Bengaluru Bravehearts kick off Rugby Premier League with comeback win
Hyderabad, June 17
Season 2 of the Rugby Premier League got underway with thrilling action at the Gachibowli Athletics Stadium on Tuesday. Bengaluru Bravehearts opened their campaign with a comeback victory over hosts Hyderabad Heroes, while Delhi Redz also registered a win over Chennai Bulls later in the day.
Bengaluru Bravehearts win 28-21 against Hyderabad Heroes (men)
Hyderabad Heroes made a strong start in front of their home crowd, but disciplined defence from the Bravehearts helped level the scores by half-time. Diego Ardao's try in the third quarter gave Bengaluru the lead, before the Heroes responded to keep the contest alive. However, captain Ngarohi McGarvey crossed over in the final quarter to seal a hard-fought 28-21 win for the Bravehearts.
Delhi Redz beat defending champions Chennai Bulls 31-21 (men)
Delhi Redz raced into an early lead through Josep Serres, opening up a 12-0 advantage before Filipe Sauturaga got defending champions Chennai Bulls on the scoreboard at the start of the second quarter. The Bulls fought back strongly, with Tololo adding another try to put them ahead. However, the Redz regained control and took a 10-point lead into the final quarter. Maintaining possession in the closing stages, Delhi successfully ran down the clock to secure an impressive 31-21 victory.
Later in the day, the women's franchises were scheduled to take the pitch with Chennai Bulls set to take on Delhi Redz, Kolkata Banga Tigers facing Mumbai Dreamers and the men ending the day with a clash between Kolkata Banga Tigers and Mumbai Dreamers.
— ANI
Reader Comments
Great to see rugby getting more coverage in Indian media! The women's matches later tonight should be exciting too. Wish more people would watch these sports instead of just cricket all the time.
As someone who played rugby in college, this makes me happy. The standard of play has improved so much. But the organisers need to do more grassroots promotion if they want these leagues to sustain long-term.
Solid performances from both winning teams! McGarvey's try for Bengaluru was clinical. Delhi Redz also showed great composure against the defending champions. Rugby Sevens is always entertaining.
Dissapointed that Hyderabad couldn't hold onto their lead despite home crowd support. They need better fitness levels in the final quarter. Also, the telecast quality could be improved - hard to follow the action sometimes.
Finally some good sports news! 😊 The way Bengaluru bounced back shows real character. Hope the women's matches get equal coverage too - so many talented players in India who never get noticed.
Chennai Bulls loss is a shocker - they were the defending champions! But credit to Delhi Redz for their tactical game management. Rugby in India needs more investment in coaching and infrastructure at
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.