Some “must learns” for the schools’ second round
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St. Joseph’s College took the mickey out of St. Peter’s College on April 1, to retain the Weeratunga Shield. It was both, literally and metaphorically, a reality on ‘April Fool’s Day’. The Petes, who beat Isipathana, were expected to ride high, but looked ordinary. the Joes took the liberty of exploiting the weak point of Selvaraj Stephen, who was the architect of the victory over the Park Boys. A partially fit Stephen never played his role, and protecting him took the sting off a better game than what would have been possible. Have a re-look and guess for yourself ,on what the Pete’s third row was up to.Were they trying to maintain continuity or, were they protecting the matchmaker. Particularly, in the second half, the Joes kicked high and into space, putting the other ‘Saint’ into a bother of spin. It was comical to see front row forwards being the only players available to collect the high ball, when kicked to the corners. Where were the wings and the fullback? A half-fit player is never a choice for a grueling match. Missing the first penalty and not able to add the flair, cost Petes the choice of momentum. The Joes, on the other hand, played hard when running was dangerous. The ball moved down and the winger scoring, normally rare, was a forte of the Joes on this day.
Two things I saw in the Joes coach was that, he read the game, spotted the sore point, and exploited it to the maximum. The other was, the courage to take the captain off when he was injured. A fit player, even with lesser capabilities, is much better than a passenger. It takes courage for a coach to take that decision but, what has to be done was done, and the Joes on this day, were a combined lot targeting the Shield.
This also brings to the spotlight of exposing injured players, which not only harms the game, but also the injured player to physical and mental trauma. The mental side is true, as supporters keep saying he is not playing well, while some may also have a tendency to cast a remark at the player, after the match. This match was one played in good spirit, but was defecated upon by some junior urchins as the presentation was over. This needs to be stopped or, as they grow up, it will be disastrous.
The League in Segment ‘A’ is in a spin, with the Joes to play low placed DS Senanayake, and the Petes to play Dharmaraja. It effectively points to Joes being placed third. The League title points more to Kandy, as Trinity, in Segment ‘B’, remain the only unbeaten team of both Segments. They go into the Round two with that comfort. Trinity has been one of the better sides this year, and is always willing to run the ball.  
Trinity’s 44 tries in round one is ample proof of their running, while equally good runners Pathana has 35 tries. The aggression is apparent but, they need to curb the tendency of attracting Yellow cards. This is not a luxury they can afford, as in round two, they are to meet four battle-hardened teams. So far, Trinity was only tested by Zahira.
The flair seems to be more Fijian and is what Rugby in Sri Lanka needs. It is also a point in their favour, they have a Fiji-born coach in All Blacks 7s player Lote Raikabula, who is the most disciplined coach on the bench. This is not just my view, but that of referees and the President of the Referees Society. This brings stability and discipline to the team, and allows them to focus on the game. The example has filtered into others on the bench. The Yellow cards, I think, are a result of exuberance, rather than being malicious. Early in the season, there were nitwits interested in being prominent, probably to show their Principal who they are. All these have subsided, as the coach has set the tempo. Yet, I say again, you have to watch getting attention to earn yellow cards.
The dark horse on the pitch is the Zahira team, who can surprise the teams from Segment ‘A’. Incidentally, the next highest tries scored are 23, with Zahira and St. Anthony’s Kandy. The heat will certainly be on when the season starts after the break. If the Lions roar, as is befitting of them, round two will be pulsating, with Zahira, Wesley and the Joes coming of age.
The legs will earn a rest during the break and give time for those who need to recover. This will be a welcome. The question is, whether it will be so or, will they be hard at training, inflicting more damage on the worn out legs. When society thinks more tuition means more marks, it is only probable for people to think more practice means more wins. This is because we forget that more meaningful learning is what is important.
Vimal Perera is a forme Rugby Referee, coach and IRB Accredited Referees Evaluator