To be… or not to be… the Lion King?

That is the question!

Dire desire for prudent retaliation, emotional recovery, utmost perseverance, quest for honour, and the insatiable urge to etch their names in history to be remembered forever, shall be the sentiments leading up to the D-Day of the 79th Bradby Shield.

 Charging towards the twilight goal by making a grand entrance into the 2025 season, the Lions unanimously chorused Queen’s 1989 hit Single “I want it all!” from the very first charge at the CR & FC, to echo cheers of “here›s to the future, and for the dreams of our youth”, when they lifted the League Championship Title at the Pallekele Stadium, thereby rekindling the subsiding Rugby spirit and culture among their young Cubs. Nevertheless, upon subsequently embarrassing themselves and their ardent fanbase at their own Den just a fortnight ago, the question on everyone’s mind is if the Cubs would grow their Manes back to showcase some inspiring and spine-tingling rugby that ignites their supporters to spring up on their feet, and beat their Bosoms in triumph, esteem and pride, instead of being subdued to a quiesced mass gathering at a funeral Parlour.

 The grand scheme of the Royal Tuskers that was carefully formulated during the pre-season has been tactically realized step-by-step, leading up to this day, with their only wish for this year being already clearly communicated via a handwritten Letter to Santa Claus with the title clause, “All we want for Christmas is the Bradby Shield”!

 1st Leg Stature

Royal’s intended Bradby plans were reasonably successful, except for their discipline which they were able to contain only in one half, that could turn out to be the deciding factor of the 2nd Leg. They could consider themselves awfully lucky that Trinity’s U10 Ball handling skills saved them from the 11 penalties they donated to their opponents in the second half. Two touch finders off penalty opportunities were also missed by Royal, which diminished the edge they had over their rivals, which should be completely eliminated at crucial games such as these. As per their recent discovery, full-out clearance kicks and crooked throws from inside their own 40, although may be just one or two, could also inflict heavy damage to swing the Pendulum to the other extreme, and therefore cannot have any part in the Bradby encounters. Royal’s 3 ‘holding on’ infringements show weakness in their support play, which Trinity would continue to feed on further, if not corrected by Saturday. Two deliberate ‘hands in the ruck’ offenses, and a ‘sealing the ball’ on dry Turfs is just not acceptable playing at this level by these two prestigious institutions that constitute elite rugby in the Country.

 As for the Lions, they never turned up for the first Leg, but instead sent their inexperienced Cubs. There is no place for Cubs at Bradby, but if the Lions return this time around, then there isn’t anything else needed for an even competition.

Tuskers towards their Peak

Not yet at the peak as per the view of the writer, but looking forward to it happening in the last game of the XV season. Royal would use their Mauls at every given penalty opportunity to get inside the Trinity 10, and then Pick & Drive from there in case the Mauls disintegrate before reaching the finishing line, and Trinity is highly unlikely to stop the Royal Forwards in this skill. However, the activation of the Royal Maul would be quite scarce, as Trinity is very careful in not conceding penalties inside their grid, as the ratio was 4:7 for penalties conceded in own vs opposition half at the 1st Leg. However, Trinity has shown weakness in the following areas when playing inside their grid, and depicted in the below stats that were obtained from their last 3 games. 

Since Royal is approaching this Bradby tactically than ever before, they would use the above factors and more, in order to squeeze a few extra penalties inside Trinity’s red zone, especially with the one where Trinity’s defence is unable to remain onside most of the time, while being attacked.

 Although the Royal Backline either didn’t or couldn’t display its true potential especially in the latter half, except for the magnificent interception and the subsequent counterattack, this would be the Leg to observe what grooves those Limbs are capable of. Although we saw brief glimpses of some exquisite defence efforts by the Tuskers with well-marked tackling, backed by well-filtered defence formations, keen enthusiasts would love to see this on display throughout the game, but against a consistent attacking opponent this time. The Tuskers possess effective defence skills against Pick and Drives that are carried out close to their divine line to be protected, through which they are capable of craftily holding up groundings, which could ultimately persuade the Trinitians to finish off their offensives using their Backs.

 One of Royal’s key strengths lies in their exceptional Ball handling skills, without forward passes or passing errors in their last 3 outings. They are also capable of converting their Tries from tight angles, but could miss a few easy Place Kicks under pressure. The hosts would prove weak in finding extended touches in order to gain massive territorial advantage during open play, and therefore are expected to kick inside the playing area and promptly chase them down. Their high yellow card average of 2 per game wouldn’t pose any threat for them as they are playing at home, and they are very much capable of defending with 14.

 Cubs II Lions

This forecast assumes the above will transpire, if not, there is no use for this analysis. The Lions, in all their glory and top form will not find this Leg easy. Although a 10-point comeback is always on the cards at a regular League game within a 5-minute window, it would be a different story at this Bradby. The best of Trinity could only make it even stevens, and therefore some clever tactical planning to capitalise on Royal’s weakness, combined with intuitive gameplay to take advantage of each emerging chance, shall be essential to flip the tides over.

 Royal’s major setback could occur due to their indiscipline, and the Trinity Camp should find the catalyst that provokes this. Royal has revealed weakness in the following areas, and are shown in the below stats that were obtained from their last 3 games. 

Royal’s primary weapon shall be Pick and Drive, but they have demonstrated occasional lapse in support play, hence the Lions would have to shapeshift into Eagles during those crucial moments to recognize the split-second opportunity to steal the Ball, or to force ‘holding on’ offenses. In addition, Trinity should strive to speed up their support play to form Rucks instantly at the tackles, thereby trapping Royal tacklers and preventing them from rolling away. Royal tacklers are frequently seen to be reluctant in rolling away following tackles, as they seem to enjoy observing proceedings while lounging on the Turf momentarily, before getting back to business.

 There is no real necessity to stress the strengths of Trinity rugby, as they have exhibited their wide range of breathtaking skills from day-one and throughout the whole season, and have ended up as the unbeaten League Champions. However, their major weakness that has affected their attacking game drastically has been, being petrified by super-quick rush defences, while their defensive game has been marred by offside infringements. Hope their coaching crew has identified these at least now, and have taken adequate remedial measures before the deciding Leg?

 79th Glory

It must be reiterated that even though the Lions manage to spring back to top form, this shall be a very close encounter, and therefore some out-of-the-box thinking and tactics would be inevitable to make up for the remaining 10 points - unless Royal falters, which is highly unlikely. Thus, the Royal Tuskers shall take the Field as the firm favourites for so many reasons other than the 10-point lead, hence if Trinity is able to produce an upset win to grab the Shield, it would go down as an epic comeback upset in the history of Bradby, for future generations to recall. In case this is poised to happen, then we are all in for a mega treat this Saturday evening at the glorious Royal Sports Complex.

 (The analyst can be reached at: [email protected])

Pic courtesy thepapare.com