Sebs past Cricketers get-together

On November 26 at the Sebastianites Club in Moratuwa, the Past Cricketers Association of St. Sebastian’s College, together with their family members and distinguished invitees organised their annual get-together for the purpose of establishing a sense of camaraderie between past students for the benefit of potential cricket players. Titled “Sebs Past Cricketers and Group Family Get Together”, the chief organiser was the Past Cricketers Association of the school, which was established in 2005.

The event unfolded at about 7.30pm with the arrival of key dignitaries, including Reverend Brother Nimal Gunasinghe and Father Rector Ranjith Andradi, who spoke of the importance of organising such a get-together, particularly since it aided needy children at the school who were passionate players. He also argued that what the game required

JUMPING

It is everybody’s wish to take part in an international event. This team took wing to Perth, Australia. Sixty six athletes requested to take part in the event but the authorities, knowing very well, that only a very few will return, gave visas to only 21. But when the team returned three were missing! They were two females and one male. Normally participants to such events, which are for veterans, the authorities are cautious when issuing visas. Earlier too events of this nature held in Japan and Korea too some athletes went missing. These performances are now referred to as ‘Jumping’.

NO HELMET FOR CYCLIST

Cycling is a very popular sport in the island. Recently a cycling meet took place in faraway Kirindiwela and one cyclist died due to the negligence of the organisers – the main reason being not wearing a helmet! The authorities are doing their best to cover up the event. This is not a good omen for the sport!

NOT OBEYING THE LAW

Recently a cricketer was handed down a suspension for one year but before the year was out this cricketer was seen playing at a tournament game. This came to light when the media went to cover the event. It looks as if some powerful person in the sport’s administration has been covering this fact. What’s the use of bringing in laws, if they are not obeyed?

MAGNIFICENT THREE DECLINE JOBS

Three top level sportsmen have declined to accept vocations at the sport’s headquarters. The reason that these three has given is that the headquarters has to be cleaned up first. If that happens then they may consider accepting these posts, which is sure to be a boon to the sport. was a sense of uniformity and discipline which he hoped could be inculcated by the event.

During the course of the get-together, there were draws and various other competitions aimed at bringing back memories. These latter items were announced by Hemaka Fernando. Speeches were also delivered by Rupanath Wickremaratne the secretary of then Association

WHO IS TO BE BLAMED?

After a lot of planning the new sports regulations were gazette. Now officials claim that the regulations are not correct and have to be re- done. A veteran sports panel drew up the regulations after a lot of consideration. But if there are flaws it after it has even been gazette.Who is to be blamed?

FOREIGN COACHES. WHERE IS THE CATCH?

It has been noticed that several foreign coaches are being recruited to a popular sport. Some even say that there are more to follow. One key person who is behind this move in order to promote the sport is a top administrator. It is believed that he may be getting a ‘cut’ from recruiting these foreigners.

Ican now see the game has taken a new turn and is heading in the correct path. The entire honour should be shared by the coaching staff and the players. The players were able to maintain their standards, despite the Hockey administration going through several crises in the past. We have a number of talented coaches in the country. But, we should improve their knowledge to international standards. Then we will be able to win more international tournaments in the future. When I was the Vice-President, under the Presidency of Roy de Silva, we worked together for the improvement of the game. We were able to educate the local coaches and the players through the Olympic Solidarity Coaching Programme. We also recruited top coaches from Germany and Spain to educate the local coaches. In addition, several overseas teams visited the country and we were able to send teams to compete in international tournaments. We maintained a good relationship with Malaysia. The game was restricted among the schools in Colombo, Matale and Kandy in the 1980’s and 1990’s. However, the players who came out during that era were able to make an impact and went on to represent the country with distinction. The standard in the Defence Services and Mercantile Sector was also very high during that period. All top Hockey players were able to find employment in the Mercantile sector and in the Defence Services. I am pleased with the Men’s Hockey team at the moment, but am disappointed with the efforts of the Women’s Hockey team. I would like to see the Women’s game spread more across the country, especially among the Girls' schools in the outstations. Another minus factor is the lack of playgrounds for Hockey in the country. The two astro turf’s put up in Matale and Colombo are not good enough to promote the game islandwide. I think, the astro turf facility should be given not only during tournaments but, also for practices. The SL team is capable of reaching a high standard at Asian level, if we could set up an effective administration and provide the players with all the requisite facilities. The current standard of the game is very good, but we should be able to upgrade and maintain it with modern techniques.

Irepresented the country from the late 1960’s until the end of the 1970’s. I had the honour of playing in 3 successive Asian Games in Bangkok (1970), Tehran (1974), Bangkok (1977). In addition, I also participated in the Pre Olympic Hockey Tournament held in Lahore, Pakistan in 1968. We beat Germany 2-0 in that tournament. However, we lost 0-2 to Pakistan. The standard of the game was very high during this period. There were several talented players with strong physique and build in the SL Team. But today, we do not have players in that calibre. Earlier, we did not have international tournaments unlike these days. Asian Games and Pre Olympic Games were the only two tournaments which SL participated. But today, we have a number of tournaments conducted at Asian level. The current players have that added advantage of playing in many top tournaments. Earlier, we had the opportunity of playing against the Punjab Team, Indian Railway Team, Indian Defence Team and Pakistan Defence Team. We were unable to win a major tournament or to finish runner-up in any of these events. However, the present set of players have been able to emerge Runners-up at Asian and World League tournaments in a short period. This is a huge improvement and, as a former national player, I am very proud of this. They had the credit of providing China a good fight in the Hockey World League Tournament 1st-Round. They also had a good outing at the AHF Cup Tournament, while losing to the formidable Bangladesh Team 0-3 in the final encounter. However, the current SL coaches are not sufficiently qualified to get the maximum from the current set of players. We have some very talented coaches with us but, they are all not good enough to coach at international level. Our coaches need to be educated by pro- fessionals, if SL is to make an impact at future international assignments. Sometimes, we do get coaching advice from Indian and Pakistan coaches, prior to important tournaments. But, if we could get down the services of a European Coach, we are certain to improve in all departments of the game quite rapidly. In addition, the local coaches also will have the opportunity to improve their knowledge. The other point is that, our players need a lot of international match experience. They have proved this point this year, as the team has improved after every tournament they participated. We have a long history in the game but sadly, the game has not spread across the country. The game is still based in the main cities like Badulla, Matale, Kandy and Colombo. We have clubs and schools in Wennappuwa, Kegalle, Jaffna, Kalutara and Panadura, but the players have not been able to make an impact. We have an astro turf only in Matale and Colombo. However, the facility in Matale is now declining. I think, if we could install an astro turf in Badulla, Kandy and Matale, we should be able to produce more talented players for the national team. We did not have any crisis in the Hockey administration. In our days, the administration side was handled by top class Hockey players. But today, the main focus in the administration is all about the financial benefits. Today, we do not have a Hockey administration at all, and the SLHF is controlled by the Sports Ministry. The situation is so bad that, we are not even able to find a qualified person to manage the National team. It was disappointing to see an unqualified female accompanying the National Men’s team for the tour of Hong Kong. However, SL are certain of winning an Asian level Championship, if the SLHF could initiate a long term plan for the sport.

(FormerVice-PresidentSLHF1982-1998) (FormerSriLankaplayer1970-1978)