There was an interesting clash of the bowl segment as the 3rd and 4th ranked teams in the bowl segment clashed in search of a crucial win at Sugathadasa Stadium. After a swinging battle in the real sense of the words, both teams had to share the match points as Mahanama College earned back-to-back tied encounters. With this tied result, the affairs in the Bowl Segment became more complex and more interesting.
Science College took the initial lead with some heroics of their three quarters. After advancing to the opposition half, Science Maroons were gifted with a five-meter scrum due to a sloppy play by Mahanama. Science College No. 08 player broke from the scrum, and by marking a couple of players, he offloaded it to the flyhalf. The skipper straightaway displayed his class with a show-and-go technique to deceive the defence and planted an under-the-post try. Dilruwan Perera made a conversion of his own try to add the extras. (SC 07 – 00 MC)
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After a few minutes, the Mahanama side counterattacked into the Science College half. As Science was penalised for not rolling away, Mahanama got a lineout throw near the tryline. Though Science looked forward and managed to steal the ball by tapping it towards their players, Mahanama players were quick to grab it with the charge. After a single phase near the whitewash, the big forward prop Avishka Samarakoon grossed for a try. Then, fly half Malinka Dhanuja made no mistake with the conversion. (SC 07 – 07 MC)
With the game momentum in their hand, Mahanama kept threatening again at the Science defence. In the Science territory, Mahanama three-quarters displayed an exceptional play to come closer to the try line. The finishing touch was given by the big prop forward Avishka Samarakoon, who again crossed the line by pushing a couple of tacklers by using an angling technique. Fly half Malinka Dhanuja nailed the conversion kick again. (SC 07 – 14 MC)
After nearly 10 minutes, Science forwards kept asking questions from the Mahanama defence. During this period, Mahanama gave away a number of penalties but was lucky enough to avoid a sin bin. After multiple phases of pick and goes, finally Science managed to get the outcome of their pressure play as Demitha Silva dived for the second try. Skipper Dilruwan successfully converted it to level the scores. (SC 14 – 14 MC)
But later Science was reduced to fourteen men as one of their players was yellow-carded for a head clash in a tackle, making things interesting for Mahanama.
At the brink of halftime, Mahanama advanced into the 22-meter area of Science, and they were sniffing for another score. Finally Science gave away a silly penalty in terms of a high tackle, and Mahanama went for the points. Trusted boot of Malinka Dhanuja made no mistake with it and gained a slender lead to Mahanama at the lemons. (SC 14 – 17 MC)
Half time: Mahanama College (2 T, 2 C, 1 P) – (2 T, 2 C) Science College
As Mahanama ended the first half by nailing a penalty, they started the second half by giving away a silly penalty. The kickoff by Science was knocked on by the Mahanama player, and his fellow player, who was in front of him, grabbed the ball by playing in an offside position. Skipper Dilruwan eagerly waited and nailed the regulation chance to square things again. (SC 17 – 17 MC)
Without wasting much time, Mahanama counterattacked and advanced into the Science 22-meter area and earned a lineout with their throwing. Here Mahanama’s gigantic and powerful No. 08 player Vemanga Vishal freely ran through the Science defence to score under the post to regain the lead. The fly-half Malinka made no mistake with the conversion again to extend their lead. (SC 17 – 24 MC)
All of a sudden Science’s three-quarters displayed some fine skills by superb handling work and magnificent support play, reminding us of the golden era of Science rugby, which produced the county’s finest three-quarters during those days. Though the attacking player brought it down just short of inches from the try line, nippy scrum half Edirisinghe cleverly used the blindside to score a diving try just away from the right corner flag. This time skipper Dilruwan reminded us of the all-time greatest place kickers in the game by nailing the conversion from the most difficult angle on the field, and again the game was in the balance. (SC 24 – 24 MC)
Later, Science advanced into the Mahanama half as the Mahanama receiver dropped the ball, which came off a 22-meter drop-out kick. With the momentum they had, the Science players battled hard to gain the lead for the first time after the initial minutes of the game. Science forwards put every skill that they have practiced to cross the line with the help of three-quarters. But the Mahanama defence was rock solid and made Science struggle for nearly four minutes on the five-meter line without scoring. Finally, the ball was sent wide after receiving an offside advantage, and Science planted a well-deserved try by the big forward Demitha Silva after a lengthy and exhausting play. Skipper Dilruwan nailed the regulation chance in conversion to give his side a 7-point lead. (SC 31 – 24 MC)
After seven minutes, Science was penalised for not releasing the ball at a breakdown inside their own half. Immediately a quick tap was taken, and a tackle came without retreating for 10 meters. Referee Tharindu showed a yellow card, making it a crucial juncture in the game. To get the numerical advantage, Mahanama opted for a scrum and stocked into their plan. Nihindu Damsuka made a brilliant break with a side step and offloaded the ball at the right time to the winger, Nethun Nimviru, to score the equaliser. Malinka Dhanuja made a crucial conversion under pressure to make things even-steven at Sugathadasa. (SC 31 – 31 MC)
In the final 10 minutes of play, both sides displayed a fierce play to score somehow, and the period was an acid test for the youngsters. Both Science and Mahanama had good chances, and the mistakes also mounted with tired bodies, which prevented them from scoring. In the extra time, Mahanama decided to go for a stalemate as they opted to kick at touch. Subsequently the long whistle blew, and as the scores of this epic battle denoted, there wasn’t any difference between these two sides as far as skills and techniques are concerned.
Full time: Mahanama College 31 (4 T, 4 C, 1 P) – Science College 31 (4 T, 4 C, 1 P)
Swisstek Perfect Player of the Match: (Dilruwan Perera – Science College)
Points Breakdown
Mahanama College, Colombo –
Avishka Samarakoon 1 T, Mandilu Nemsara 1 T, Vemanga Vishal 1 T, Nihindu Damsuka 1 T, Malinka Dhanuja 4 C
Science College, Mount Lavinia –
Dilruwan Perera 1 T 4 C 1 P, Demitha Silva 2 T, M. Edirisinghe 1 T,
The Match Referee – Tharindu Perera
