The 78th Clifford Cup tournament was held between the 28 September and 7 October 2012.

2012 Clifford Cup
Tournament details
Tournament format(s)Knockout
Date28 September 2012 – 7 October 2012
Tournament statistics
Teams8
Matches played7
Final
ChampionsKandy SC (18th title)
Runners-upHavelock Sports Club
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The cup final was held on the same day, 7 October 2012, as the final of the 2012 T20 World Cup (which was played at R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, between Sri Lanka and West Indies), this resulted in lower crowds than normally experienced at previous Clifford Cup finals.[1] The game was played at Bogambara Stadium instead of Nittawela Rugby Stadium. Havelock SC came into the final after securing the 2012 Rugby League title, having edged out Kandy SC. Kandy SC were the current cup holders, having had won the cup for the previous five years, while Havelock SC's last win was 31 years earlier, in 1981.[2] Kandy SC applied constant pressure during the first half, with a momentary lapse allowing Havelock SC to score before half time, resulting in a 7-5 scoreline. After the break both sides fought hard with only Kandy SC making a dent on the scoreboard eventually winning the game, 10 points (1 converted try and one penalty) to 5 (one unconverted try).[3]

Seedings

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The seeding is based upon the teams standings at the end of the 2012 Dialog Rugby League season. The first four seeds represent the four teams in the cup section of the league and the remaining four seeds are the first four teams in the plate section of the league.

  1. Havelock SC
  2. Kandy SC
  3. Navy
  4. Up Country Lions
  5. Army SC
  6. Police SC
  7. Ceylonese R & FC
  8. Air Force SC

Quarter finals

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28 September 2012
18:30
Havelock SC47 – 5Air Force SC
Havelock Park
29 September 2012
Navy SC21 – 23Police SC
Havelock Park
Referee: Pradeep Fernando
30 September 2012
Up Country Lions33 - 10Army SC
Havelock Park
Attendance: Eron Littlewood

Semi finals

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3 October 21012
16:30
Havelock SC32 – 31Up Country Lions
Havelock Park

Final

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7 October 2012
16:30
Kandy SC10 - 5Havelock SC
Bogambara Stadium
Attendance: 2,000
Referee: Paul MacKay

References

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  1. ^ "Unmemorable Cup Final but Kandy SC won't mind". The Sunday Leader. 4 November 2012. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
  2. ^ Shamseer, Jaleel (7 October 2012). "Kandy SC holds the edge in own backyard". Sunday Times. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
  3. ^ Maikar, Hafiz (13 October 2012). "Kandy SC worthy Clifford Cup winners". Daily News. Retrieved 4 November 2014.