Pathana Rout Kings

After a week’s lapse of schools rugby, title contenders Isipathana met the host Kingswood at the Bogambara stadium on Saturday.
Half time score: 5 nil Isipathana leading



Full time score: 10-5 Isipathana won



Match was much anticipated affair as it went to keeping the Isipathana hopes alive for the title against the table leaders Royal.

Pathana's formidable forwards dominated the game during the first quarter of the, gaining possession and wining opposition line outs. Visitors started brightly enough to score the first try of the game at the 10th minute of the game. It was the first scrum of the match to Kingswood, which was turned around by agile forward Prasad Madushanka scoring an unconverted try.

Half way through the first half the game which was a much contested and volatile affair as both teams were shown yellow cards and the respective players were sent to sin-bin.

It was twisting at both ends of the ground as both teams tried to penetrate through the opponents defense. However Pathana gained the edge as their forwards were fast and mobile and at times it proved too much for Kingswood.

At the end of closely contested 40 minutes of the game score board read 5- nil in favour of Isipathana.

Pathan started the second half by gaining possession through set pieces and dominating line outs and scrums.

It was close affair; however both teams didn't capitalize on the opposition’s mistakes and showcased some poor rugby handling. At the 70th minute with brilliant show of skills Kingswood three quarters made the break through and Kingswood fullback Thilina Weerasinghe scored the try in the left corner. However deciding conversion wasn't successful.

Match was a tough call at this stage; Pathana took it up a notch by trying to penetrate through their opponents defense. Their effort were rewarded with a brilliant move from their number 7 and Sri Lanka youth ace Sajith Suhaib who combined with the winger Uditha who scored a try in the left corner. It was relief and joy for the diehard fans from Colombo although the conversion was not successful.

Kingswood came back with a huge effort at the tail end of the match and came close to the try line but tough defense from the visitors prevented them gaining the upper hand.



The match ended to in favour of Isipathana score board reading 10 points to 5.

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Greens take on Kings- Another humdinger!

Isipathana College placed second in the league will take on Kingswood College in another schools fixture match this weekend at Bogambara.

Match facts

Date: 9th July

Venue: Bogambara Stadium Kandy

Time: 04:30pm

Big picture

With the league tournament coming to a close, the Pathanians who have won 8 out of 9 games will take on the 5th placed Kingswoodians in what is tagged as a close contest. Isipathana which boasts of some of the best three-quarters in the schools league will be led by the Sri Lankan youth player Prasad Devinda while the Kingswoodians will be taken on to the field by crack third row forward Jananath Dharmawardene.

The Kingswoodians

The Kingswood team which started off well in the league could not sustain the pressure asserted on them by some of the teams and were at the receiving end against the likes of Trinity, Royal, St. Josephs and Science College.

Their skipper Dharmawardene has been a great motivator and has been playing in both the center position as well as the number eight position for his team. Together with Sri Lanka youth forward Heshan Kalhara the Kings have a solid pack to match up to the dynamic Pathana forwards. The three quarters will be led by two upcoming stars, twins Oshan and Lavanga Perera playing in the fly half and center positions. Both players displayed tremendous skills in the recently concluded junior rugby Asiad with Oshan scoring the opener against Japan and Lavanga scoring a double against a formidable Hong Kong side. Thilina Weerasuriya playing at full back is a brilliant player to watch in open play and he will also have Nazri Mohomed for support who will be playing on the wing.

The Isipathanians

The Greens led by the sparking Devinda Prasad has kept the spectators at the edge of their seats with their free flowing rugby this season. Their forwards though comparatively small made have played with a lot of heart and this has been one of the main reasons for their triumphs this season. The pack which will be led by flank forward Sajid Suhaib another Sri Lankan youth player have dominated most games with their flashy forwards play. The big front row forward cum number eight Nipuna Devinda has been their favoured ball carrier through the season and has had able support from Prasad Madushanka another senior player.

Their three’s who even dominated the fearsome Peters line is led by fly half and skipper Devinda Prasad. Centers Ashan Gallage and Chamal Fernando have been hitting the gaps hard and will try and do the same against the Kingswoodians. Their back three led by Makalanda Prabodha and Shanaka Kumara have been doing the finishing for the Pathanians this season and will try and get around the Kingswood defence this Saturday.

Final verdict

Isipathana certainly will have the edge with their current form but the Kingswoodians after a three week break would have certainly polished their rough ends and will be coming out to beat the Greens. The more experienced set of players from Isipathana have the slight nod ahead of their counterparts going in to battle.

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