Defending champions St. Peter’s College secured a hard-fought 37-28 victory over the impressive Trinity College side in their Super Round clash of the 2024 Dialog Schools Rugby League. The win at St. Peter’s Grounds in Bambalapitiya ensured they retained the General Deshamanya Denis Perera Trophy.
Trinity College started the game strongly, dominating possession and earning a kickable penalty, but Shan Althaf’s attempt missed the uprights. Their momentum waned when Thisanga Dissanayake was shown a yellow card for a high tackle on Salith Gallage. St. Peter’s College capitalized on back-to-back penalties. Gallage took a quick tap on the second penalty, passing it to playmaker Raul Peter, who delivered a long cut-out pass to Yumeth Shihara. Shihara, spotting an overlap, then passed to Vishenka Silva, who scored in the corner. (SPC 05 – 00 TCK)
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Trinity College quickly responded when Yumeth Shihara was penalized for holding on to the ball. Yevan Hulngamuwa stepped up and calmly converted the easy penalty, opening the scoring for the visitors. (SPC 05 – 03 TCK)
St. Peter’s College felt the pressure of a Trinity comeback as momentum shifted immediately after the restart. Raul Peter’s kick was cleared by Shan Althaf, and the Peterites’ attempt to advance from their half faltered when Pasindu Bandara’s long pass to Gallage was fumbled. Trinity winger Murad Razian seized the loose ball, making a crucial run before offloading to Usman Shafraz. Shafraz made significant ground and delivered a precise pass to Udisha Rathnayake, who scored the visitors’ opening try. Yevan Hulngamuwa then added the conversion, giving Trinity the lead. (SPC 05 – 10 TCK)
Things worsened for St. Peter’s when Pasindu Bandara was shown a yellow card for dissent towards the referee. Yevan Hulngamuwa capitalized on the situation by converting a penalty to further extend Trinity’s lead. (SPC 05 – 13 TCK)
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A few minutes later, Trinity was reduced to 14 players when Usman Shafraz was yellow-carded for a high tackle. Just before halftime, St. Peter’s College regained their momentum and applied significant pressure. From a scrum outside the 22-meter line, Peterites made a strong impact. Skipper Dulaj Nawodya, playing as scrum half, made a swift pass to Raul Peter. Peter engaged with the Trinity defenders and offloaded back to Nawodya, who spotted a gap and powered over to score under the posts. Peter then successfully converted the try, narrowing the deficit to just one point.
Half Time: St. Peter’s College 12 (2T,1C) – Trinity College 13 (1T,1C,2P)
Trinity College started the second half strongly, earning a penalty shortly after the restart when the Peterites were ruled offside. Yevan Hulngamuwa converted the penalty with ease, increasing the pressure on the hosts. (SPC 12 – 16 TCK)
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The Peterites weathered the pressure and made a decisive comeback from a set piece. Raul Peter executed a perfect pass to Pasindu Bandara, who broke through the heart of the Trinity defence. Bandara sidestepped the last defenders to score, reclaiming the lead for St. Peter’s. (SPC 17 – 16 TCK)
The Peterites were penalized once again for poor discipline when Shenuka Perera was yellow-carded for tackling a player in the air. Despite being down to 14 players, St. Peter’s continued their attacking momentum. They earned a penalty for an offside infringement by the visitors, and Raul Peter calmly converted the straightforward penalty kick.(SPC 20 – 16 TCK)
In the 55th minute, Trinity regained the lead in this see-saw game. Their forwards executed a series of pick-and-drives in close quarters, with replacement hooker Dehan Watagoda eventually powering over from a pick-and-drive to score. (SPC 20 – 21 TCK)
For the first time this season, the Peterites were under intense pressure but responded strongly by scoring back-to-back points to seize control of the game. Raul Peter first added a straightforward penalty right in front of the posts. Shortly after, the forwards took charge, with powerful carries leading to a crucial try by the imposing prop Ranithu Ridmal, who broke through the Trinity defence. Peter made no mistake with the conversion, solidifying St. Peter’s position. (SPC 30 – 21 TCK)
Trinity was given a lifeline when Shenuka Perera received a second yellow card and was sent off for foul play. After the penalty, Trinity kicked for touch and formed a rolling maul. From the back of the maul, Trinity’s No. 8, Thisanga Dissanayake, powered over to score. Yevan Hulngamuwa’s precise conversion from the corner set up a nail-biting finish to the game.(SPC 30 – 28 TCK)
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the dying moments of the game, Trinity had to attack from their own 22-meter line. They made significant progress towards the halfway mark, but the Peterites turned the ball over and launched a counterattack. The ball was sent to the speedster Vishenka Silva, who made a trademark run along the touchline to score the decisive try. Raul Peter then sealed the win for the Peterites with a flawless conversion from a difficult angle. With this victory, St. Peter’s will face Isipathana College next week for the league decider.
Full Time: St. Peter’s College 37 (5T,3C,2P) – Trinity College 28 (3T,2C,3P)
NDB Player of the Match: Ranithu Ridmal (St. Peter’s College)
Points Breakdown
St. Peter’s College: 37
Vishenka Silva 10 points (2T), Dulaj Nawodya 5 points (1T), Pasindu Bandara 5 points (1T), Ranithu Ridmal 5 points (1T), Raul Peter 12 points (3C,2P),
Trinity College 28
Udisha Rathnayake 5 points (1T), Dehan Watagoda 5 points (1T), Thisanga Dissanayake 5 points (1T), Yevan Hulngamuwa 13 points (2C,3P).
