Rugby taking wings

The story of Rama and Preethi

By Vimal Perera

The Singer Professional Sevens moved to Nuwara Eliya from Galle where it was played the previous week. It is a good idea to take the game to the outstations so that those involved can get a feel of the game and see the bigger picture. Crowd turnout may have not been as big as what would have been expected if the game was played in Colombo or Kandy. Now that the first step has been taken it is left for those involved in the provinces to ensure that the interest continues. It was disappointing that on both occasions one did not note the presence of the many officials who constitute the governing bodies and its administration.

The CH and Havelock’s who missed the Game at Galle were present in Nuwara Eliya. Havelock’s lost to Kandy in the Semi Final while CH lost by a whisker to Kandy in the Final. Galle who lost in the plate after entering the quarters of the cup in Galle did better by winning the plate at Nuwara Eliya. This will continue to boost their morale while they climb higher in the company of the better clubs. To Kumar Abeywardena and his team it may have been smiles of satisfaction. I am sure B. K. Ramachndran who was among the first lot of promoters of the game in Galle would have been in the highest of spirits.

One concern with the game in Galle is the indiscipline of some of the emerging teams as well as the schools. This will have to be taken notice of and nipped in the bud. If not all the good work that has been done by Kumar and his team will be wasted. What a waste it would be when Galle is emerging as a team that can match the better sides, at least in the sevens game, that there are louts who want to spoil.

The development efforts of the Union at times remain unnoticed and unrecorded. In a Schools Division 1 segment D match played recently Piliyandala Central trounced Asoka Vidyalaya by a huge score of 153 points to 05. A feature of this match was the performance of Budhidhika Pradeep of Pilyandala Central. His contribution in the match was 63 points coming from 7 tries and 14 conversions. Is this boy, really, talented? If so you have to nature and guide him. According to Preethikumar the Moratuwa Zone Rugby Development Officer who is also the coach of Piliyandala Central the boy is talented. Preethikumar as Zonal Development Officer also coaches Moratu Vidyalaya.

According to him 3 players of Piliyandala Central have in the recent past crossed over to the better rugby playing schools which are among the table leaders of Division 1 and Division 2. He also states that 14 players of Moratu Vidyalaya have shifted and are now playing for the more traditional rugby playing schools. Therefore we may not see either Piliyandala or Moratu Vidyaylaya emerging at the top of the schools league other than at under 15 level. What must be accepted is that they are feeding the better known rugby playing schools.

It is not only the Moratuwa Zone but there have been other provinces who have contributed with the players who have started the game in the village. B.K Ramamchandra will always proudly point to players who play for the more long-established school and say that boy is from Avissawella, Ratnapura or Embliptiya as the case may be.

Rama is very happy to see the flowers of his labour bearing fruit elsewhere while lamenting that the exports hamper the performance of the village teams. Yet in his heart he knows that he has contributed to the game.

It is no secret that all over the world educational institutes give scholarships to sportsman and attract them. The idea is to make use of the talent and to keep your school in the reckoning for what it does best in the field of sports. The popularity and publicity a school gets in the media when a school performs well in sports is much more than the space one gets for other achievements. Therefore I cannot see anything wrong in the crossover. What need to be recognized by those in development is that products nurtured by their system are now serving elsewhere. These are facts that need publicity or else the eternal pointing of fingers will continue without realizing there has been input to the game from their efforts.

The story of Rama and Preethi will be repeated often but unlike the story of Rama and Sita there will be other development officers as well as rural school coaches who have similar stories to tell.

What is needed is for the administrators to recognize these nurseries and direct the boys to those who need them. Then take them to their roots to take back the message “we are what we are because we started here”.