Trinity in 16-try blitz at Pallekelle

By Shamseer Jaleel 

Trinity College ended their first round on a positive note when they beat Prince of Wales by 94 points (16 tries, 7 conversions) to 9 points (3 penalties) at the Pallekelle Rugby Stadium yesterday. 

At halftime Trinity led 41-3. Trinity piled up their points at will, playing a superb brand of rugby. Trinity kept attacking from the kickoff and scored at will. Their forwards and three quarters combined well for a 16-try blitz, with the POW outfit only able to respond with three penalties. Trinity, who scored seven tries in the initial half, scored their balance nine in the latter half with their entire bench being replaced by their head coach Lote Raikabullah, giving much-needed exposure to the rookies in the team. Trinity played open rugby with their forwards showing great pace matching their three quarter line. 

Trinity drew first blood in the third minute of the game when the ball changed hands, ending up with winger Gaurawa Seneviratne who touched down to score. Minutes later forward Shaveen Ekanayake brushed aside a few POW defenders to find his first try of the game. POW fullback Nalin Tharanga, who played a good game for the Moratuwa outfit, reduced the deficit through a 30-meter penalty kick. But tries from Hasiru Weliwita, Hasitha Boyagoda, Pasan Samarawickrema, Warren Weerakoon and Lashan Wijesuriya took Trinity to 41 at halftime. Of the seven tries two of them were converted by Lashan Wijesuriya. 

After the turnaround Trinity scored tries with ease, as even the replacement players started finding their feet to run at will. Hasiru Weliwita (2), Kaneesha Alwis, Warren Weerakoon, Akitha Sakalasuriya, Dilusha Dange (2), S. Abeywarne, Praveeshan Wijewickrema and Rashen Bandaranayake scored tries. Dilusha Dange converted three of them. For POW, Nalin Tharanga put over two more penalties for his school. The referee for the game was Anil Mangala. 

Trinity, who ended their first round unbeaten with bonus points in all five of their outings, will play the fourth-placed team in round two.