Another match in the schools’ singer league was held at Bogambara earlier today when Royal College Colombo took on St. Anthony’s College Katugasthota. It was played in perfect conditions for rugby.
Royal came into the match with confidence after beating St. Peter’s at home last week. The Antonians, on the other hand, had the home advantage although they were coming off a 41-11 defeat to S. Thomas’. Both teams looked well prepared having dusted off the rust that was evident in their performances last week. Coming into week 7, Royal had only one loss to their name that they suffered at the hands of the unbeaten S. Thomas’ outfit while St. Anthony’s has had a bumpy ride throughout this season with two wins and 4 losses under their belts. The stakes were high, particularly for the Royalists as they are still in the hunt for the league trophy as well as being the defending champions. Royal put in a dominant performance today remain in the hunt for their 2nd consecutive title although St. Anthony’s made slight signs of a comeback. All in all, it was a hardly fought well deserved win for the Royal lads, the score turning out to be 26 points (4T 3C) to 13 (1T 1C 2P). At half time Royal led 12 (2T 1C) to 06 (2P).
Royal:
Tries: Hisham Barrie (2), Nikila Gunadeera, Hamza Reeza
Conversions: Ovin Askey (3)St. Anthony’s:
Tries: Pramuda Wickramarachchi
Conversions: Samuel Maduwantha (1)
Penalties: Samuel Maduwantha (2)
St. Anthony’s kicked off the game with Referee Rohan Abeykoon, who had a fairly decent game, blowing the whistle. The Antonians drew first blood when Samuel Maduwantha, the highest points scorer in the league this season, put through an easy 20m penalty which was awarded for tackling off the feet. (3-0) Seconds later he got another penalty for holding on. This was a 28m kick at an angle, which he put through with ease again, taking the score to 6-0 in favor of the Antonians. He had the opportunity extend the lead when he got another kick at the posts which he failed to put through. Royal who had been using the forwards so well this season opted for lineouts when they got penalties at the opposite half. Reaping success, Hisham Barrie, the hooker went over to score in the left corner after the ball was handed to the rolling maul from the lineout which they drove for a good 20m to get over the line for the touchdown. (6-5) Ovin Askey failed to convert a difficult kick similar to the one he put through in the final moments of the Bradby.
Hisham Barrie again went over the line to score his second try of the match after his forwards had set it up for him for a pick and push through to get the ball over the line. Royal set up a good 5 to 10 phases before Barrie went over the line. (6-10) Ovin Askey did not fail to convert this time around making it 12-6 in favor of Royal.
Photo Album – St. Anthony’s College vs Royal College
Ashok Vijekumar the vice-captain was seen distributing the ball well to the forwards who turned out to score all the tries of the match. Vijekumar was the man responsible for the forwards receiving good ball from the ruck. Samuel Maduwantha was to be seen clearing his line and gaining a lot of the territory through his kicks which the Antonians failed to capitalize on, in the first half, it was clear that the Antonians lacked the finishing skills. Nikila Gunadeera was a dominant force in the first half picking up the ball from the base of the scrum and running through the defense of the Antonians in the first half. At the end of the first half the score remained on 12- 6 in favour of Royal College.
Half Time score: Royal College 12 (2T 1C) to St. Anthony’s College 06 (2P)
After the break an early penalty was awarded to Royal which Ovin Askey missed. Nikila Gunadeera then went under the posts as the Royal scrum set it up for him to score with the help of Ayesh Maduranga, who was the supporting player joining Gunadeera from the ruck, which this time Askey converted. (19-6) Royal looked menacing with their forwards setting it up for each other to go over the line in turns which left the backs with little to do for most part of the game.
St. Anthony’s meanwhile made changes, bringing on players from the bench. Just as Royal seemed to dominating, St. Anthony’s replied through Pramuda Wickramarachchi, who scored by running 30m with only one defender to beat. Samuel Maduwantha iniatially created the try by setting up the opportunity for E.Seelagama who set up a clear run for Pramuda to score in the corner; this was the only try scored by the Antonians and also the only try by a player from the backline. Maduwantha converted the 30m angled conversion. (19-13). Royal soon replied through Hamza Reeza who had been playing a pivotal role in the pack since he came in at half time, he too being a forward went from the back of the base to score under the posts. (24-13) Askey converted without any trouble at all. (26-13) This turned out to be the final score of the match.
Royal was seen absorbing a lot of pressure in the dying minutes of the game when the Antonians soared through attack after attack for a good 10 mins; the Royal defense held strong although Seelagama spilled an opportunity to score knocking it on at the try line. St.Anthony’s lacked the finishing touches throughout the 80 minutes of play; they put together some brilliant play in patches which wasn’t enough to topple a well-oiled Royal outfit. If only had they were able to lace the final touches together, the score would have been completely different.
Full time score: Royal College 26 (4T 3C) – 13 (1T 1C 2P) St. Anthony’s College
ThePapare man of the match – Ashok Vijekumar.
 to 13 ( 1T 1C 2P). The Royal rolling maul was to be seen today as well the forwards scoring all 4 tries. They led 12 - 6 at half time.){kind=link}