Trinity won the all- important encounter with Isipathana to keep their title hopes alive for the last week of the cup segment at Pallekalle earlier today.
Trinity managed to keep ahead of the much favoured Isipathana side at the breather 12 points to 05 as it ended 15(2T 1C 1P)- 10(2T) in favour of the hosts. Coming into the match much was said about it going to be a close tussle between too excellent sides in the schools arena. The match prevailed to its created hype as the large crowds present at the grounds witnessed an arm wrestle of a match at Pallekalle.
Under perfect conditions to play rugby, Trinity kicked off proceedings. Isipathana was found guilty of not clearing their line as the ball was quickly turned over and sent out wide to the big prop forward Aveesha Priyankara who went over the line with ease. Lashen Wijesuriya did the rest with his boot as he clearly and cleanly bisected the two uprights to give the hosts an early 7 point advantage. (TCK 07-00 IC)
Trinity received a scrum right in the middle as Chamod Fernando had put a little too much venom into the kick than required which sent it over the deadline area. Trinity happy with the possession they received attacked the defensive line of Isipathana as Rashen Bandaranayake danced his way over the line to give Trinity an early 12 point cushion. Unfortunately Lashen this time sent the conversion wide of the right upright. (TCK 12-00 IC)
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Isipathana in the early periods of the game found it hard to adjust to the conditions and was found guilty of trying to run the ball instead of trying to clear their line and play it safe first. However it was a moment of magic from the Isipathana scrum half, Harith Bandara, who brought them back into the game. He picked up the ball and set off through the fringes evading at least 5 tackles before touching down in the left corner of the field. Chamod Fernando missed the conversion by a long margin. (TCK 12-05 IC)
Then it was a matter of patience for both teams as they ran after each other for the next 10 minutes without any success or points to show off. During this Harith Bandara, the try scorer was sent off to the naughty boy chair for tackling Boyagoda while in the air. Minutes later the Trinity first center Rajarathnam returned the one man advantage as he saw himself sent off for a high tackle on Chamod Fernando. The referee Rohan Fernando blew the whistle for half time as soon as Rajarathnam was sent off.
Half Time: Trinity 12 (2T 1C) – 05 (1T) Isipathana
The second half started off as the skies showed signs of opening up above the Pallekalle stadium although it was not be. Trinity got the first score of the second half in the 65th minute of play as Lashen Wijesuriya put them beyond one score. The penalty was a gift from Isipathana, 25 meters, right in front of the posts, given for holding on.
Isipathana however got plenty of chances to score but the Trinity defence today was up on their toes. They made some hard tackles and made some brilliant turnovers when Isipathana were inches away from scoring. It was Trinity’s defence that won them the game.
However Chamod Fernando got on the score sheet to give Isipathana some hope of a comeback. He ran a clean running angle before cutting back inside to crossover the line. Harith Bandara was yet again the architect of the try giving out a nice cut out pass to Fernando. He failed to add the extras of his own try. (TCK 15-10 IC)
The game ended after both teams battled it out in the last 10 minutes. Trinity emerged victorious deservingly at end of the allocated 80 minutes. Now Trinity has only Royal to beat to become the league champs for the year 2017. However Royal after the break has been putting up some brilliant overall performances which means we are in for a mouth-watering clash next weekend at Pallekalle. For the Isipathana team it will be Wesley next week which will also be a close tussle at Colombo.
Full Time: Trinity 15 (2T 1C 1P) – 10 (2T) Isipathana
ThePapare.com’s Player of the Match: Aveesha Priyankara
Score breakdown
Trinity College
Aveesha Priyankara (1T)
Rashen Bandaranayake (1T)
Lashen Wijesuriya (1C 1P)Isipathana College
Chamod Fernando (1T)
Harith Bandara (1T)
