Clash of the Titans

Dialog Schools Rugby League 2024 – Week 7 Peek preview  

The weekend that we have all been waiting for is finally here! Although it is not the final week of Round 1 anymore, it would reveal as to who would take a step closer to the League Title. In addition to the million-dollar game, there are other interesting close encounters this weekend, and upsets are still very much on the cards for these. Therefore, one must pay close attention to these other fixtures as well, as their results may shift the positions of teams vying for the second berth of Group 1. 

Royal vs St. Peter’s at Royal Sports Complex on 27 July:

While some have patiently waited more than a year for this spectacular clash, some have toiled the same duration to rewrite their fortune, as the former apprentice vows to better his master in an all-important battle between the only two Titans of the top Division League. However, this time, the Colosseum would be brutal and unforgiving unlike in the previous year, and the visiting Brigade shall face a novel hazardous environment similar to the wilderness of the Amazon forests, in their path to defend the League Title.

It’s been crystal clear so far that the master would use his magical, flash-like runners to run circles around the wilderness that’s hungry to hunt its prey, hence it seems more likely that the preys would outsmart and outrun the hunters in this game. The master has also upgraded his forwards, just to be able to defend strong counterparts in every aspect of their skillset. However, the patrons would find out if this is indeed sufficient against the might of the Royal Tuskers.

The apprentice has been quite secretive this year, and extremely shy of showing off the hidden skill sets of his team. He has spent much of his resources on almost two sets of forwards that he seldom used this season, and one could only assume that this was the special banquet that the “Bomb Squad” was formed and reserved for. If utilised in this encounter during the last 15 to 20 minutes, you might catch the Brigade forwards take off like the Roman soldiers in an Asterix battle fight. In case they are restricted to the bench in this game as well, then they surely must be some random bulky bodybuilders who have never played Rugby in their lives but are left on the bench to confuse and distract the coaching crew of the opposition.

Royal cannot win this game if SPC obtains sufficient ball possession, period. The hosts cannot afford to play the “Catch me if you can” game against the Brigade’s three quarters. Therefore, Royal would have to do everything in its power to win back the ball, and then retain possession. Kicking the ball into the hands of the opposition would only be the work of a “Suicide Squad”, that would nullify the work to be done by the “Bomb Squad” later, when and if they are ever allowed to leave the warmth of their bench. Royal could run the ball by all means, but must never lose possession, hence their ball handling skills and law-abiding mentality have to go hand-in-hand, like the couple at a typical wedding banquet. Even if one of these go over the limit, like it has in their past games this season, then it’s game-over for the hosts. 

 It is public knowledge that the Tuskers are expected to play their actual forwards game for the first time this season. The patrons would be entitled to witness Royal’s deadly rolling mauls to be resurrected once again. However, since the master already knows how his apprentice thinks and works his mauls, the apprentice may have to outthink his former master. Even so, the master would be very quick to catch each tactic, and that tactic could be repeated only until the next message is sent to the on-field Brigade. Therefore, the apprentice may have to come up with several distinct sub-tactics or decoys for every Try that he plans on scoring using the maul; if not, he may fall short of points.

Point to note is that this year’s Peterite backline is far superior than its last, but Royal’s game this season has not shown much brilliance thus far, and it could be quite challenging to execute top secret drills, solely carried out at facilities similar to “Area 51”, for the first time in such a crunch game. Therefore, the match prediction is for the Bamba Brigade to have a relatively easy win by at least 15 points, if they could keep their infringements (penalties) Under-10. 

S. Thomas’ vs Dharmaraja at Big Club Ground on 27 July:

The late resurgent resist, Dharmaraja College Kandy, linearly upstretched their speed breakers to slow down and bring down the favourites in their last two games, standing tall in front of another team that has been on the steep rise since week 2. STC would now have to face a surprise hurdle on their way to secure the second berth in the Group. Luckily, they could relish the home advantage that is in their favour, to be mentally superior and give themselves a solid chance to outdo the visitors, who would have to make a long and tiresome trip down from the Hills. It should be duly noted that DS was outclassed by STC largely due to the mental upper hand, as that game was played at home.

First and foremostly, we are looking at two teams that have been groomed to possess the ball like wicked spirits, by means of uninterrupted support play that constantly follows the ball carriers. This game would tell us as to who is craftier in this sorcery. Secondly, the Thomians have demonstrated better ball handling than the Rajans in their last two games against stiff opponents. Thirdly, although the Rajans have been riding high on their penalty count, they have improved themselves in their last game against Science, which may put both teams on par. Therefore, the possession game shall be influenced by the second and the third factors indicated above.

The Rajans are clearly superior in their “jackling” skills compared to STC, hence we can expect the home team to give away a handful of ‘holding-on’ penalties in this game. If this doesn’t transpire, it would prove that the Thomian support play could outpace the opposition’s “jackling” speed, which would be another interesting aspect to watch out for.

Rajans’ maul defence would be tested in this game, as they would be up against a strong Forwards side that could overrun them repeatedly. Since the visitors’ line-out turnover skill is still in its infancy, they may not be in a position to disrupt the attacking mauls being formed within the danger zones. Thus, the visitors’ maul defence tactics and skills would play a pivotal role in this game. However, Dharmaraja’s tackling skills have improved quite a lot in recent weeks, hence should have a slight edge over the Thomians. Therefore, the Thomians would be better off using their forwards for their onslaughts initially in this encounter.

 If Rajans could hold up their mental stature, and control their infringements count, this game could go down to the wire. 

Science vs Trinity at Sugathadasa Stadium on 27 July:

Trinity College Kandy was back with a big bang last weekend, displaying the brand of Rugby that the Sri Lankan Schools Rugby community have been always used to seeing them play. It has been so long since they played a game of fast and open Rugby in their own style to near perfection, the mass has already begun to forget how it even looked like. It was indeed a delightful pleasure to see them back in their own game, working the ball and making the fancy moves, so confidently at fast pace. Trinity is back in their prime attacking form, and should be ready for the Bradby, only if they are able to sustain their form while playing in Colombo as well; hence this encounter would serve as a testament for it.

Science College portrayed its worst performance this season against the Rajans last weekend, but should be able to bounce back, since they are playing in Colombo this weekend. However, even their best performance this season does not measure up to Trinity’s dashing attacking methods showcased last week. If only Trinity is unable to keep up last week’s momentum and energy, while Science could uplift its tackling game considerably, only then we may be in for a tight contest. 

St. Anthony’s vs Isipathana at Nittawela on 27 July:

The Antonians have steeply elevated their game as well, following the embarrassing setback against the Rajans. They were able to play a reasonably high level of Rugby in order to make a match out of the Trinity encounter, which was an absolute treat to watch. It was quite astonishing to observe how a team could regroup and execute a well organised game, just within a 7-day period after a dismal outing.

One of SACK’s tactics was to kick deep during restarts and marshal the forces right in front of the Ball, and then apply pressure on the opposition. This tactic is exactly what the doctor prescribed to battle Pathana phobia, as Isipathana has been making a habit of making critical errors while being pressurised inside their grid. With the rejuvenated game that Antho played last week, they may be able to showcase some surprise moves to startle the Greens and excite the audience at the same time. In addition, Antho’s strong suite is their maul attack, and we were all able to notice how poor the Pathana maul defence was against DS. Yet, since SACK hasn’t been able to turn over a single lineout this season against stiff competitions, while Pathana is very much capable of the skill, we may see only a few Antho mauls forming within Pathana’s vulnerability zones. 

Nevertheless, this is vouched to be another fantastic game of fast and open Rugby, that the majority of the Sri Lankans prefer to watch and enjoy. Therefore, regardless of the result or the margin of defeat, this is recommended as a must-watch game. 

Vidyartha vs Wesley at Nittawela on 28 July:

This would be a contest between mass and speed. Neither team could match the other’s distinctive skill advantage, but could only employ counter tactics to minimise, if not neutralise the potential damages to be done. Thus, it is expected to be a rather unpredictable affair that largely depends on the following factors.

 Can Vidyartha hold the Wesley mauls? It seems very unlikely that they could, due to the sheer bulkiness and weight of the Wesley forwards, and we may be able to witness another well-oiled wheelbarrow in swift motion along the playing field, multiple times. In a similar sense, Vidyartha may not be able to effectively defend the Double Blues’ thundering pick ‘n drives for a prolonged period either. Therefore, their primary tactic should be ball possession, the secondary tactic is not using their boots to gain territory, at least in the first half, and the tertiary tactic should be to run the ball from wherever they gain possession of it. Opting for the kicking game in the first half could be dicey and may go either way. Granting possession to Wesley early on may result in the Vidyartha forwards being softened by half time, and then it shall be doomsday when Wesley’s next set of forwards arrive at the scene in the second half.

Wesley has the option to attack either way, and stress test the Tigers’ tackling endurance to the extreme. They could collect anything that is kicked to them, and run it as far as they could go, and then switch the ball to their frosty forwards to ram the rest of their way, towards the opposition’s goal line. Their backs may not be as fast as their counterparts but should be able to gain some yards carrying the ball. It is their tackling that could prove as a decisive factor in this encounter. They were not too bad against the Peterites, hence should be able to manage against the speeding Tigers reasonably well. Yet, this is something to be executed with precision on game day and would influence the points scored against them.

All in all, the favourites seem to be the Double Blues based on the above assessment, but neither the Tigers, nor the excitement of a thrilling contest, could be totally written off.

 

(The writer can be reached at: [email protected])