Why not adopt Galle RFC - a pose to the corporate

Was there anything exciting in the, “Caltex” League first round games played last week? There was virtually nothing to make you jump out from your seats while tension prevailed. The only question that prevailed in rugby circles was “how come Army lost to Kandy by 83 points to 15”. On hearing the news probably the Old Zahirians would have thought “we are not alone”.

The closest challengers to Kandy, CR too had an easy week end as they beat the Old Zahirians by 85 points to 3. Kandy is still in the lead because of the bonus points while they continue to be unbeaten together with CR who has won four games each. Following next are the Havelock’s who have done well for themselves this year and are in third slot. They do have some tough matches on hand against the Kandy as well as CR in the coming weeks. Havelocks beat Police in a game where Police had possession while Havelock’s capitalized on the mistakes by being more active in the loose. CH who has lost one game so far beat the Airmen to keep their hopes alive. The weeks to come will see more close matches as the unbeaten sides clash among themselves. Not to be outdone will be the others who will not want to be among the last.

In segment two of the A division Galle RFC are very much in front having won all the matches they have played so far. Probably they will be on top in this segment and join the elite band of “A” division clubs. They should plan for their future as they know where it lies. It is then that they will be able to remain there. If they don’t it will be another case of the fire being too hot. Since we know what the fire is like we should be able to plan and fight it. I have in the past heard so much said by the corporate about their contribution to sport and specifically to rugby. Here is the chance to add to their basket of Corporate Social Responsibility. Why not adopt Galle. The start has to be now to be effective.

Action at last week’s game. It seems that Kandy still has the edge over the rest of the pack in club rugby. Pic Ranjith Perera

The schools are providing more excitement with a team from the bottom challenging the mighty table leaders. Trinity having won all their fixtures so far continues to lead the table. Trinity however had a close call in beating St Anthony’s College Kandy by 25 points to 24. It is not to their comfort as they have been taken to the wire on two successive weeks. They secured a victory that eluded them for almost seven years. The dark side of the game was the sop during the last 2 minutes. This was for a period as there was a section of the restless crowd who threw missiles unto the field while SACK were leading 24 points to 22. It took around 5 minutes for the organizers to give the thumbs up sign for the game to restart.

One cannot understand the objective of the spectators who were disruptive. Probably they would have expected that the referee may have called off the game while SACK was leading 24 points to 22. Probably this might be a naïve presumption. Yet the gut feeling I have is that they wanted the game to stop. Unfortunately for them it did not happen that way. The damage you do to the team who are fired up is to reduce the rhythm and at the end to make the schoolboys cry while the adults continue to blame somebody. Invariably it becomes the man in the middle who is perceived to be blind. An all fired up Kingswood side got the better of S. Thomas’ College in their match played in Mount Lavinia. Kingswood it appeared were there to prove a point and this they did. Compared to their match against St Peters a few weeks ago they played well and as a team. The backs as well as the forwards played to their potential: something that they have not done to their best in the previous weeks. The backs ran as well as they tackled and were able to retain the vital requirement “possession”.

The backs that did their part were not only fast but also looked furious as they went about their task. The turning point for Kingswood seems to be the change in the halves combination. They were weak previously and the change has done them a lot of good. . St Peters had an easy week end while Isipathana had a break this week end. The match between S. Thomas’ and Kingswood saw the involvement of the Ibrahim brothers as coaches. Ronnie was the coach of S. Thomas’ College while the younger sibling and Niloufer handled Kingswood. This time around it was triumph for the younger brother over the experienced Ronnie.

Vimal Perera is a former Rugby Referee, coach and Accredited Referees Evaluator IRB