Tactical playing by skipper Kevin Dixon and his Peterite side gave them the upper-hand against their counterparts Trinity College to take home the Deshamanya Major General Dennis Perera memorial trophy for the first time.Full Time: 30-25
Trinity’s lackluster performances last weekend had them putting themselves under pressure not only to win the game but also to win back the hearts of their loyal fans. The Peterites were not lenient to those sentiments and countered their opponents tactically to register a win after trailing at half time 10-20.
Trinity’s opening phases in the game were on point and nobody would have expected a Peterite victory at any point in the first half. The visitors who scored in the very first minutes of play through their forwards as Dhirendra Ratwatte crossed over adding the first points on board. As Sanushka Abeywickrema added the two extras, Trinity had themselves the perfect start. (7-0)
The visitors extended their lead further as the infringements by the Peterites allowed Trinity to put through two successful penalties to take the score to double figures. The kicks were taken by Sanushka Abeywickrema and Thushila Perera. (13-0)
Trinity continued piling their points on board as the mistakes in the lineout by the St. Peter’s hooker allowed scrum half Anuka Boyagoda to successfully chip and chase and plant the loose ball for a try. Perera added the points with ease (20-0).
St. Peter’ who were suffering in the absence of their skipper Kevin Dixon who opted to start in the bench due to injury concerns finally decided to make his way to the field to stabilize matters. The turning point in the game in fact was Dixon’s entry to the Peter’s side as it changed the team’s mentality.
The home team’s first points on board came in the dying stages of the first half as St. Peter’s opted to take a 5 meter quick tap and quick hands in the ruck by Kevin Dixon made him score on the outside. (5-0).
The inclusion of Dixon had its perks on the team’s players giving them an adrenaline boost as this time St. Peter’s were able to successfully push through a rolling maul for a try. Lock forward Deplacithra scored the try while Jayawickrema failed to convert both tries. (10-20)
HT 10-20 in favor of Trinity
The second half saw both teams leveling out to get themselves some points on board but all attempts ended up failing at the final stride. The Bamba camp after much deliberation opted to go for points in the middle stages of the second half and Jayawickrema made no error in the penalty (13-20).
Petes found themselves in real trouble when referee Irshad Cader sent two of the Peterite players to the sin-bin for a possible assault on their opposing player and leaving 13 men in the field. It was skipper Dixon’s strategic thinking that got SPC out of jail.
Seeing the wide spaces available, Trinity pushed through the driving maul to further extend their lead as Rahul Karunathilake scored which went unconverted (25-13). With two men down Dixon had a single option to clear his lines in open play as his clearance kick was successfully collected by DC Fernando who cruised all his way to goal posts to score right under. Skipper Dixon added the extras (20-25)
Trinity’s failure in defending the earlier run by Fernando allowed St. Peter’s to exploit the weakness in the Trinity defense as this time it was Heenpella who did a repeat of Fernando’s move to score under the posts. Dixon was spot on this time again to give his team the lead for the first time. (27-25)
With less than ten minutes on the clock, Jayawickrema’s penalty cemented the Peterite a well-earned victory as Trinity’s attempts to stage a possible comeback failed.
St. Peter’s took home the Deshamanya Major General Dennis Perera trophy for the first time as Trinity College failed yet again to impress despite their first half cameo.
It was evidence of Kevin Dixon’s importance in judgment, his team management skill and leadership. It was clearly visible when he managed the team when they were two men down and yet were able to score two successive tries.
ThePapare names Dixon the player of the match
Score Breakdown
St. Peters 30 (2P, 2G, 2T) Tries by DC Fernando, A. Heenpalla, Kevin Dixon, R. Delpachithra
Conversions (2) and 1 Penalty by Kevin Dixon
Penalty by S. Jayawickrema
Trinity 25 (2G,1T,2P) Tries by Dhirendra Ratwatte, Rahul Karunathilake, Anuka Boyagoda
2 Conversions & Penalty by Sanushka Abeywickrema
1 Penalty by Thushila Perera
