Second-half rally takes Trinity into last 4

By Shamseer Jaleel

Trinity College produced a strong second-half performance to defeat Zahira College by 32 points (5 tries, 2 conversions, 1 penalty) to 23 points (3 tries, 1 conversion, 2 penalties) and book their place in the semi-finals of the Schools Under-19 Knockout Rugby Tournament.
The match, which was a tale of two halves, saw Zahira leading the first half 11-10 at the Sugathadasa Stadium last evening.
Zahira opened the scoring early through Afham Abdeen, but Trinity responded through a forward-driven effort finished by Achintha Jayasena to stay in contention.
Further penalties by skipper Hakeem Chunchi and Basith Feroze helped Zahira extend their lead, while Trinity kept in touch through a try by Nisith Kumarasinghe.
However, the Kandy outfit returned a transformed side in the second half, piling on 22 points through tries by Shan Althaf, Abdul Malik and Vihanga Indusara.
With improved cohesion and attacking intent, Trinity sealed the game despite Zahira’s late tries from Feroze and Zain Hassan, setting up a semi-final clash against Wesley College next weekend.
Referee: Raveen Alexander