A bruising battle is in store when the defending champions Kandy Sports Club take on the challengers Sri Lanka Navy in the final of the Caltex Clifford Cup rugby match to be played at the Bogambara stadium on Sunday at 4.30 p.m.

This match is going to be crucial to Kandy Sports Club as they will be put to acid test to prove their dominance of the Clifford Cup which they have won for a record 16 times against a fast improved or much improved Navy side who have turned out to be the giant killers this season having beaten the two top clubs the CR & FC and the Kandy Sports Club this season.

When these two teams met in the league tournament the Sailors won the first round winning by a single point but Kandy avenged this defeat winning the return game 28-16. This only is an indication that the home ground plays an important role in the performance of a team.

Kandy Sports Club have twice lost to Navy in the last couple of years. The return match of last year and the first game of this year both by the identical margin of a single point.

A rugby analyst and former Sri Lanka wing forward who wished to remain anonymous said that Kandy's problems stems from the fact they do not tackle hard especially when their opponents had got their acts together and this results in the flow of points for their opponents.

Drop goals are virtual gifts to the opponents and this must be stopped and could only stopped if the two flankers are quick and hard on their tackles of course the legal way. If this happens the fly halves will not have time to execute drop goals and will resort to kicking without losing possession. These are two salient points Kandy should bear in mind when they take the field, he said.

Kandy Sports Club will go into this match without two of their regulars the two fast breaking flankers Dilip Selvam who is injured and also Sajith Saranga who was sent off during the last match and faces a two week suspension. Another flanker Shashika Jayawardena is also in the injured list. Former Kingswoodian Arvinda Udangamuwa will play as flanker while Buddhi Talagampola will move into the second row.

On the brighter side centre Gayan Weeraratne has recovered from his shoulder injury and is fit to play and this will see a very strong set of centre three quarters in Sanjeewa Jayasinghe, Anuruddha Willawara or Gayan Weeraratne, Chamara Withanage and Mohammed Sheriff. Also on the bench in case of emergency will be Mohammed Jabbar and Dharshana Ettipola with Chathuranga Prasad too capable of fitting into these positions.

Sri Lanka Navy are a set of fighters and their hard play and bruising tackles is their forte.

In stand off Dev Anand they have good place kicker and a drop goal expert who turn the game in their way with his drop goals without penetrating their opponents defence.

This match is going to be a very close game and red hot rugby is in store for the rugby fans at the Bogambara Stadium this Sunday. There has been a change in the weather conditions in the hill capital as on Wednesday night there was a heavy shower breaking a week's drought. There was rain on Thursday morning too.

Ronnie Ibrahim is also the rugby coach of the Navy team and he has done an excellent job in moulding them into a fighting outfit and the team has risen to great heights bringing them back to an era of pristine glory.

The probable teams:

Kandy Sports Club: Kishore Jehan, Anuranga Walpola, Eranga Swarnatillake, Senaka Bandara, Buddhika Talagampola, Kasun de Silva, Arvinda Udangamuwa, Sean Wijesinghe (No. 8), Roshan Weeraratne and Fazil Marija (Captain), Sanjeewa Jayasinghe, Pradeep Liyanage, Gayan Weeraratne, Chamara Withanage, Anuruddha Willawara, Mohammed Sheriff, Saliya Kumara. Prasad Chathuranga, Mohammed Rizvan, Achala Perera, Mohammed Jabbar, Kasun Yasaisuru.

Navy SC (from) Piumal Manchanayake, Hamza Hassan, Suranga Swarnatillake, Kalana Amerasinghe, Sumedha Malawana (Captain), Rohitha Rajapaksa, Yoshitha Rajapaksa, Namal Rajapaksa, Suranga Pushpakumara and Dev Anand, Nuwan Hettiarachchi, Chula Susantha, Dilip Methruwan, Samantha Lakshan, Eranda Weerakkody, Ransiri Peiris, Duminda Pullikuttiarachchi, Manjula Ruwantillake, Gayashan Wijesinghe, Tyronne Harrison, Niranjan Wickremaratne, Kosala Tissera, Shilendra Chandrasekera.