Royal hold edge but Trinity no pushover

Friday, 5 September 2025 00:10 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

By Shamseer Jaleel

The stage is set for the second leg of the 79th Bradby Shield between Trinity College and Royal College which will be held on 6 September at the Royal Sports Complex.

Kick off of the Senior game is scheduled at 4.15 p.m. Chief Guest will be the 1986 Royal skipper Manjula Peiris.

The Bradby Shield encounter, first played in 1945, remains the most prestigious fixture, Blue Ribbon of schools rugby calendar, drawing generations of old boys and fans together in a festival of sport and tradition.

Royal enter the second leg with a 10 point lead following their first-leg triumph in Kandy. Yet, history shows that no lead is truly safe in the Bradby. Trinity know well that a quick start with two early tries could completely change the course of the game. This will be remembered when the 2011 under Murad Ramzeen going down in the first leg outclassed Royal in the Colombo leg by 40 plus points. It’s not going to be an easy task for Trinity to beat this improved Royal outfit plus the Colombo heat.

The Royal camp will be confident, having displayed superior forward power in the opening leg. With home advantage and strong support expected at the sold-out complex, they will look to close out the Shield. Trinity, however, are renowned for their fighting spirit. Their backline flair and ability to strike in broken play will be crucial if they are to stage a famous turnaround.

Royal will be led by cracking centre, Amika Samarasinghe while gutsy Usmaan Safraz leads the Trinity Lions. Both teams possess a formidable outfit with Royal hold the edge in forwards while Lions are outstanding in their three quarters. All the reasons been Royal Head Coach is Dushanth Lewke who himself was a super forward for Royal, CR, Kandy and Sri Lanka while his competitor Trinity, Head Coach is Fazil Marija who played for Kingswood, Kandy SC, Sri Lanka and Asian Barbarians.

The match will be officiated by Referee Jaco Brouwer of South Africa who did the first leg as well at Pallekele 2 weeks back.

The day will also feature the Under 16 clash for Simithrarachchi trophy where Royal hold a clear 15 point lead after their 20/5 win in Pallekelle.

With everything to play for, the Bradby Shield promises yet another chapter of passion, rivalry, and unforgettable schoolboy rugby. The tally favours Trinity with 40 wins to Royal outfits 36 while 2 games ending in ties in 1992 and 2017.