Venturing out of the Asian comfort zone

Serendib Cup Triangular Rugby Tournament on October 26

Venturing out of the Asian comfort zone

Chris Dhambarage

Chairman Sri Lanka Rugby Football Union (SLRFU) Asanga Seneviratne believes that with the kind of enthusiasm and the present competitiveness rugby is on the verge of becoming the number one sport in the country within the next few years.

The former S. Thomas’ College, CR and FC and Sri Lanka fly half made these observations during the launching ceremony of the inaugural Serendib Cup Triangular International Rugby Tournament which will be staged from October 26 to November 1 at the newly constructed Race Course ground in Reid Avenue.

Asanga Seneviratne was extremely pleased with the excellent performances of the Sri Lanka sevens rugby team in the recent past and was optimistic that they will be able to carry the same form into the longer version of the game.

“We should be proud that the sevens rugby team has now reached the number three position in the Asian Rankings and I am confident that very soon rugby football will overtake cricket as the most popular and followed sport in the country within the next decade.”

The SLRFU President also hoped that the team will produce the same form in the upcoming Serendib Cup Triangular Rugby Tournament at home where a European nation and an African team will compete together in a tournament probably for the first time in the history of Sri Lankan Rugby.

“We are currently ranked 39th out of over 160 countries playing the game and our target should be to get into the top 25 by putting up a good performance at the Serendib Cup Triangular Rugby Tournament against Poland and Madagascar.”

This event will also give Sri Lanka the best possible preparation for next year's Asian 5 Nations Top 5 where they will take on Japan, Korea, Hong Kong and the Philippines with the winner qualifying directly to the 2015 World Cup as Asia’s number one, while the runner-up will enter the repechage (another trial for losing teams to qualify).

Seneviratne also stressed the importance of bringing in changes to the SLRFU inter-club domestic season calendar in view of keeping the national players in the proper mindset ahead of the busy international schedule.              

“The main goal in changing the domestic structure is to allow the national players to concentrate and prepare for the international sevens series in an attempt to qualify for the World Cup.

“We also have more time to prepare for next year’s vital division one, fifteen a side Asian Five Nations tournament plus the World Cup Sevens Qualifiers which will be held in August.

“Also the rains are expected in the months of December and January and we felt it is much better to have the tournament during this period. We have spoken about these changes for many years and nobody has ever done it before but we have done it from this season and so I hope it will bring the desired results at the end”.

The SLRFU Chairman also believed that with the change of dates of the inter-club domestic rugby season from this year schools rugby will benefit to a great extent with more emphasis on the schoolboys.   

“We decided to make a change to the domestic rugby tournament calendar because of the schools. Schools rugby is the cradle of Sri Lankan rugby and they were struggling without grounds and referees because there were too many matches clashing with the club games.

“This new tournament structure will also benefit the rugby enthusiasts in the country as those who were watching the school matches and could not watch the club matches will have a chance of following these matches separately.

“In the same way those who were interested in the club matches and who missed the vital school games will now have the opportunity of following some of the inter-school rugby matches as well. There will be enough time now for the spectators to attend these matches,” added Seneviratne.

Fresh thinking to take rugby to next level

Chris Dhambarage

The newly appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Sri Lanka Rugby Football Union (SLRFU) Alastair Saverimutto believes that Sri Lanka needs to have a solid base in their coaching structure if they are to make progress and move ahead in the international rugby arena.  The 43-year-old former professional Wales rugby player who was born in England to Sri Lankan parents stressed the importance of a long term coaching plan to develop the more established fifteen-a-side game in the country at the grass-roots level.

“I think the coaching staff needs a change because we have predominately played too flat. They have been doing this for so many years at the highest level,” said the former England under-19 fly half who has also represented Bath, Bristol and Gloucester. Saverimutto who has been a key figure at several English football clubs including Premier League side Everton stated that Sri Lanka will need to look for a long-term coach and concentrate more on playing fifteen-a-side rugby if they are to reach the next level.  

“If the Sri Lankan Rugby Union wants to take the game into the next level they have to let us get on with it. We need some continuity now. I have looked into the history and there have been a lot of changes. “When you have changes with foreigners coming over and going it will not help the cause and what we need in this country is some continuity with some long-term strategic objectives. For me everything should have some longevity to it. You just can’t go on from year to year.”

Saverimutto who was also the Chief Operating Officer of the Azerbaijani side Gabala FC noted that Sri Lanka will need to make drastic changes to their coaching structure if they are to make an impact at next years HSBC Five-a-Side ‘A’ Division Tournament.  “There is lot to be done with regard to tactical and strategic play with regard to playing fifteens. I think if Sri Lanka is to achieve success in fifteen-a-side rugby then we need to start looking at the base the grass roots which is the school.

“We need to play little deeper like the French. I think we have to not take contact as fast as we do. We need to pull out from contact and come on deeper lines and hit the ball with the pace in a straighter line as well and take contact on our terms.“I think we are hitting the contact zone too soon and that is why you see the phases not going from three to four or five. This style of play may be good in some parts of Asia but that is not going to work outside of Asia. We may get away with some of the teams in the division one but definitely we are not going to get away at the top tier of rugby.”

Saverimutto who has been involved in rugby and football in both England and Wales also stressed the importance of reaching out and widen our rugby horizons through greater communications, developing new strategies and improving the standards to compete effectively and build up a Sri Lankan rugby image not just in Asia but in the other rugby playing countries.

“Back in England if you talk about Asia Sri Lanka would not even come into your mind so this is a problem and this is a weakness for Sri Lanka and we need to create a communication platform to reach out to new audiences outside of Sri Lanka as well.”The new CEO of the Rugby Union was highly impressed with the kind of standard displayed in schools rugby and with the Sri Lankan sevens rugby team which has reached new heights in the recent past.

“I think the Sri Lankan platform is excellent. I am really surprised to hear that Sri Lanka is one of the largest rugby playing nations in the World. The depth of the rugby playing is significant in this country and I have been for a couple of inter-school matches this season where the entertainment has been fantastic.

“I am not a sevens expert but the individual skill level of the Sri Lankan rugby players is no different to England. If you look at their feet and footwork the coordination and preservation they have it all and this is one of the strengths that we must harness,” added Saverimutto.

Harsha takes 10/8 with 4 in 4 balls

He thought it will be just another ordinary day on the field. But it turned out to be completely different from that as the Uyanwatte Stadium in Matara became the venue to a most rare achievement by a schoolboy cricketer this season. Left-arm seamer Harsha Maduranga Rajapaksa of Rahula College Matara had just turned seventeen when he produced arguably the most destructive spell of fast bowling in the history of First XI school cricket.

Last week the eldest son of a private bus driver turned a new leaf in the history of under-19 cricket when he captured all ten wickets while guiding his team to an innings victory over Devapathiraja MV Rathgama.  His performance was even more significant considering the fact that he accomplished his task during a sensational spell of 9.3 overs and in the process claiming four wickets in consecutive deliveries during an eventful fifth over.

It was back in 2004 that the previous ten wicket haul was recorded in a First XI fixture when left-arm spinner Sohan Boralessa of St. Peter’s College performed a similar role against Wesley College at Campbell Park. In addition Sri Lanka Schools Cricket Association (SLSCA) statistician and veteran scorer Anura Ratnayake confirmed that Lionel Fernando of St. Benedict’s College also captured all ten wickets during the 1957 season. 
   
Even then for Harsha Rajapaksa it was just another day at office as he prepared to spearhead the team’s bowling attack not knowing the fact that it will change his entire destiny.  “I am very proud of this achievement and I think this is my finest moment in school cricket as a fast bowler” said the former schoolboy of Thelijjawela Royal and Thelijjawela Central College Matara.

“The ground conditions no doubt were conducive for swing bowling with a strong wind blowing and I fully exploited the conditions to my advantage while bowling from wicket to wicket.”Rajapaksa of course went into this match under some kind of pressure as he had failed to live up to the expectations having picked up just three wickets from the opening two fixtures against Veluwana MV and Maliyadeva College Kurunegala.

“This is only my third match of the current season and I am very satisfied with the early form as I am hoping to reach the one hundred wicket barrier before the Big Match”.   Rajapaksa however came into the side as an all rounder and had the distinction of completing two centuries against St. Peter’s College and St. Aloysius College Galle in the ongoing inter-school under-17 tournament.

He had a passion for the game from his early days and showed signs of turning out to be an outstanding cricketer while representing the Thelijjawela Royal College team in the under-13 and under-15 tournaments. He then moved to Thelijjawela Central College with the help of a scholarship and further enhanced his capabilities under the supervision of senior coach Tharindu Jeevantha.

But his career took a dramatic turn around when he joined Rahula College Matara in 2009 from where he went on to represent the First XI team as a dynamic all rounder. No doubt his school cricket career was at crossroads at this stage because there were few other options as well where he could have chosen to represent a more elite school in Colombo. But due to financial constrain he decided to stay in his home town and concentrate on improving his game under the guidance of coaches Indunil Liyanage and Ariyathilake.

After a lot of hard work on the field now he is just beginning to produce the desired results with a great season ahead of him. In fact his present coach Ariyathilake believes that the secret behind his success is his accuracy and the reverse swing which he uses so cleverly against the top-order batsmen. Not surprisingly during his record breaking effort five of his dismissals were bowled and there were four leg before decisions in addition to one caught behind.
As a result Devapathiraja MV were skittle out for a mere 23 runs in their first innings from 19.3 overs and Harsha Rajapaksa went on to pick up three more wickets in the second innings and complete a memorable outing.

The popular OWSC-Munchee Sixes on October 5

The popular OWSC-Munchee Sixes on October 5

Chris Dhambarage

Defending champions D. S. Senanayake College will have a tough first round assignment when they confront Dharmasoka College Ambalangoda in their opening match of the Munchee Inter-School Six-a-side Cricket Tournament which begins on October 5 at the Wesley College grounds in Campbell Park.

This popular two-day tournament is conducted by the Old Wesleyites Sports Club (OWSC) for the 21st successive year in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Schools Cricket Association (SLSCA) and is sponsored by Ceylon Biscuits Limited.

D. S. Senanayake College, who emerged champions defeating St. Peter’s College in last year’s tournament final, is the top seeds and will have a daunting task in retaining the trophy for the second successive year.

In fact this time there is a possibility of the defending champions and the last year’s runner-up meeting once again as early as in the second round of the tournament.

If D. S. Senanayake College clears their initial hurdle then they would probably take on St. Peter’s College who has an easy opening fixture against the less fancied Kokuvil Hindu College Jaffna team.    

Among the other first round fixtures the pick of the matches will be the confrontation between the former five-time champions Nalanda College and the 1995 champions Thurstan College.

The Nalandians are looking to regain the title after a lapse of eight years having last emerged champions in 2005 in addition to their success in 1996, 1998, 2000 and 2004 respectively.             

The champion team will receive the Munchee Sixes Trophy and the runners up will be awarded the Old Wesleyites Sports Club Trophy. In addition individual awards will be presented to the Best Batsman, Best Bowler, Best Fielder, Highest Number of Sixes, Man-of-the-Finals and Most Valuable Player of the Tournament.

The Most Disciplined Team will be adjudicated by the Umpires and the Technical Committee.

The first round draw

(October 5): Kalutara MV v Joseph Vaz, Thurstan v Nalanda, Wesley bye, Anuradhapura Central v Prince of Wales, Kokuvil Hindu v St. Peter’s, D. S. Senanayake v Dharmasoka, Mahanama bye, St. Sebastian’s v Richmond.

(October 6): Lumbini v Basilica, President’s College v Royal, Gurukula bye, Ananda v St. Joseph’s, De Mazenod v Bandaranayake Gampaha, Debarawewa Central v St. Sebastian’s Katuneriya, Royal Panadura bye, Isipathana v St. Benedict’s.   

The Past winners:
1993 (Royal College-Colombo), 1994 (Kalutara Vidyalaya-Kalutara), 1995 (Thurstan College), 1996 (Nalanda College), 1997 (Prince of Wales College-Moratuwa), 1998 (Nalanda College), 1999 (St Joseph’s College), 2000 (Nalanda College), 2001 (Royal College-Colombo), 2002 (Lumbini College), 2003 (De Mazenod College-Kandana), 2004 (Nalanda College), 2005 (Nalanda College), 2006 (Kalutara Vidyalaya-Kalutara), 2007 (Basilica College-Ragama), 2008 (Prince of Wales-Moratuwa), 2009 (St Joseph’s College), 2010 (Richmond College-Galle), 2011 (Mahanama College), 2012 (D. S. Senanayake College).

Thomian-Sebastian final should go down to the wire

Thomian-Sebastian final should go down to the wire

Chris Dhambarage

Two well balanced teams S. Thomas’ College Mount Lavinia and St. Sebastian’s College Moratuwa will clash in the final of the Sri Lanka Schools Cricket Association Under-17 Division One Tournament on October 1 (Tuesday) at the P. Sara Oval in Colombo.

This match is of great importance to both teams as they have made it to the final after a lapse of many years following some real hard work and commitment during the preliminary round and in the final round of the competition.

Incidentally the Thomians will be making their appearance in an under-17 tournament final after a break of 14 years having last won this tournament way back in 1999 under the captaincy of Meshad Peiris.

The Sebastianites too have faced a similar experience in the past as they will be hoping to win this championship after a lapse of nine years having last triumphed in the year 2004 under the leadership of Dilhan Cooray.

This time of course both teams have experienced mixed fortunes and are looking to add the finishing touches which will certainly give them a huge morale booster ahead of the up coming First XI cricket season.

Even then S. Thomas’ College will have a slight edged over their opponents considering the fact that they have defeated some of the more fancied and strong teams on their way into the final.

In fact the lads from Mount Lavinia had the distinction of overcoming the defending champions Royal College Panadura during a second round encounter and also had the better of former champions St. Peter’s College Bambalapitiya in the pre quarterfinals.

S. Thomas’ College captained by Sri Lanka under-17 player Ravindu Tillekeratne notched up four good victories in the first round against     Piliyandala Central, Dharmapala MV Pannipitiya, Lumbini Colombo and Carey College.

They of course suffered two shock defeats at the hands of Mahanama College and D. S. Senanayake College but yet qualified for the second round of the tournament as the third placed team from their group.       

    

In contrast St. Sebastian’s College finished as the group champions after the completion of the preliminary round where they were able to beat their traditional rivals Prince of Wales, Isipathana, Veluwana MV, Thurstan and President’s College Kotte while going down against Wesley.   

However in the second round S. Thomas’ College produced some outstanding cricket to remain unbeaten with victories over Thurstan and Joseph Vaz College Wennappuwa before overcoming St. Joseph’s and Lumbini in the quarterfinal and semifinal respectively.

St. Sebastian’s College also produced the same kind of form during the latter stages of the tournament as they cruised towards victory against Thurstan in the quarterfinals and defeated St. Anthony’s College Katugastota in the semifinals.  

The teams

St. Sebastian’s College (from): Visal Senanayake (captain), Muditha Fernando (vice captain), Avishka Fernando, Pramesh Fernando, Nimesh Bandara, Kusal Lakthilina, Gayan Silva, Sachintha Fernando, Lahiru Heshan, Laksitha Pieris, Shashika Fernando, Sandaruwan Fernando, Praveen Perera, Ashair Warnakulasooriya, M. Amju, Nalin Wijesinghe (Coach) and Frank Cooray (Master in Charge)

S. Thomas’ College (from): Ravindu Tillekaratne (captain), Sachitha Jayathilake (vice captain), Dulanja Silva, Rashmika Opatha, Dilendra Gunathilake, Ushen Fernando, Yohan Mendis, Chenutha Wickramasinghe, Sajana Silva, Tharindu Rathnayake, Navod Fernando, Kanishka Perera, Duvindu Thilakaratne, Deelaka Weeraratne, Ishan Saseth, Dinesh Kuamarasinghe (Head Coach), Dilshan Mendis (Assistant Coach) and B. H. M. Wijeratne (Master in Charge)

Great hopes for women’s rugby after Plate win

Great hopes for women’s rugby after Plate win

Chris Dhambarage

The Sri Lanka women’s rugby team produced a stunning performance to win the Plate Championship at the HSBC Asian Rugby Sevens Series first leg worked off in Bangsean, Thailand last week.

Their success had a great amount of significance considering the fact that this was easily Sri Lanka’s finest moment in a major international sevens women’s tournament while surpassing their previous best performance of having won the Bowl title eight years ago in Singapore.

The Sri Lankan lasses not only had the distinction of overpowering some of the more fancied teams in the tournament but also had the ultimate satisfaction of finishing in the overall fifth place of the championship.

“I think the success should be attributed to some real hard work and total commitment because the girls put a lot of effort during their training sessions especially in the last two week’s before their departure” said a smiling Sri Lankan coach Chandrishan Perera.  

The former Sri Lanka men’s sevens national coach believed that early preparations and the proper training sessions have helped them to improve a lot in the recent past.    

“They had some intense training at home with a couple of practice matches against the men’s team as well and I think they were very strong both physically and mentally which helped them to overcome most of the challengers in Thailand.

“I must commend the leadership qualities of Thanuja Weerakkody who is a captain with a big heart and she was able to get the maximum from the rest of the players throughout the tournament.

“I think full credit should be given to the three armed forces Sri Lanka Army, Sri Lanka Navy and Sri Lanka Air Force for having produced such brilliant players who have all learnt their basics of the game at their work places.”

The former CH and FC and Sri Lanka player also paid tribute to the Sri Lanka Rugby Football Union (SLRFU) for their untiring effort to promote women’s rugby in the country in a big way.  

“I think we have now built up a very good base and foundation in women’s rugby in the country and what we should be concentrating from here onwards is to expand the game and move ahead beyond our imaginations.

“The girls were forced to play some of the matches under very tough weather conditions in Thailand but I think they really stuck to their task and delivered the desired results when the team needed it most.

“I know things did not go according to plan on the opening day of the tournament because we went down against Hong Kong and Kazakhstan before recording a close 5 - nil victory over Thailand.

“But I think we should have won the match against Thailand by a bigger margin as the team missed at least three certain tries and they were unable to add the finishing touches.”

Chandrishan Perera also noted that despite going down against Hong Kong and Kazakhstan the team showed a lot of character and believed in themselves that they could leave a lasting impression.   

“The two defeats of course did not demoralise the team but instead they were inspired to perform much better on the second day as they won plenty of accolades for some outstanding tackling and defensive play.

“I think on the second day everything went according to our plans as we did not have any injuries and the girls were really fired up to win the Plate Championship following their setback on the previous day.

“I would have liked to see the girls scoring more tries in the Plate final against Singapore but anyway it was a very good all round performance that will provide us more confidence for the second leg in Mumbai,” added Chandrishan Perera.

Lanka steadily climbs Asian rugby sevens ladder

Lanka steadily climbs Asian rugby sevens ladder

Chris Dhambarage

Sri Lanka came out with an improved performance to clinch the third place at the HSBC Asian Rugby Sevens Series second leg which was worked off in Bangsean, Thailand last week.

After having won the fourth place at the previous event held in Malaysia two week’s ago the Tuskers came back strongly to beat a host of top contenders and to complete a memorable tournament.

This was also one of the finest moments in Sri Lankan rugby as they rallied around magnificently to beat the Asian heavyweights South Korea by a most comprehensive margin of 29 points to 7 in the play off final.

Never before had Sri Lanka won so convincingly against South Korea as the island nation stole the limelight for some breathtaking fast open rugby while retaining their prestigious third place position in the Asian Rugby Circuit.        

With two more events to be worked off in Mumbai (October 12/13) and Singapore (November 9/10) Sri Lanka have put themselves on course towards making an appearance at the high profile Hong Kong IRB World Series Sevens Tournament in 2014 where the top four Asian teams will automatically qualify for this event.    

“I am extremely proud of this team and the boys have really worked hard to reach this position while performing under tremendous pressure,” said a determined Sri Lankan coach Niloufer Ibrahim.

The former Kingswood College and Kandy Sports Club player believed that the team was well prepared this time unlike in the previous event and they were able to reach the number three position through some excellent team work.

“I think we worked together as a team and the boys were determined to put up an improved performance because during the last event in Malaysia we made a couple of mistakes that pushed us into the fourth place.”

The Sri Lankan coach also noted that a couple of positional changes in the side really helped the team to beat the powerful South Korean team in the vital third place play off.       

“We experimented while playing two genuine back division players in the front row and I think it worked well for the team because Chula Susantha and Dinesh Chaturanga were able to cause a lot of panic in the opposition defence and also scored the opening two tries for the team in the first half.”

Niloufer Ibrahim also commended the efforts of the three quarters who were always a treat to watch with their brilliant all round display which helped them to finish on top of pool ‘B’ with two smashing victories over Kazakhstan (26-5) and Chinese Taipei (15-12).

“I think winger Srinath Sooriyabandara had an outstanding tournament scoring tries in every outing and his performance against Kazakhstan was brilliant where he scored a rare hat trick of tries.

“I am also really impressed with young Jason Dissanayake of Vidyartha College Kandy who in his debut looked a matured player and his contribution especially in the match against Chinese Taipei was absolutely marvelous.”        

Niloufer Ibrahim of course regretted for not making it to the Cup Championship final following a heavy 5-52 defeat at the hands of the ultimate champions Japan.

“We were determined to win this match and enter the Cup final although we had to rest skipper Fazil Marija because of an injury but I think Japan were fielding three Tongan players and they simply blew us apart by running down eight tries.  

“However we were not demoralised at all despite this huge defeat and the boys showed a lot of character and were able to quickly regroup and bounce back with a vastly improved performance in the next outing.”

The Sri Lankan coach believed that this team has the talent and the potential to reach the Cup Championship final in the third leg of the HSBC Sevens Series which will be worked off on October 12 and 13 in at the Gymkhana Club in Mumbai, India.

“I think we are now heading in the right direction and the squad that we are having now is highly competitive and with a couple of changes we should be targeting the top two positions during the next two events” added Niloufer Ibrahim.