Cheers echoed at the HFC Bank Stadium in Suva yesterday after the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial School created history after defeating Marist Brothers High School 17-13 in the under-17 final of the Vodafone Deans Trophy Southern Zone competition.
The Deans Trophy giants were no match for the MGM side that displayed a fast-paced game to give them the win.
After creating history earlier this year by winning the Fiji Secondary School Rugby League competition finals, MGM continued to show its dominance in high school rugby and will be the team to watch at the Vodafone Deans national finals.
Team skipper James Liga said their victory yesterday was only possible through divine intervention.
“We could not have won the final today if it wasn’t for God’s love and grace,” Liga said.
“We only won today because He allowed us to,” the inside centre said.
Liga said he couldn’t be prouder of his team, and thanked them for their perseverance and hard work over the past few weeks.
“The boys have been working very hard since day one, and today all the sweat of their brow has finally paid off.”
However, this is not the end of the road for the MGM side, as they hope to continue their undefeated run into the national quarterfinals.
“The job isn’t done yet; we still have the nationals we are looking forward to.”
Liga labeled ball handling as an area his side needed to work on but was adamant they would be ready before the nationals commenced.
“Ball handling was an issue for us today, and we will be working on it over the next two weeks.”
He also gave credit to the MBHS side for putting up a tough game and wished them the best for the nationals.
“They are a very strong team, and it was very tough playing them today.
“We have huge respect for MBHS, and we thank them for pushing us to our limits today.”
