Keep tab on discipline and rowdy behaviour from now on
View(s):The Sevens kicked off the schools rugby season last week. Having weaned its way from the uncertainty the games were on at Reid Avenue. The competition was not as hot as the lead up to the event. The sizable presence spectators at the Royal Complex during the two days showed the passion for schoolboy rugby. The eight teams that entered the cup quarters were from the big 12 and this was a pointer that the season will be eventful.
In the semi-finals Trinity beat St. Peters with a last minute try while Isipathana beat St. Josephs in the other semi-final having scored one try which was converted. The rugby was good enough to keep the spectators happy despite the warm weather that prevailed. In the final Isipathana had an open passage and beat Trinity by 22 points to nil.
Action at last week’s U-20 Schools Sevens was good enough to keep the spectators happy - Pic by Amila Gamage
Isipathana, Trinity, St. Peters, St. Josephs, Royal, Kingswood, Wesley and Dharmaraja were the eight that entered the cup quarterfinals.
The rugby was a mix of fifteens and sevens. The occasional flare was there but the tendency was to go into contact. The flow and the flash were missing most of the time while individual brilliance took some teams to victory.
In the midst there were some who would trot excuses as teams dropped out: sometimes by a narrow margin. The stock phrase was “we practised only for three or four days.” Whilst getting ready for a 15-a-side league which is to take place in another two months I seriously think most teams would have taken a break for sevens only for a few days or may be a week. The eventual winners Isipathana did not have coach in place till around two weeks before the tournament. The bottom line is to see why you lost and take action to turn the team to a winning combination.
Despite the intense passion the support the officials who were roped in the last moment served the game. What annoyed was the attempt by coaching staff to berate the substitution officials who had not seen a temporarily suspended player getting onto the field. The incident was where a player was sin binned almost at the final whistle and this game went onto extra time. The extra time play started and as the team was on its way to score the referee realised that the yellow carded player was on the field. The official stopped the game sent the player to complete the punishment and restarted the match. As the match was over you find the coach of the offending player and his supporters making a war dance in front of the substitution officials who also keep time for a yellow card. The 
question that one needs to ask is whether it is the sole responsibility of the match officials (referees) to ensure that the Game is played and conducted in accordance with disciplined and sporting behavior. One has to acknowledge that it is not sufficient to rely solely upon the Match Officials to maintain those principles and players coaches as well persons involved need to help to keep the game clean and tidy the loose ends. These issues that surface at the start has to be addressed or else when the season progresses one may be faced with issues that may need a bulldozer to flatten.
In the Club league competition Navy consolidated their position with an empathetic win over CR and FC. CR who looked like they will match Navy as in the first round but seemed helpless as the game progressed. Stefano Cakau making some daring runs made life difficult for CR. He together with Alisi Tupuila was always a danger. The good point was that the game was not left in the hands of the foreigners as the local lads were good at support and finishing what was started.
The full house at Nittawela was an indication of how much they loved rugby and Kandy. They did not go away disappointed as the Hill Country team beat a famous rival heavyweight Havelock Sports Club. This defeat makes both Kandy and Havelocks to be two matches behind Navy Sports Club. Unless something dramatic happens for which the probability is limited the Cup it looks will find a new home in Welisara. There are two vital matches for Navy in the next three weeks. That is the matches against Kandy and Havelocks.
Once the curtain falls on the league and the knock out is over the focus will be schools league which in turn will be exciting. There is also the Asian5Nations where Sri Lanka is scheduled to play their first match against Korea on April 26 in Korea. They have two matches at home: May 3 against Hong Kong and May 17 against Philippines. They will also play Japan on May 10 in Japan.
Vimal Perera is a former Rugby Referee, coach and Accredited Referees Evaluator IRB