Champs Harvard rout Northern 62-20 in league closer

RECENTLY crowned back-to-back league champions Harvard ended their TT Rugby Football Union (TTRFU) Championship Division league campaign with a one-sided 62-20 rout of Trinidad Northern on Saturday.

That match was played while Caribs were in the process of recording a 29-18 win over Royalians in the two teams’ final league match of the season.

Harvard controlled the contest from start to finish, easing to a 31-10 lead by the half. Shakeel Dyte scored a pair of first half tries, with the other tries coming from Isaiah Small, Nigel Constantine and Aasan Lewis.

Lewis converted three of the five tries.

The league champions continued their dominance in the second half, and eventually doubled their tally after Dyte scored a third try, Constantine scored his second, Claudius Butts added one and Leroy Wilson a second half double. Lewis converted two of those efforts, while his replacement, Brian Daniel, scored one conversion.

Harvard and national team stand-out Wayne Kelly and his wife, who got married the weekend prior, were received as guests of honour by the club.

In the other match, Caribs, off a cup double–the Marcus Minshall and Bruno Browne Cup titles–continued their improved form with a relatively routine victory over the league’s cellar placed Royalians.

The “Beer Boys” enjoyed a 22-3 lead at the half, thanks to tries from Jonathan Taylor, Karlon Alexander and Isikeli Waqa. Waqa converted off his own attempt.

Royalians’ Felician Guerra scored a penalty in the 23rd minute.

Royalians came out much stronger in the second half, scoring 15 points. However, their spirited fight-back could not see them to a first and only win of the league campaign.

Guerra and Samuel Skeete scored early second half tries, for Royalians, before Guerra followed up with another penalty in the 66th minute.

Caribs put the result to rest with a last minute try from Samuel Roberts, whose effort was followed up by a Jamal Clark conversion.