President’s KO Trophy returns to its grand splendour

The President’s Knockout Trophy (formerly known as Premadasa Trophy) was resurrected and elevated to its former glamor and glory, with most pre-quarter encounters being kicked off in front of packed Stands, that we typically don’t get to witness even at the Semis. All credit should be bestowed to the revitalised SLSRFA Committee of yesteryear, who switched their thinking Hats, went back to the drawing boards, and brainstormed novel ideas to kick off the 2025 season to a groundbreaking start. The names of the four persons responsible for reviving the dying Knockout Tournament MUST be mentioned for the benefit of the Schools Rugby loving fraternity of Sri Lanka. However, these Gentlemen wished to remain anonymous and preferred to share the credit with the rest of the Committee, which was a noble gesture indeed.

 Wesley vs St. Joseph’s – 25 April

One of the two curtain raisers opened to a fully packed Grand Stand with standing spectators at the Royal Sports Complex, beating the attendance record for a Quarter Final game at the President’s KO Trophy during the past decade. This announces the resurrection of the much popular Tournament of the 80-90s era, that many old fans have been yearning for.

After managing to steadily maintain Rugby standards of well below ‘Segment A’ last season, St. Joseph’s College bounced back into showcasing strong ‘A Class’ Rugby in their inaugural game of 2025. Head Coach Dulanjana and his coaching team can definitely be given pats on their backs for turning things around for the Saints. Although both teams contested with seemingly identical intensities and portrayed matching skill sets, both with their Forwards and Backs, the Saints’ clean game, abetted by blemishes of Wesley kept them on a slender lead during most part of the first half of the game, while pausing at 18-17 for the break.

 

When one was dreading the thought of Wesley ruining its season with these uncontrolled and unending infringements for the third consecutive season, the Double Blues came back into the second half with an altered mindset that allowed them to play their game with minimal interruption, verifying that their Rugby was far superior to Joes’.

The above stats comparison between the 1st and 2nd halves goes to show how infringements and poor Ball handling affects a team’s ability to score points when competing against an equally able side.

Wesley excelled in place kicking, slotting in two difficult chances from the touchlines, while missing a reasonably straight penalty from around the 35m mark, when kicking under pressure. Wesley gave away 6 penalties that are related to offside offenses that must be corrected before their next game, if they wish to compete to their full potential against Isipathana.

Joes excelled in their lineouts with immaculate precision hooking, that the constantly aggressive, and proactively competing Wesley Jumpers could not spoil more than once. The author has no hesitation in deeming Joes’ lineouts as ‘World Class’! Nevertheless, Joes should work on their touch kicking as it was observed to be marginally weak.

Result: Wesley sped past Joes 36-23

D.S. Senanayake vs Dharmaraja – 25 April

The parallel curtain raiser kicked off at CR & FC to a mediocre turnout, which turned out to be a nerve wrecking Pendulum swinger. Dharmaraja College surprised the masses by playing their best Rugby in many years, displaying fine, aggressive but methodical support play combined with game continuity that enabled their onslaughts to be highly rewarding.

DS was in total disarray in the first half and showed signs of an aftermath of a heavy lunch that has made them lethargic. A few Tries were scored against them as a result of not quickly falling back into their defensive positions, while their Ball handling let them down as well.

The above combination of shortcomings led DS to trail 12-17 at the breather. Nevertheless, the young Donz bounced back after fully digesting their lunch in the second half to play some passionate Rugby that depicted exponential enthusiasm and energy than the first half, up until the last long whistle, that made all the difference to empower the late surge and win.

 

The difference in points was a mere 2 at the 64th minute of the game, after which DS’ sudden rampage coincided with the loss of a few Dharmaraja players owing to injuries, annihilating them in the last 5 minutes of the game. This makes a strong case of the importance of composing a bench that can at least adequately defend, even during the last five minutes of a game.

Both teams committed the highest number of infringements when defending their respective territories with 4 of the 11 fouls of both teams being ‘off side’ in nature. It is also notable that 5 yellow cards were shown in this game, with one for ‘punching’. The coaching camps of both schools should pay special attention to the aspect of discipline, in order to avoid any cards in the future, as the only thing that should get anyone’s attention is their positive and unblemished rugby.

Result: DSS surprised Rajans 48-29

 S. Thomas’ vs Science – 26 April

The coaching crew of both schools deserve a standing ovation for getting some of the basics of Rugby right, but more importantly for teaching and instilling one of the core values of Rugby; discipline.

 

 

The above are dream figures for even international sides, and are not easy to achieve. This goes to show how much effort the two coaching camps have invested in trying to get these fundamentals right, that allowed both teams to complete their attacking moves, unless interrupted by lawful disruption skills of the opposition; which is how it was always meant to be in Rugby. Now both teams would be able to focus on further enhancing their rugby skills, work on specific tactics tailored to oppositions, and make corrections to faulty executions, rather than to keep retraining on the basics even after the Tournaments begins, which is counterproductive. This planning and work done reflects the mindsets of Champion Coaches who take an optimistically proactive approach. Hats off to Anuranga Walpola and Collin Denish for accomplishing this extremely rare feat on Game 1 of the season without a single Card being shown.

The Legion obtained a ray of hope, as the young Thomians demonstrated matured and steadfast rugby without a single occurrence of immaturity. Their approach was defined without impending doubts, their execution was like clockwork without hiccups, and they worked together as a cohesive unit producing continuous Tries from start to finish with constant precision and control. The superior support play that was established within the Thomian team last season, continues with improved determination and meticulousness that has seemingly become second nature in Thomian Rugby now. Thora’s place kicking was exquisite as young Mayanka Dias managed to bag 3 from the extreme touchlines as well.

The left kicking Boot of the Thomian Standoff frequently failed to find touch when he kicked for clearance from the left side of the Pitch, which would be a worry when playing against fast runners. STC coaching should consider dynamically switching the Standoff to a right legged kicker (possibly with the Centre or Full Back), whenever playing on the left side of the Pitch, or utilise a kicker who can kick with both Legs, when competing against sides that opt to play the running game. STC’s defence was lax at times and effective tackles were hard to come by, particularly against sprinting Backs at crucial junctures. Their pick ‘n drive and goal line defences were quite fragile and moreover, it was established that it is easier to sell dummies to the Thomians, than selling Candy to the Kids, which resulted in their line of pride being invaded frequently, making this encounter a 26-deficit win, regardless of the massive points-for.

 Science attacked and scored mostly when they regained possession. As turnovers caused by own blemishes were few, their chances slimmed down considerably, other than for a few knock-ons that Science forced, and a stray kick by STC. The infrequent stutter and juggling with the Ball disrupted Science’s momentum, and didn’t quite help further their attacking chances. Science’s defence formation was tested to the core while being continuously attacked, and the result was evident as they were unable to consistently mark and take down the faster Ball carriers. Once these shortcomings are corrected, Science could be a side to watch out for, in the near future.

 Result: STC runover Science 59-33

 Isipathana vs Sri Sumangala – 26 April

The Greens toned down their colour and played a basic game by running the Ball straight and slow, without heroic moves, or fancy footsteps. They were never put under pressure, hence were able to easily keep the penalty count very low. However, their Ball handling was far worse than that of their opponents, degrading their game and attacking chances owing to 12 unforced errors. Disappointingly, they also failed to find touch for 4 of the penalty touch kicks. Isipathana often missed corner place kicks as well, except for 2. Let’s hope that the Greens treat this as a warm up game, as they will be up against a formidable force in their next game.

Sri Sumangala tackled well from start to finish as much as they possibly could, with a reasonably good defence formation at all times; this is the reason why the scoreboard did not read 100-nil at the end. However, their game discipline was a crying shame and possibly was a nightmare for the Referee, as they didn’t seem to either know or care what the offside law really meant. 8 offside offenses in one game reflects poorly on their coaching staff, and requires immediate attention.

 Result: Pathana cemented Summa 61-0

 Zahira vs Vidyartha – 26 April

This was basically a pre-season practice game where both teams were trying out what was coached, in a real match scenario surrounded by a few gullible spectators, and possibly for the first time. There was no Ball control, there was no game control, and therefore no game continuity, hence no progress; and there was no mind control either by both teams, which resulted in a non-stop, stop-start affair. Those who were not present at Havelock Park on that fine Saturday evening can consider themselves extremely lucky!

 

 

The highlights of the game were 4 ‘high tackles’, 2 ‘punches’, and 4 yellow cards that provokes one to recommend these players to pursue combat sports instead of rugby. The two new Head Coaches of these schools would have their work cut out in teaching these young Blokes discipline in rugby, before proceeding to coach advanced rugby skills.

 Result: Zahira edged Vidyartha 16-12

 Trinity vs St. Anthony’s – 26 April

The Lions brought down the Thunder to strike down their arch rivals, and opened the season pronouncing their dire intention to take all of the silverware on offer back to their Den, in front of a completely packed CR & FC on Saturday night. Their defensive moves were as quick as their attacking moves as usual, to which the opposition camp had no techniques or tactics planned, nor were able to improvise, hence they succumbed without a fight. This was clearly an oversight by the Antonian coaching crew that let the young Eagles down terribly.

However, the Antonians excelled in Ball handling with just 3 unforced errors, but their high infringement count was religiously preserved for the third straight year. 6 ‘holding on’ offenses were forced by the superior Trinity rush defence, which constantly kept teleporting its defenders to the Ball Carriers in a flash.

Trinity’s tackling was ferocious and top notch as it managed to force 5 knock-ons in the opposition Camp. Shan Althaf had a field day with his magic Boots, as it charged the oval Ball towards the twilit goal with precision, from all angles throughout the tender night.

Result: Trinity thumped Anthony’s 62-5

 

Royal vs Kingswood – 27 April

Kingswood College Kandy turned out to be the surprise package of this season, overwhelming the Royal team, its coaching crew, and stunning a totally unsuspecting bunch of people including the spectators, the commentators, the match officials and the general Schools rugby following in Sri Lanka. Aided by Royal’s semi-lethargic inaugural outing, the Boys from Kandy capitalised on most errors made by the opposition to score Tries. On the defence arena, they rounded up the Ball carriers in gold, marked and effectively tackled mostly low, to either slow them down or deplete their chances of scoring, while forcing 3 knock-ons. Kingswood conducted lessons on rush defence to the former masters of the exquisite skillset, which now seem to be diminishing fast. The Thomian and Science coaching units should definitely get some pointers on defence from the Kingswood peers ASAP!

Some of the passing errors not only deprived Royal from scoring potential Tries, but allowed the opposition to counterattack and score instead. Royal missed another chance of scoring, very close to the Goal Line, as the Ball carrier rolled far too many times on the ground for the Referee’s liking, despite support players being almost attached to him.

Although Kingswood always showed intention to counterattack after turning over possession, especially at the breakdowns, they continuously showed lack of discipline in their game, which was the sole reason for their last-minute defeat. With a 3-point lead and 4 minutes left on the clock, a clearance kick from close to their goal line that didn’t find touch was charged by Kingswood players who were already in front of the kicker, which presented a penalty for Royal, inviting the latter back to the danger area. Although the Kingwood Forwards executed a smart angular shove on the Royal Maul (that eventually formed off the lineout throw) to the touchlines, some of the short-sighted, over-enthusiastic defenders joined the Maul from the side, gifting another penalty that sealed the deal for Royal. Constantly instilling the importance of following the laws of the game is crucial, as otherwise ‘disregard’ may become second nature to a team, that would ultimately determine the final outcome of most close encounters. There is absolutely no point in pointing fingers at the match officials thereafter. Maybe the coaching team of Kingswood can take some pointers from their counterparts at STC and Science on how infringements can be controlled effectively?

 Result: Kingswood donates the game to Royal 24-28

St. Peter’s vs Thurstan – 27 April

Both teams came prepared to treat this as a warm up game, that would get them prepped for the road ahead. Thurstan suffered with poor Ball handling, and are lucky that they have more than a month to rectify this shortcoming, as well as their restart kicks that often overshoot. SPC’s game discipline was extremely unsatisfactory considering that they were rarely put under pressure, and if not corrected soon, their offenses may shoot above 25 in pressure games.

Result: Peter’s pulverised Thurstan 51-8

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