Ananda College created a major sensation when they toppled the more fancied Science College outfit 32-26 in their Inter-Schools Under-19 League Rugby Tournament encounter played at the Ananda College Rugby Grounds in Rajagiriya.
The Anandians, who were promoted to the top division this season, went on to reach a significant milestone as they recorded a victory in an ‘A’ Division League rugby match after a lapse of 17 years.
Ananda were trailing by a solitary point (25-26) going into the last few minutes of the game and they showed pure grit and passion to score the match winning try during the dying moments in a spectacular manner.
Meanwhile, the defending League champions St. Peter’s College powered their way to another emphatic 24-8 victory over St. Anthony’s College in their match played at the Nittawela Stadium in Kandy.
The Peterites, despite performing away from home and playing under difficult conditions, produced a splendid all-round performance as they also went on to retain the Rector’s Trophy for another year.
The reigning President’s Trophy Knock-Out champions, Isipathana College survived a fierce late rally before overcoming a spirited Kingswood outfit 32-22 in another encounter played at the Bogambara Stadium in Kandy.
The visitors enjoyed a slender 12-10 lead at half time, and they were even more under pressure as the Kingswoodians launched a terrific assault during the latter stages.
But Isipathana lived upto expectations as a true champion outfit and held their nerves before recording their second straight victory in the tournament.
S. Thomas’ College maintained their unbeaten record as they cruised to a convincing 43-19 victory over Zahira College in another fixture played at Mount Lavinia.
The Thomians, playing back-to-back games on their home grounds, enjoyed a 14-0 lead at the break and went on to add the finishing touches in style, scoring seven tries during a dominant second-half performance.
Wesley College cruised to a convincing 29-10 victory over the giant killers D. S. Senanayake College in their Inter-Schools Under-19 League Rugby Tournament match played at Longden Place.
The Wesleyites made their intentions quite clear and got off to a fantastic start as they built up a commanding 21-3 lead at half time, courtesy of three superb tries.
They managed to touch down only once in the second half, but their first half blitz was good enough to seal another comfortable victory in the end.
St. Joseph’s College recovered from last week’s setback to record a comfortable 26-5 win over Thurstan College in their fixture played at Longden Place.
The Josephians scored two early tries to build up a 12-0 lead at half time and added two more tries to their tally in the second half while conceding just a solitary try to their opponents.
Meanwhile, the traditional rivals Royal College and Trinity College recorded thumping victories over Sri Sumangala College (53-3) and Vidyartha College (74-14) respectively while newcomers Mahanama College surprised Dharmaraja College 15-5 in their match played at Ratmalana.
