Second half rally saves Thomians

By Shamseer Jaleel

S. Thomas’ College produced a stirring second half comeback to defeat Kingswood College 33/12 in their Schools Under-19 Rugby League encounter played at Pallekele last evening.

The Thomians ran in five tries and added four conversions, while Kingswood managed two tries and a solitary conversion in reply.

At the short breather, it was a closely contested affair with the Thomians holding a slender 14/12 advantage after an evenly fought opening half.

Both sides adopted an attacking approach early on, displaying fast paced running rugby and a willingness to move the ball wide at every opportunity. 

However, handling errors at crucial moments and an inability to convert territorial dominance into points proved costly for both outfits during the first half.

The second half saw a marked improvement from the Thomians, who settled into their rhythm and executed a more structured and effective attacking game.  They scored 19 unanswered points settling well to run riot at the Pallekelle Stadium. Fly-half Mayanka Dias stood out with an outstanding all-round performance, combining strong running with accurate goal-kicking to guide his team forward.

The Thomian tries were scored by Mayanka Dias, who crossed over twice, along with Vishwa Ariyawansa, Rashen Fernando and Thiyesha Aluvihare while Dias added four conversions.

Kingswood responded through tries by Adikari and Asheik Azvi, with Dilaj Fernando adding the extras to one of them.

Referee Gihan Yatawara maintained firm control throughout, ensuring a well-contested and disciplined encounter.