By A Special Sports Correspondent

The much looked-forward-to inter-school under 19 fifteen a side league rugby tournament for 2023 will kick off on June 14 with St. Anthony’s College Katugastota taking on the formidable Josephians in what promises to be a blockbuster clash at Bogambara Stadium.

Joes were easily the second-best side last season and what’s going to give them that much-needed impetus this season is that they are led by big boy Naveen Marasinghe who was a terror last season. Joes finished as runners-up in both league and knockout tournaments last season.

Playing in his accustomed position of number eight Marasinghe penetrated many a defence and gave the message to his teammates that try scoring can be easy when body proportion, skill, and determination are all to your advantage; not forgetting team support as well. St. Anthony’s on the other hand have a lot to prove and need to redeem lost glory because last season saw them merely hanging in there in a tough group and suffering many defeats. The Anthonians are a force in school rugby and the present lot of players must take to heart to avenge the poor show last season and keep the school flag flying high by throwing into the game all what they have this season .

Both St. Anthony’s and Joes are pooled alongside Isipatana, Wesley, S. Thomas’, Kingswood, and new kids on the block D.S Senanayake, who earned a promotion from the bottom division after a successful season in fifteens and seven a side rugby tournaments. All these teams will contest the Division 1 Segment A Group 1 category of the tournament which will have a first phase running for seven weeks. That will be followed by a super round where the top two teams of one group will play against the top two teams of the other group named Division 1 Segment A Group 2 featuring Royal, Trinity, Vidyartha, Science, Dharmaraja, St. Peter’s and Zahira. Last season’s double champions Isipatana will play their maiden game this season when they lock horns with Kingswood, the latter hosting the game at Bogambara Stadium on June 18 (Sunday). Isipatana are led this season by promising back division player Nuwan Kanishka who is also known for his skills in cricket; having captained the school’s First XI team this season.

There is much focus and attention on school rugby in this island; not forgetting the support from the old boys unions here and abroad. The sport at this level has attracted many sponsors; making school rugby more a lucrative venture than a pastime at an academic institution. Much attention must be given by the schools authorities to how big the game is allowed to grow money-wise; not forgetting the control the authorities must exercise where player honesty is concerned in terms of ensuring they meet the age limit criterion. Crossovers by schoolboys from less affluent and lesser-known schools to popular academic institutions have also raised eyebrows and calls for some fair play.

Also, there were many concerns last season because the lower segments of the tournament featuring lesser-known schools were forced to play in mid-afternoon in the scorching sun and on grounds which were too hard and invited injuries. The school rugby tournament is played in two other divisions which this newspaper will touch on within the next few days.

The other matches of the Division One Segment A scheduled for the first week running from June 12 to 18 are; Vidyartha vs Science at Bogambara (June 16), S. Thomas’ vs Wesley at Mt. Lavinia (June 17), St. Peter’s vs Royal at Bambalapitiya (June 17), Dharmaraja vs Trinity at Bogambara (June 17) and Kingswood vs Isipatana at Bogambara (June 18). All matches start at 4 pm.