St. Peter’s College managed to overcome Royal College in a low-scoring thriller to kick off their Dialog Schools Rugby 2023 season with a win by 11 points to 5 at Bambalapitiya yesterday (17). 

It was the most anticipated match of the week as the two giants in school rugby locked horns in their respective season openers this year. 

The Peterites had the better of Royal College this year already when they beat the Royalists at the CR&FC Centenary Sevens to clinch the championship. But when it came to XV rugby, Royal College has always been one of the best, if not the best team in the last decade or so. 

The game started off with the Peterites dominating possession and keeping the ball inside the red zone of Royal College. However, several unforced handling errors from the Peterites saw them squander chances of breaking the deadlock. 

Yumeth Shihara had the first chance of putting points on the board through a 50 m kick, but missed the target. Royalists had their fair share of chances but they too were let down by some handling errors. However, it was the hosts who broke the deadlock finally, with Shihara bisecting the uprights with a much easier penalty. 

Royal’s biggest chance came when Philio Calyanaratne broke through a couple of tackles, but a desperate ankle tap from Peterite fullback Kushan Tharindu stopped the speedster from going all the way. 

Before the break, an attempt at the uprights from Nabeel Yahiya also missed the target as the Peterites went into lemons in the lead. 

The second half started off with Royalists hitting hard on the Peterite defence. The hosts held fort for 10 minutes but ultimately lost Aiden Fernando for a yellow, paving the way for Royal to find their first try of the season. With their signature rolling maul from the 5 m lineout, Idris Farouk carried the ball over. 

There was relentless pressure from the Royalists until the 58th minute, where Shihara once again slotted in a penalty to take back the lead. Royalists held their nerve with 10 minutes to go as they forged together a string of attacks which carried the ball inches close to the try line, but desperate defence from the hosts turned the ball around. 

With a minute remaining on the clock, Royal had to work from their own half but a fumble from Yahiya cost them dearly as last year’s Peterite Captain Sudesh Jayawickrama pounced on the loose ball and ran all the way to score the winning try. 

Full time

St. Peter’s College 11-5 Royal College  

Other results

S. Thomas’ College 19-13 Wesley College

Dharmaraja College 17-15 Trinity College