St. Anthony’s College Katugasthota took on Thurstan College Colombo at the Sugathadasa Stadium on the 1st of August in what was poised to decide the winner of the Bowl Segment of the Dialog Schools Rugby League 2025.
The Antonian opened scoring early as Thinuka Jayasundara touched down under the post in the opening 3 minutes as Lakmina added the extras
(SACK 07- TC 0)
The Thurstanites had no breathing space as the dynamic no. 08 of SACK, Ravindu Gregory touched down for his fourth try in 2 weeks, extending their early lead
(SACK 14-TC 00)
But the home team soon ticked the scoreboard as their stalwart no. 08, Sithija Jayathillake scored his 13 th try of the season in the 22nd minute, pulling the Thurstanites right back into the contest
(SACK 14 – TC 07)
Eagles’ skipper Omitha Dissanayake added his mark on the score as he went over for their 3rd try at the back of a well coordinated pick and drive play by their forwards
(SACK 21 – TC 07)
The Thurstan defence line managed to hold off 2 more tries right before halftime as the Antonians knocked the ball over on the whitewash.
HT SACK 21-TC 07
The 2nd half kicked off in familiar fashion as errored kickoffs continued from the 1st half.
The Antonian rolling maul which showed incredible structure and power created massive headway all of their previous tries scored, and Thurstan couldn’t find any reply to in the 40th minute as well when Pawan Ekanayake touched down for the 4th try for the boys from Kandy
(SACK 28 – TC 07)
The visitors continued their dominance as they worked the ball to their wingers to score their 5th try in the hands of Lakmina, who failed to convert his own try, one that featured a picturesque dive.
(SACK 33 – TC 07)
Despite the Thurstanites’ valiant efforts throughout, they seemed to struggle in their attack, succumbing to their own handling errors often.
Meanwhile the Antonian back line seamlessly broke past the Thurstan defence as Randheer Perera sliced through the defence line like a hot knife through butter to score a runaway try to register their 6th, in the 54th minute.
(SACK 40-07)
Thurstan spent the last 10 minutes of the game in their opposition 22, with multiple valiant efforts to find the tryline, only for Referee Tharindu to adjudge 2 tries being held up, and
showing a yellow card to the Antonian prop forward Saneth Rathnayake for a high tackle in the 68th minute.
The game drew to a close underscoring a difficult day on the field for the home team, and elation for the visitors as they walked away with silverware
The Antonians, recovering from a rather difficult start to the season, showed good structure in their phase play, and their rolling maul acted as a weapon for them to gain a way into the attacking area. Coach Saliya Kumara’s team showcased a well balanced display to take home a well deserved Bowl Championship for their performance in the 2nd round.
The Thurstanites could find no answer to the rampant Antonian attack as they found their defence breached and scattered in most instances. Despite an early score, they failed to
capitalize on multiple opportunities and couldn’t defend the Antonian rolling mail effectively.They will look to bounce back in their remaining game
Antonian skipper Omitha Dissanayake was awarded the Swisstek Player of the match
FT SACK 40 (6T 5C) – TC 07 ( 1T 1C)
St. Anthony’s College
Thinuka Jayasundara 1T
Ravindu Gregory 1T
Omitha Dissanayake 1T
Randheer Perera 1T
Kalpa Lakmina 1T 5C
Yellow Card
Saneth Rathnayake
Thurstan College
Sithija Jayathillake 1T
Nehad Sally 1T
Jayageeth Basnayak
