The Singer Schools Rugby League in its penultimate round was mired in controversy on a weekend that was, the most violent in its history. Therefore, the schools league championship was postponed on a directive from the Minister of Sports. Much like the Bollywood movie Padmaavat, whose chief antagonist Deepika Padukone, eventually required a police escort, down in Sri Lanka, the games most experienced referee, Dinka Peiris, needed such protection heading to the change rooms.
It is disappointing and very agitating for rugby fans, that this close to ending a season with a climax in waiting, hooliganism, thuggery and a few vagabonds have caused this disruption. All this, as a result of the post-game crowd violence towards referees and namely, fans involving Wesley and Maliyadeva (who are the chief culprits).
Wesley vs Royal, post-game violence which went viral on the internet, along with a heated exchange involving Zahira head coach, Shamly Nawaz, and Aruna Shantha. The Ref. association boss SP Nizam Jamaldeen came out stating that they will “NOT officiate at games involving these schools, both home and away”. A crushing but justified blow to quell the violent uprising from thugs posing as fans of these respective schools, this according to Jamaldeen.
In an intense panel discussion that followed, vociferously protesting this aggression towards their members and calling for order, especially highlighting the incident involving Nawaz, the goose was pretty much cooked. As someone who I have played with and against- at both schools, club level and above, it is unfortunate that he is embroiled in what could potentially be a career-altering situation.
Understandably, as Ref. Dinka and his AR’s were targeted by Wesley hooligans who threatened bodily harm and worse. After all, the ILO (Intl. Labour Organisation) states that any human being has the right to refuse work should they deem it unsafe. That was an understatement last Saturday at CR&FC.
Surely enough, the sidelines of Longden place was a simmering pot where profanity, vile and derogatory remarks were directed at the officials. Jamaldeen was quoted as saying “Threat to life”, which is essentially a criminal offense. Keep in mind, that at no point were the players of either side out of line, not even for a moment.
Instead, a number of offenders representing the Wesley bandwagon were seen to throw their toys out of the cot after the final whistle and after being restrained from approaching and possibly assaulting the ref, instead, turned their ire to opposing fans. The rest is of course history. Actually, it’s all to see, in all its glory- on YouTube.
Moving on, let’s ponder what might have been this weekend and what could possibly transpire in a week’s time. Since the MoE (Ministry of Education) after an interesting press conference has given the all clear through minister Faiszer Musthapha.
Royal and their declining form
The Number one beneficiary of this break is Royal. As defending champs, who had seemingly peaked for their Bradby domination, it has been a dramatic loss of overall form. Their exposed and carry on form after winning the Bradby is extremely scratchy. A bungling performance against Zahira and then surviving the guillotine against Wesley. Predominantly a side which absorbs pressure and cuts loose in the second half, they have only scored thirteen points in the last seventy minutes of rugby (in their last two games).
Given this unexpected “spell” will give them an opportunity to work on these misgivings along with a one-off suspect defense, exposed by Wesley in their last outing. Royal’s once unstoppable driving maul has strangely disappeared off the menu. Their offload game which decimates St Thomas’ is in cold storage and error-strewn. Knowing their coach, he will surely want to tie up these loose ends. He now has the luxury of an extra week in a preparatory paddock. Expect them to come out with ruthless intent and wanting to suffocate the life out of their next opponents. Pathana know what’s coming but will they be able to stop it? Only time will tell.
Trinity look to new leadership
Letting their best opportunity of the season to score a major scalp against Isipathana slip and a change of leadership is in order for the Lions. Emerging from a twisted heap of errors, inaccuracies and should have, could have, would have scenarios, TCK has looked to a complete flush and fresh ideas.
Their advisory board has resigned in full and the new interim committee looks for a potential turn around. It is however very late in the season and they will do well to fend off the wooden spoon. Many theories and criticisms are rife on their decline but it’s too early to call it quits on their campaign. After all, you can’t do an autopsy on a body which isn’t already dead. Can they spring some life into this ailing campaign, albeit late in the play?
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Isipathana search for new accuracy and tries
It has been a while but it happened last week. The Green-shirts played and drew a match where they didn’t score a single try. In fact, their lack of accuracy meant they didn’t look remotely close to scoring one. This is a huge concern for a school which prides itself on expansive, running rugby and scoring tries. Well, they will need to find that against Royal (next). If they are to beat them, doing so on multiple occasions. Trinity rammed through their set piece/ line out defense using the heavy bodies on the park. None more so obvious, than a driving maul to which they had no answer for. Royal will look to brutally expose this and Isipathana will have their work cut out. You can’t collapse it when moving forward and with bad body positions, this is a true G.C.E O/L test for which I hope they can pass, which they have failed in the past. That being, defending the driving maul.
Bambalapitiya bus- halt(ed)
Unfortunately, the momentum these lads have built have been temporarily halted. It’s hard not to read into it too much but St Peter’s have been doing what is required to win and win every week. There’s nothing overly exciting but they seem to know how and what quantity, so they get over the line. The wave they were riding was high enough and a real spoiler that this enforced break arrived. It will have an effect on the run on form and slow them down. You need to be using this momentum when you have built the confidence in a TATA-full.
If they are good enough, which I think they are, the ref. will not matter. This very request shows a gaping hole in their psyche and wreaks of FoF. Fear of Failure. A winning ride is a very much mental as much as physical.
A Pettah bound SLTB bus via all the usual Galle road halts. They do their stops as required but eventually get to their destination. But will they this Saturday?
Joes and their set piece
No lack of imagination and creativity form the Maradana school. Their flair and expansive counter-attacking rugby are at times, mesmerizing. You just cannot cut them any slack or give them a chance from broken play. Many who have kicked into their back three have paid a hefty price. They will score from almost anywhere. The last outing with Zahira was ample proof. Four stunning plays from deep, out wide and it was game over at halftime.
Their set piece is, however, a completely different story. It’s almost as if there isn’t one. Royal, basically schooled them in this aspect and suffocated them to stand still. Zahira too stole their lineouts and disrupted several scrums.
Joes simply need a whole new approach to their set piece. This is their weakness and Sanath Martis will test this hypothesis. SJC has heavily invested in their coaching ranks and apart from the obvious, uncoached flair, I am yet to see any structured offense. Perhaps, this is the week that it all changes?
Zahira- Coach killer’s diary
The Shamly Nawaz episode is well documented and bound to be a matter of interest during the ongoing discussions. The main players from the ref’s society have taken a very firm stance and it will be interesting to see how Zahira regroup and respond. Is Nawaz bound to meet further sanction? Unlikely, but let’s wait and see. This break is a well-timed breather for them to regroup.
Kingswood on a good behavior bond
Another institution whose fans are on notice. Bottle throwing is their weapon of choice. Again, unfortunately, it’s their team who are copping it. They have some really enterprising forwards. Loving the way they bounce in and out of the contact and contest the breakdown. They need to use the week to better hone how they put together a complete performance and reduce their error rate. A genuine threat on their day and it will pay to take every shot at goal when on offer. This dark horse is a long shot at odds but very backable.
Wesley die-hards need to give their rogue fans an uppercut
Easily, the worst affected team. On the back of a brilliant performance and almost toppling the hot pot, many thanks to a few unruly supporters who became internet sensations on YouTube, this break couldn’t have come at a worse time. Carrying on from where they left off, this weekend would have been the perfect outing to build on that incredible game. Fullback Zubair is in white-hot form and emerging as a real star in the midfield with eye-catching footwork. It’s a real shame and would have loved to see this side in full cry. That will now, have to wait, for another week at least.
Form guide
The “Run-on form” is what a team would bring to the game based on their preparation. Their ability to accurately execute a game plan. They would run on with a specific lineup and replicate a training run. Royal is the perfect example of this as they prepped and played the Bradby first leg in an almost mirror image. Highly structured sides in both attack and defense are easy to spot in this aspect.
“Exposed form” is the playing patterns and consistency a team shows week in week out, against different opposition. As they get “exposed” to different teams which are highlighted by their statistics such as rucks, scrum- lineouts won and tackle busts etc. You can make a case of it by comparing their stats, game by game with comparative scores. Consistent sides will have similar stats against similar opposition with almost, similar scorelines.
These are two very effective analytical tools I have developed, partly borrowed from thoroughbred racing. An excellent way to view this week gone by with no rugby and an even better way to analyze and predict a possible outcome. So next time you see a punter reading the form guide at a bucket shop, the above is more or less what they seek to find, even though they may be completely illiterate.
Week three- championship round Predictor:
- Royal by 1-12 points to beat Isipathana
- St Joseph’s by 1-12 points to beat St Peter’s
- Kingswood to draw with Zahira (high scoring draw)
- Trinity 1-12 to beat Wesley
- Kingswood 1-12 to beat DSS
So, just like the postponement of Padmaavat, a true Bollywood blockbuster, the schools league being put back certainly didn’t help fans but it certainly did a few teams. A true blessing in disguise. Mostly.
In Bollywood, allowing the early release of Furkey, Monsoon shootout, and Kapil Sharma’s Firangi, who were all lucky recipients (at the box office) of this delay much like St Joseph’s, Isipathana and Dushan Lewke’s Royal.
