Sampath declares his innings at Trinity
Leaving his fairly lucrative coaching post at Trinity College Kandy and flying off to Dubai in a few days time is the Kandy school’s very successful coach, Sampath Perera.
Sampath Perera
Sampath, who was recommended for the Trinity job by Kumar Sangakkara, has overseen Trinity’s rise to the top (or nearly top) position in school cricket from 2008/09 to the present.
59 outright wins as against six losses in 137 games over a seven-and-half-year period represents a record that any coach will be proud of.
As for Sampath the cricketer, he skippered D.S. Senanayake College in 1993/94 and scored 1,200 runs that year. However, his efforts were not recognised. While at school, he played two seasons of Premier Division cricket for BRC.
After leaving, Bloomfield was his second home from 1994 to 1999. Sanath Jayasuriya, Roshan Mahanama, Kumar Dharmasena, Ruwan Kalpage and Naveed Nawaz were some of his team-mates in that star-studded side.
His coaching career took off when he was given the assignment at the prestigious SSC from 2002 to 2005. Thereafter, he was the Head Coach at NCC from 2005 to 2008. He looks back with fondness at NCC Under-23s winning the Limited Over title.
He certainly has had his detractors. They point to his ‘import’ of players. Sampath counters by saying that they limit representation in the team to two or three from outside.
Players are brought over to strengthen the squad. The presence of players in numbers puts pressure on players in the team who, then, have to pull up their socks and perform.
Trinity is not the only school that imports. A couple of months ago, another school in Kandy lured a player from the deep south.
A former skipper of Sri Lanka has this to say, “Sampath imports players and develops them: Others don’t”. What prompted his resignation? He has a desire to develop his coaching career. Further, he feels unwanted at home.
Sampath Perera has a word with his skipper Raveen Sayer
The Under-19 coaching job, for which he was interviewed, was not given to him. He feels that he had the right credentials for that post.
The fact that he hadn’t represented Sri Lanka may have gone against him. But, as Sampath points out, a Sri Lanka cap is no sure fire guarantee of coaching excellence.
Outlining the reasons for his success Sampath says he works very hard (and so do the boys). There is no favouritism involved. Places are open to any boy and the selection criteria is very transparent.
Players are monitored from the Under-13 level. The attitude and commitment of the player are what he sets great store by.
Sampath will be attached to the Future Legends Cricket Academy in Dubai.
This is organised by Aravinda de Silva and Rameez Raja. There are four centres with four heads and he will be one of them, all operating under a Head Coach.
Sampath singles out the teams led by Akila Jayasundera (2010/11) and Niroshan Dickwella (2011/12) as his best teams at Trinity.
As for his best products, he points to Jayasundera, Dickwella, Raveen Sayer, Sanogeeth Shanmuganathan, Hasitha Boyagoda and Dilan Jayalath.
The present school cricket structure meets with his approval. Ideally, he says, the division should have around 16 teams.
He laments the fact that there is no proper structure to develop the game in Kandy.
The coaching methods are not updated. However, talent-wise Kandy does not lag behind, as it is available in plenty. Trinitians both young and old, should be grateful to Sampath for what he has achieved. Trinity’s loss could be Dubai’s gain.