Another high-stakes Plate segment encounter of the Dialog Schools’ Rugby League 2025 took place on this Sunday, and the high-riding Dons clashed with the gritty Sumangala side at the Trinity College Ground Pallekelle. D. S. Senanayake’s outfit was clinical throughout the game, but Summa Brigade equally displayed a great fight and finally Dons managed to win with a score of 26 – 19.
D.S. Senanayake started the proceedings with the kickoff under the gloomy sky of Kandy. Straightaway, the D. S. Dons applied massive pressure on the Sumangala defence and a Sumangala player was found guilty for using his hands in the ruck. With that advantage, the Dons advanced into the opposition’s 22-meter area. While they were attacking, the D. S. fly half suddenly went for a flat kick towards their winger. The ball went into the in-goal area, and it looked like D. S. winger Kushan Priyalal made a mess of the kick. But replay displayed that he had done enough to recover the slipped ball from his hands and to score the first try of the match. Fullback Bhuddhitha Rusiru made a magnificent conversion to extend the lead. (DS 07 – 00 WSSCK)
A minute later, Sumangala received a high hanging kick and launched an attack from their own half. Suddenly, Sumangala, outside centre, spotted a gap in the defence and capitalised on it. Then there was incredible work by the three quarters, and their support to the ball carrier was at the next level, and they scored under the post. Achila Gamage was the try scorer, and Pasindu Samarakoon made no mistake with the conversion. (DS 07-07 WSSCK)
Later, Sumangala attacked again into the D. S. 22-meter area, but unfortunately they were penalised for a side entry at a ruck and missed a good scoring opportunity. Since then, D. S.’s attack looked solid and determined, and they managed to work the ball to the left from the right and to the right from the left a few times and advanced by gaining a meter and a meter. Suddenly their wing three-quarters found a loose hole and went through. However the Sumangala tackler managed to bring him to the ground just short of a try. After a couple of phases, D. S. Senanayake hooker Praveen Lakmal had to take the duty of scrum half, and the big lad used a show-and-go technique to score their second try like a typical halfback. Reliable place kicker Buddhitha Rusiru again displayed his colours by nailing the conversion. (DS 14-07 WSSCK)
A few minutes later, the Dons managed to launch a fierce attack inside the Sumangala half, and they were inching towards the try line. All of a sudden the D.S. fly half was through with a missed tackle, and he fell short of a few inches from scoring. The Sumangala defenders did well to put their hands on the ball by staying on their feet, and D. S. missed a good scoring opportunity.
However, in the next phase, D.S. Lock Forward managed to steal possession from Sumangala at the lineout. Since then, the Dons attacked fiercely at the midway of the grounds, but Sumangala’s defence was equally up to the task. As there was no progress, the D. S. Senanayake halfback finally kicked the ball into no man’s land nearly to the right corner flag. Though Sumangala grabbed the ball before the arrival of charging players, the Dons did well to turn over the ball. Here the big prop forward Thimath Jithnula barged his way to a try by pushing a few tacklers with his pure power. As usual, Bhudditha was good with his boots to add the extras. (DS 21-07 WSSCK)
Until the short whistle, the teams failed to trouble the scorers again, and by that time the Dons were in the driving seat of the game with a fancy lead of 14 points.
Half Time: D. S. Senanayaka College 21 (3 T, 3 C) – Wariyapola Sri Sumangala College 07 (1 T, 1 C)
Nearly 20 minutes of the second half went without scoring, though both of the teams had ample chances to go to the score sheet. After a long wait, Sumangala managed to break the deadlock by earning a lineout near the 5-meter line of the opposition half as the Dons were found guilty of a side entry in a ruck. The lineout throw went above the lifted player, but it luckily landed in the safe hands of Shiwantha Madushan. He did well to pass two tacklers by running with an angle to plant their long-awaited second try. Again, Pasindu Samarakoon made no mistake with the conversion. (DS 21 – 14 WSSCK)
>>Meet the captains who are battling for a single crown<<
With this try, the Summa brigade looked more energetic, dangerous and they kept knocking on the door for another try. Though the formidable Dons never gave them any easy chance, Sumangala advanced into D. S. territory. Then the Summa brigade intensified the pressure on Dons; hence, they made numerous mistakes in the defence. After awarding nearly seven penalties in a row, the referee, Nalin Lasantha, went for his pocket and showed a yellow card for the D. S. player under the repeated infringement law. Then a tap was taken, and after a couple of phases, prop forward Tharusha Theekshana went over the try line. This time Pasindu failed to put in a regulation conversion, which made an impact later in the game. (DS 21-19 WSSCK)
Then D. S. put in a long and high-hanging restart kick, and the Sumangala fly half had no options other than finding the touch amid the pressure of charging players. There, the Dons had a good lineout, and a maul was formed subsequently. Then the Summa forwards were found guilty of collapsing the maul, and again they were penalised for offside play at a ruck. Afterwards, the Dons had the final say of the game as they scored through a maul from a 5-meter lineout. The hooker Praveen Lakmal placed his second try near the right corner flag, and the difficult conversion chance went astray. (DS 26 – 19 WSSCK)
It was followed by the long whistle, and D. S. Senanayake College managed to get a crucial win in the Plate Championship by handling the spirited effort from Sumangala well. With this victory, D.S Senanayake College stays just one point behind the table toppers St. Joseph’s College, making things even more interesting.
Full Time: D. S. Senanayake College 26 (4 T, 3 C) – Wariyapola Sri Sumangala College, Kandy 19 (3 T, 2 C)
Swisstek Perfect Player of the Match: Pasindu Samarakoon (Wariyapola Sri Sumangala College, Kandy)
Points Breakdown
D. S. Senanayake College, Colombo – 26
Kushan Priyalal 1 T, Thimath Jithnula 1 T, Praveen Lakmal 2 T, Buddhitha Rusiru 3 C
Wariyapola Sri Sumangala College, Kandy – 19
Achila Gamage 1 T, Shivantha Madhushan 1 T, Tharusha Theekshana 1 T, Pasindu Samarakoon 2 C
Match Referee – Nalin Lasantha
