LAHORE-Lahore Hawks team edged out Desert Camels Rugby Club by 24-23 in the thrilling final to win the 8th Servis Tyres Rugby League, well-organized by Pakistan Rugby Union (PRU).
The chief guest of the final was President Pakistan Rugby Union Chaudhry Arif Saeed. He was accompanied by PRU Secretary Salman Sheikh, Moazzam Shah, Shakeel Malik, Punjab rugby officials and a large number of rugby lovers.
Chief guest Ch Arif Saeed was introduced to the players prior to the match. In this 15-a-side league, Lahore Hawks and Desert Camels Fort Abbas won two matches each, while Lahore Rugby Football Club and Islamabad Jinns won one match each. Therefore, Lahore Hawks and Desert Camels qualified for the final. Lahore Hawks players played well in the final and won it for the first time.
At the half time, Lahore Hawks had a healthy lead of 17-3. In the second half, Fort Abbas players played brilliantly and came back into the game but lost the match by just one point. The first try was scored by Israr, second by Muneeb and third by Dawood while Ahmed Wasim scored a try from Lahore Hawks in the second half. All the tries were scored by Desert Camels Fort Abbas in the second half, with Umar Daraz scoring two and Wasim one.
In the closing ceremony, President PRU Ch Arif Saeed distributed trophies and prizes among the winners. The man of the match was awarded to Dawood Gul of Lahore Hawks while man of the tournament was awarded to Aqib Siddiqui of Desert Campbells Rugby Club.