St. Joseph’s College was pushed to the brink, however, managed to hold on to defeat Zahira College 22 (3T 2C 1P) – 26 (3T 1C 3P) in the Maradana Derby game played in the Dialog Schools Rugby League 2024 on the 22nd of June.
The visitors changed their winger as Senuja Geeran made his way into the run-on XV, while the hosts made six changes coming into a must-win encounter. Both sides aimed to kickstart their Dialog Schools Rugby League 2024 campaign with a win.
It took the visitors three minutes to break the deadlock as Beeshma Jayasekara punted over a penalty after the Zahira defense infringed early on.
Zahira struck back straight away as this time the visitors’ defense was caught napping. Basith slotted over to level things in the Maradana Derby. (ZC 03-03 SJC)
The hosts took the lead for the first time in the game as momentum shifted, handing the home team a chance to pile pressure on the Josephians. The Zahira forwards were too good for the visitors as they hammered their way to the whitewash, with Abdullah as the beneficiary as the prop crashed over. Basith added the extras.
The Josephians managed their second penalty of the half off the boot of Jayasekara, cutting the deficit.
Moments later, Shehan Malinda and Malshan Dewmin dealt a double blow to Zahira on the stroke of halftime, sending the home team trailing into lemons
Half time: Zahira College 10 (1T 1C 1P) trail St. Joseph’s College 16 (2T 2P)
With their backs to the wall, the home team got off the mark quickly, scoring just two minutes into the second half. Sabri’s successful conversion meant the home team grabbed the lead once again.
The Josephians conceded their third try soon after Jayasekara’s third penalty, leaving the visitors trailing by three points.
First, it was Mohamed for Zahira with an eye-catching front peel try, and their third of the game came through Saldin to stun the visitors. (ZC 22-19 SJC)
With time running out, the Josephians were pretty much handed the opportunity to score as Zahira did not seem to want to clear their lines, inviting pressure on themselves.
This pressure meant Zahira fumbled, handing the visitors a scrum inside the hosts’ red zone. St. Joseph’s pounced on the opportunity, and with moments left, Induwara Rodrigo stepped up to crash over from close range to secure the game after Beeshma added the extras. (ZC 22-26 SJC)
Zahira received one final opportunity; however, they failed to capitalize, handing the visitors their first win of the 2024 campaign and leaving Zahira College and its coaching staff with questions to answer going into week 3.
Full time: Zahira College 22 (3T 2C 1P) lost to St. Joseph’s College 26 (3T 1C 3P)
- NDB Player of the Match: Hemish Gamage (SJC)
Points Breakdown:
Zahira: Shahib Ishan 5 points (1 Try,) Basith Feroz 7 points (1 Penalty, 2 Conversions), Sabri Sahibo 5 points (1 Try), Mohammad Saldin 5 points (1 Try)
St. Joseph’s: Shehan Malindu 5 points (1 Try), Malshan Dewmin 5 points (1 Try), Induwara Rodrigo 5 points (1 Try), Beeshma Jayasekara 11 points (1 Conversion, 3 Penalties)
 - 26 (3T 1C 3P) in the Maradana Darby game played in the Dialog Schools’ Rugby League.){kind=link}