A 21-0 victory sees Stade even up its Cambodia Rugby Premiership record after a season opening loss last month to rivals PSE Garudas

COMBINING a balanced offensive attack with some effective defence, Stade Khmer evened its seasonal record in the 2008-09 Cambodia Rugby Premiership Sunday at Phnom Penh Old Stadium, blanking Phnom Penh rival Sisowath Knights, 21-0.  

Stade Khmer, which lost its Premiership opener on November 30 to PSE Garudas, 27-0 rebounded nicely as they kept Sisowath on their heels nearly all afternoon, spending most of their time in their opponent's territory.

Sisowath took the opening kickoff and marched to its 40-metre line, but some effective Stade Khmer defending stopped the Sisowath drive.   

French flyhalf Sebastien Balmisse then opened the scoring moments later with a penalty kick from 15 metres, giving Stade Khmer a 3-0 lead at the 10 minute mark.

Sisowath again drove to its 40 metre line.

But a costly knock on turned the ball over, giving Stade Khmer another opportunity for a score.  

At the 22nd minute, Balmisse made good on his second penalty kick of the afternoon, this one from 20 metres, extending the Stade Khmer lead to 6-0 at halftime.

In the second half, the fleet Cambodian cadre of Stade Khmer backs broke the match wide open, with tries by fullback Koy David at the 55th minute, wing Horn Chanthy at the 60th minute and center Chea Chamreun at the 65th minute adding to the point total.

Horn Chanthy's  scintillating run off a scrum from 40 metres out brought the Old Stadium crowd to its feet as he threaded his way through the Sisowath defense, eluding a host of would-be tacklers and finally tip-toeing along the touch line for the final 10 metres.

WE STILL NEED TO IMPROVE, BUT THIS WIN TODAY SHOWS OUR POTENTIAL.

Stade Khmer captain Romain Lalouette was pleased by his team's performance.

"Unlike our last match, we kept control of the ball this time, and our backs, particularly our Khmer players, ran with a lot more confidence, said the Stade Khmer skipper.  

"Yes, we still need to improve, but this win today shows our potential," Lalouette added.

Sisowath prop Chro Kim Seang felt poor lineout play and inconsistent running from the backs were major factors in his team's defeat.

"Our lineout throws had very bad technique, and we lost a lot of ball that we should have won," he said.

Sunday's match was the season opener for the Sisowath Knights.

Ruby Season Schedule

Date

Teams

Place

January 11

PSE Garudas v Sisowath Knights

Phnom Penh

January 25

Stade Khmer v Siem Reap

Phnom Penh

February 8

PSE Garudas v Siem Reap

Phnom Penh

February 15

Siem Reap v Sisowath Knights

Siem Reap

February 22

Sisowath Knights v PSE Garudas

Phnom Penh

March 1

Siem Reap v Stade Khmer

Siem Reap

March 8

Sisowath Knights v Stade Khmer

Phnom Penh

March 15

Siem Reap v PSE Garudas

Siem Reap

March 22

Sisowath Knights v Siem Reap

Phnom Penh

March 29

PSE Garudas v Sisowath Knights

Phnom Penh