RPL: Chennai Bulls square off against Kalinga Black Tigers, Mumbai Dreamers take on Delhi Redz

Mumbai, June 18: The first game of the day of the Rugby Premier League season 1 will see the Chennai Bulls square off against the Kalinga Black Tigers. The Bulls have been the most dominant teams so far with three wins in a row and are on top of the table as they look to extend their winning run. Meanwhile, the Black Tigers will be eager to bounce back after a tough defeat in their previous outing.

In the second match, the Mumbai Dreamers take on the Delhi Redz. Dreamers will look to notch their first win of the tournament, while the Redz will be eyeing to register more points on board with just one draw under their belt. Here are the players to keep an eye out for across the two clashes.

The league leader in tries with five successful tries and joint highest points scorer in the tournament so far with 25 points to his name, Vaafauese Maliko is one of the most dominant players of the inaugural season of GMR RPL and is key to Chennai Bulls’ strong position in the standings. The 26-year-old Samoan hybrid player is in an exceptional vein of form.

A prolific scorer and a key attacking threat, Terry Kennedy is one of the best players participating in the league and is surely living up to that potential. Third highest in points with 17 to his name and successfully converting three tries so far, the Irish hybrid powerhouse is a gamechanger in the ranks of Chennai Bulls.

With 16 points in just two games, Matias Osadczuk can cause major troubles for the opposing sides on the field. The 28-year-old Argentine has also scored three conversions and is a major threat to the opposition’s backline.

Another player from the Delhi Redz setup, Patrick Odongo is in a good run of form in the two games played so far. Apart from his defensive contributions at the back, Odongo is also a crucial player in the attack having scored two tries and winning ten points for his side in two appearances.

Despite Kalinga Black Tigers’ struggles on the pitch, Lucas Lacamp has impressed everyone with his defensive contributions. With eight tackles already, he is a difficult player to get past and will be critical for the Black Tigers as they face a strong opposition.

Reader Comments

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Priya K.

Chennai Bulls are on fire! 🔥 Vaafauese Maliko is absolutely unstoppable this season. As a rugby newbie, I'm loving how this league is introducing international talent to Indian audiences. Hope to see more Indian players getting highlighted soon!

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Rahul S.

Why is there so much focus on foreign players? We have talented Indian rugby players too who deserve recognition. The league should ensure equal coverage for domestic talent. Otherwise it's just another foreign-dominated sports league.

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Ananya M.

Excited for Mumbai Dreamers' match today! 🤞 They've been unlucky so far but I believe they'll turn things around. Rugby is such an exciting sport - more power to RPL for bringing this to mainstream Indian sports fans!

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Vikram J.

The Black Tigers need to sort out their defense. Lucas Lacamp can't do everything alone! Good to see rugby getting attention though. Maybe next season they should have more teams from Northeast India - they've got natural rugby talent there.

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Sneha P.

Matias Osadczuk is my favorite player to watch! His energy is infectious 💪. Does anyone know if there are plans to expand the league to more cities next season? Would love to see a team from Kolkata or Bangalore.

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Karan D.

The Delhi Redz vs Mumbai Dreamers match could go either way. Both teams are hungry for a win. Hope the broadcast quality improves though - sometimes it's hard to follow the action with the current camera angles.

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