal the game for the Red Shirts.