The 85th Battle of the Saints will be telecast live this year, with the games being aired on Dialog Television Channel Number 77, live-streamed on ThePapare.com and on the Mobile TV streaming application MyTV, with no data charges applicable for MyTV customers.
Dialog Axiata Group meanwhile has stepped forward as the official sponsor for a fourth consecutive year, as St. Joseph’s College, Colombo 10 and St. Peter’s College, Colombo 4, battle it out for supremacy.
The Joe-Pete two-day cricket encounter will be played from 1-2 March at the P. Sara Stadium in Colombo for the Father Maurice J. Legoc Trophy, while the limited overs match – incidentally the longest running limited over encounter between schools – will take place on the 23 March at the Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC) Grounds, Colombo, as the two schools vie for the Fr. Peter A Pillai trophy.
The 85th encounter between the two sides “promises to deliver an exciting brand of cricket and will no doubt exemplify the great values, traditions and pageantry usually displayed at the Battle of the Saints,” stated a media release
This year St. Joseph’s College will led by Sri Lanka youth player and off spin bowler, Ashain Daniel, whilst St. Peter’s College will be under the captaincy of all-rounder, Ranmith Jayasena.
Speaking at a media conference on Tuesday, Rev. Fr. Trevor Martin, the Rector of St. Peter’s College said: “The Battle of the Saints is one of the most anticipated sporting events in two of Sri Lanka’s leading catholic schools. I bestow my blessing to both skippers and their respective teams for two days of exciting cricket.”
“The ‘Big Match’ between our two schools is one of the most looked forward to events in the Sri Lanka schools cricket calendar by both young and old, and this year’s encounter I’m certain will be no exception,” added Rev. Fr. Travis Gabrial, Rector of St. Joseph’s College. “I would like to extend our gratitude to Dialog Axiata for their gesture to sponsor the 85th annual encounter of the ‘Battle of the Saints.’ I give my blessings to both schools and may the class of cricket played at the ‘Battle of the Saints’, and Josephian-Peterite camaraderie, grow from strength to strength.”
St. Joseph›s College leads the series tally with 12 wins, their last win coming under the captaincy of Ruwantha Fernandopulle in 2008, while St. Peter›s College were the worthy winners of the 2016 encounter under Vinu Mohotty, bringing their tally to 10 wins, which ensured the Rev. Father Maurice J. Legoc Trophy was kept securely in the trophy cabinet in Bambalapitiya.
The much-looked-forward-to Josephian-Peterite limited overs match, which was the first encounter among schools commencing in 1975, has always attracted the highest number of spectators for a school’s 50 over cricket match. This year will likely be no exception, and the organisers are making every effort to ensure the large crowd has an unforgettable day of entertainment.
Hatton National Bank (HNB), American National College (ANC) Elephant House, Keells Krest, Maggi, Ceylon Biscuits Ltd., Jetwing Hotels and Sun FM have also come forward to support the event as sponsors.Rohan Wijesinghe, who captained the Josephian XI in 1980, will grace the 50 overs match as the Chief Guest. Asanga Perera, who skippered the Peterite XI in 1992, will be the Chief Guest at the 85th ‘Battle of the Saints’, while Brian Obeysekere of St. Joseph’s College and Denhan Juriansz of St. Peter’s College, who captained their respective sides 50 years ago, will grace the 85th edition of the ‘Battle of the Saints’ as the Guests of Honour.
The two schools have the distinction of having produced several players to the National Team, with current Sri Lanka test skipper Dimuth Karunaratne, Angelo Mathews, Chaminda Vaas, Thisara Perera, Ashley De Silva, Michael Van Dort, Roshen Silva and Sadeera Samarawickrama having represented St. Joseph’s College, while Roy Dias, Rumesh Ratnayake, Russell Arnold, Vinodhan John, Amal Silva, Kaushal Lokuarachchi, Malinda Warnapura and Angelo Perera have represented St. Peter’s College.
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