Heavy rains and a muddy pitch were the conditions that awaited the Royalists at the Bogambara Stadium as they took on the Kandyans in their own back yard. But unfriendly conditions have never been a reason to hinder play and nonetheless the game went on, producing one of the closest finishes this season. Both teams played some exciting rugby despite the slippery conditions, and the final ten minutes of the game brought a nail biting finish to a thrilling game where the performance over shadowed the result.

Royal went straight to business from the kick-off, moving the ball swiftly into the St. Anthony’s five meter line and keeping it there for a patch of good play. Unfortunately, Royal was unable to make the maximum of the play and the score line remained unchanged as St. Anthony’s successfully held off the first onslaught of the game. The first clear cut scoring opportunity of the game came against the run of play, as the Antonians were awarded with a penalty but missed the opportunity to draw first blood as the kick sailed off target. The Antonians didn’t make the same mistake twice, as the opportunity to score followed shortly and they made maximum out of it on two occasions within a very short period of time to completely shift the momentum towards their team. 14 – 00 was not looking good for the Royalists. But the game was not over yet and an error by the Antonians gave Royal the opportunity to cut down on the deficit. A successful line out and some good offense brought the first try for Royal but St. Anthony’s were in no mood to lose their advantage and successfully scored for the third time. As half time drew closer, a penalty in favour of Royal made the scores 08 – 21 in favour of St. Anthony’s.

With the resumption of play, it was clear that Royal had a very difficult task ahead. St. Anthony’s struck once last time, off a penalty, setting the final score of 24 as the target to be reached for the Royalists. This was followed by a fairly long session of centrally restricted play that eventually gave way to a Royal offensive move resulting in a try scored down the wing by none other than Udesh Ranaweera. The conversion brought a lot of excitement as the Antonians charged at Royal skipper Rimze but he pulled off a brilliant kick, sending the ball just above the bar next to the left post. The closing moments of the game were coming closer, and the crowds were equally excited on both camps. It was very encouraging to see the fans really get into the game and support their teams. The Royalists were not going down without a fight, and some excellent team play brought another try to the visitors, which was converted with ease by the Captain. Unfortunately, this was the last successful offensive play made by the Royalists, the the Antonians defended well to survive wave after wave of Royal offense in the dying moments of the game. Royal came close, falling short by just two points as the final score read Royal 22 – 24 St. Anthony’s.

As mentioned before, on the 4th of May, it was not all about the result as both teams played very well despite the disagreeable conditions. The Royal First XV has shown some tremendous improvements along the way, and we hope to see more of the same in the two games to come before they travel once again to Kandy, to take on the Trinitians in the First Leg of the 69th Bradby Shield Encounter.