Army out to topple Navy in Clifford Cup semis

Army SC will look to produce another giant-killing performance when they take on Navy SC in their SLR Nippon Paint Clifford Cup Knock-Out Rugby Tournament second semi-final fixture at the Racecourse Grounds in Colombo today.

Army SC have already created the biggest upset for the current season having brought down the defending champions Havelock SC 39-17 in the quarter-final encounter played at Longden Place.

In contrast, Navy SC will make their first appearance of the tournament as they were handed a bye into the semi-finals after the defending champions Kandy SC and CH and FC pulled out from the event – the oldest rugby competition in Asia.

Army SC have turned things around magnificently with some superb all-round rugby and they seemed to have reached their peak during this latter part of the season.

They showed a vast improvement during the latter stages of the League Tournament and finished off things with a massive 60-12 drubbing of CH and FC on their home grounds at Panagoda.

This stunning win also helped Army SC to avoid a last-place finish in the League Tournament points table as they secured seventh place with a creditable 19 points having recorded two wins and drawn one game.

However, Navy SC failed to keep that promise after qualifying to play in the elite Cup Championship Super Round segment as their chances disappeared with back-to-back defeats against Kandy SC (28-37) and CR and FC (17-37) respectively.

However, they were able to redeem some lost pride and conclude the League Tournament with a morale boosting 26-6 victory over a depleted Havelock SC outfit at Havelock Park.

Both teams will now take the field brimming with confidence and look set for another rousing battle as they did in the League Tournament earlier, where Navy SC snatched a dramatic 41-30 win in a high-scoring game played at Welisara. In fact, that was one of the most fascinating matches of the League Tournament where Navy SC scored six tries while Army SC responded with four tries.

Army SC have always made their presence felt in the knock-out tournaments and have proved that they have the potential to upset any top side on their best day.

This game will also provide both teams with a piece of rugby history as Army SC have won the Clifford Cup only twice while Navy SC have emerged champions only on one occasion.

In fact, Army SC last won the Clifford Cup in 1975 and entered the final in three successive years from 2000 to 2002 while losing to Kandy SC on all three occasions at the Nittawela Stadium.

Meanwhile, Navy SC won the Clifford Cup for the first time in 2014 when they defeated Havelock SC 27-22 in the final played at the Racecourse and also went on to reach the 2018 final before going down to Kandy SC 7-21 at Longden Place.

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