Kingswood retain 'A' Div. League Rugby Title

by Chris Dhambarage

Kingswood College have done it again. This time in a more spectacular manner. They have retained the Singer 'A' division league title for the second successive year. Last week at the Bogambara Stadium they cleared their final hurdle with an emphatic 20 points to five points victory over their traditional rivals Wesley College.

The Kingswoodians ended up at the top of the points table having collected a total of 22 points from their six outings. They lived upto expectations as the favourites and eventually recorded five victories and drew with St. Peter's College seventeen all in a thrilling encounter.

Incidentally the draw against the Peterites almost shattered their hopes but fought back magnificently to come out victorious in their last two outings.

However according to their coach Ronnie Ibrahim the team that they most feared this season was S. Thomas' College Mount Lavinia. But the Kingswoodians came out victorious by a convincing margin in this crucial outing as they gave a good account of themselves while performing under pressure.

Their success was even more significant because they are fielding a young side with just four senior players in their ranks. But coach Ibrahim said that the youngsters really stuck to their task and did the basics and that certainly brought them great success at the end. The Kingswoodians have come a long way under the guidance of Ronnie Ibrahim. They first made their presence felt in the inter-school rugby scene when they clinched the 'B' division league title two years ago.

They performed even better last year when they clinched the Singer 'A' division league title which was on offer for the first time. But this year they have really consolidated their position as the number one schools rugby team with some outstanding performances both at home and away. In fact they were forced to play their first three league matches all in Colombo which would have certainly put them under a tremendous amount of pressure.

But they went about their task in their own style and swept aside all three opponents by a margin of more than 30 points. But this was quite a remarkable performance as they powered their way in their own style while scoring tries almost at will. In fact they scored more tries than any other team in the 'A' division league tournament where they touched down on as many as 27 occasions which is nine tries more than the second placed S. Thomas' College Mount Lavinia.

S. Thomas' v St. Joseph's

S. Thomas' College Mount Lavinia retained the Lady Jayatilleke Shield with a run away 29 points to nil victory over St. Joseph's College in their annual inter-school fixture played at Havelock Park last week.

The Thomians certainly may have enjoyed themselves and their success was also a relief after a heavy drubbing at the hands of Kingswood College during the previous week. In fact this time the Thomians did not feel the pressure at all and the game turned out to be a one sided contest from the kick off.

This was quite understandable because the Josephians are right at the bottom of the 'A' division league points table having lost all their previous four games. In contrast S. Thomas' College had experienced mixed fortunes and were hoping to redeem some of their lost prestige. The Thomians did exactly that as they completely sealed the game in their favour within the first 30 minutes of play by running down as many as four tries.

They did not mind making a few mistakes in the second half and as a result they could add just a solitary try to their tally. The Thomians could still emerge as the 'A' division league runners up and their final game against Ananda College this week will be an important one.

Isipatana v Royal

Isipatana continued with their giant killing performances this season with an exciting eight points to six points victory over their arch rivals Royal College in their annual inter-school rugby match played at Reid Avenue last week.

Isipatana's success was even more significant as they regained the Major Milroy Fernando Memorial Trophy after a lapse of six years. Isipatana who stunned the Trinitians last week once again put up a splendid performance as they collected their points from one try and a penalty against their opponents two penalties. However Isipatana certainly played a better game and they seem to be improving after every outing.

This was another clear indication that their victory over Trinity College Kandy last week was not a fluke but a genuine effort. This outing too was a not a tournament fixture but Isipatana really played their hearts out to fashion a memorable victory at the end.

Isipatana certainly could look back at the season and be pleased with the performances because they have lost just one game and that too against the 'B' division champion team St. Anthony's College Kandy.

The Antonians are assured of winning the 'B' division league title after their fifth successive victory last week and together with Isipatana they will be promoted into the top division from next year. In contrast Royal are in danger of being demoted into the 'B' division and will face their last league match against St. Peter's College this weekend.

St. Peter's v Ananda

St. Peter's College further consolidated their position in the 'A' division league tournament with a morale boosting 29 points to 19 points victory over Ananda College in their annual fixture played at Bambalapitiya last week.

This victory also helped the Peterites to climb up to the fourth place in the 'A' division league points table which is a tremendous improvement considering their position at the beginning of the season. They were almost facing relegation from the 'A' division after going down to S. Thomas' College Mount Lavinia and Wesley College.

But they picked up their form as the season progressed and now they seem to have reached their climax which is a good sign ahead of the sevens and the knock out tournaments.

Trinity v Nalanda

Trinity College Kandy meanwhile clinched the Singer 'C' division league title while notching up two impressive victories over Royal College Panadura and Nalanda College during the weekend. The Trinitians completed the tournament with an unbeaten record and collected the maximum points while registering six wins from the same number of outings.

They hardly faced any kind of opposition during the tournament and their goal line was not crossed on more than a couple of occasions.

The Trinitians completed their task in style with a smashing 48 points to nil victory over Nalanda College on their home grounds at the Pallekelle Stadium. In fact they have won all their matches by a margin of more than 30 points which is quite an outstanding performance. Their only setback of course was the close defeat at the hands of Isipatana College at Havelock Park which otherwise would have been a fantastic season.

That defeat also spoiled their chances of making a clean sweep and remaining unbeaten this season which also removed some of the gloss from their earlier matches. Nevertheless Trinity College were able to create a major sensation this season and could look forward to their next outing against the home town rivals St. Anthony's College this weekend and the Bradby Shield encounter against the traditional rivals Royal College with a positive frame of mind.