Mumbai Dreamers, Bravehearts and Chennai Bulls shine in Rugby Premier League
Hyderabad: Mumbai Dreamers, Bengaluru Bravehearts, Chennai Bulls (women), Delhi Redz (women) and Kolkata Banga Tigers secure victories in the Rugby Premier League at the GMC Balayogi Athletic Stadium (Gachibowli) here. Bengaluru Bravehearts made a bright start as Jonas Mikalcius opened the scoring on the left wing. Chennai Bulls responded in first-quarter stoppage time through Santiago […]
Hyderabad: Mumbai Dreamers, Bengaluru Bravehearts, Chennai Bulls (women), Delhi Redz (women) and Kolkata Banga Tigers secure victories in the Rugby Premier League at the GMC Balayogi Athletic Stadium (Gachibowli) here.
Bengaluru Bravehearts made a bright start as Jonas Mikalcius opened the scoring on the left wing. Chennai Bulls responded in first-quarter stoppage time through Santiago Alvarez before Marcus Kershaw gave them the lead.
With his immense pace, Ryan Apps levelled the contest in the third quarter, and sustained pressure allowed Ganesh Majhi to put Bengaluru back in front. Apps added his second try early in the final quarter, while Devendra Padir crossed over late as the Bravehearts controlled possession to seal the victory.
The top-of-the-table clash began at a high tempo, with Mumbai Dreamers and Hyderabad Heroes matching each other’s intensity before Diego Ardao gave the Heroes the lead late in the first quarter.
Guillaume Bouche responded in a tightly contested second period to level the scores for the Dreamers. Strong defence from Mumbai kept the game finely balanced through the third quarter. Ardao struck again early in the final period to restore Hyderabad’s advantage, but a late try from Lucas Mignot in extra time helped the Dreamers snatch victory and preserve their unbeaten run.
Chennai Bulls, needing a win to secure direct qualification to the final, made a strong start as Carmen Izyk and Savannah Bauder scored in quick succession.
Maria Tshiremba pulled one back for Mumbai Dreamers, but Bauder added her second try early in the second quarter to restore the Bulls’ advantage.
Bhumika Shukla and Abigail Brown helped Mumbai level the scores after the break, but Bauder completed her hat-trick early in the final quarter as Chennai held firm to secure the win and book their place in the final.
Delhi Redz controlled possession for much of the opening quarter and were rewarded when Silika Qalo broke through to score the first try. Sofia Gonzalez brought Kolkata Banga Tigers back into the contest late in the second quarter, but Lavena Cavuru responded immediately to restore Delhi’s advantage. Gonzalez added another try after the break to keep the Tigers in contention, but Shika Yadav’s two well-worked tries, aided by the Redz’s superior ball movement and control, sealed an important victory.
Kolkata Banga Tigers secured their first win of the season with a dominant 33-7 victory over Delhi Redz. Despite Delhi controlling possession early on, Vuiviwa Naduvalo opened the scoring against the run of play.
Lucas Lacamp extended the Tigers’ lead before A. Sooriyabandara and Brady Rush added further tries in the third quarter. Javed Hussain replied for the Redz, becoming the first Indian player to score over 50 points this season.
However, Thibaud Mazzoleni’s late try sealed an emphatic win for Kolkata.