Following a successful inaugural tournament last year the International College of Business and Technology (ICBT) inter-campus Rugby Sevens 2019 is set to kick-off at the Royal College Sports Complex ground in Colombo on August 24 with 12 teams in the fray.
Former Sri Lanka player and international referee Dilroy Fernando is spearheading the event as the tournament director and is expecting the matches to be of a high standard as some of the players have represented their school teams.
Speaking to the media Fernando praised ICBT for taking the initiative to commence a championship of this nature where spectators can be treated to some exciting fast open rugby while at the same time shaping the characters of campus students who are looking to become fully fledged professionals in their chosen field.
Fernando also noted that Sri Lanka was in need of more Sevens tournaments in view of the fact the country sees its international potential in the shorter format of the sport.
Organisers are expecting more spectator patronage at this year’s tournament while ICBT’s chairman Jagath Alwis wants to strike a balance with sport and studies.
He also spoke of how sports has been proven to improve overall academic performance while cultivating a variety of essential skills and instilling values of determination, teamwork and discipline.
The 12 teams in the tournament will compete for the Cup, Plate and Bowl in four groups. The top two teams of each group will then progress to the Cup quarter-finals and the bottom teams will progress to the Bowl semi-finals.
The losers of the Cup quarter-finals will progress to Plate semi-finals while the winners move on to the Cup semi-finals and eventually the Cup finals.
The tournament will be officiated by referees affiliated to Sri Lanka Rugby.
Lasitha Gunaratne the president of Sri Lanka Rugby said: “It is heartwarming to see an interest in rugby at this level. These efforts will no doubt pay dividends for the future of rugby on the island by grooming talented young players who one day might have the opportunity to pursue their passion for the game at the highest level and play for Sri Lanka”.