The Bradby Shield Encounter, usually recognized as the blue ribbon of Sri Lanka Schools’ Rugby season, is played between the traditional rivals the Royal College, Colombo and Trinity College, Kandy. The first match that ignited this historical rivalry was played on the 31st of July, 1920 which then became an annual encounter.
The Bradby Shield was introduced in the year 1945 when Principal Edward Lawrence Bradby donated the shield upon his departure from Ceylon and put forward the idea of playing an annual two-match series where the team with the higher aggregate score from the two legs is given the legendary shield for a year until the two schools met again on the field.
The famous shield was designed and made by Kandyan silversmiths who were known for their legendary craftsmanship; it is a wooden disc adorned with complex traditional Kandyan silver-work, and is the face of this historical encounter.
One leg of the Bradby Shield Encounter is played in Colombo and the other in Kandy. The venue for the game in Colombo had been Sugathadasa Stadium until matches were transferred to the Royal College Sports Complex Rugby Ground in the early 2000s. The Kandy venue was the Bogambara Stadium until moved to Trinity’s home ground: Pallekele Stadium.
The Bradby Shield is also the most-watched Rugby encounter in the country, drawing more spectators than both the inter-club and international fixtures with over 20,000 spectators and millions more watching live on television.
Finally, backed with all the history and prestige, it is every Royalist and Trinitian Rugby player’s dream to represent their alma mater in this historical Rugby encounter and leave their mark on history and above all else celebrate the brotherhood between these two prestigious institutions.
