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Royal playing with better cordination in the second half beat St. Peter's by 28 points (5 tries, 1 penalty) to 16 (2 tries, 2 penalties) in their Milo Inter-School league rugby football encounter at the Sugathadasa Stadium yesterday.
Royal led 13-11 at 'lemons'.
In other matches played during the week, St. Joseph's came from behind to pull off a 12 points (1 goal, 1 try) to 7 (1 goal) win over the much improved Maliyadeva team at Longden Place. Joes won the game with five minutes to spare through a try scored by centre Aravinda Wijesundare, which was unconverted.
Earlier flanker Lakshita Gunaratne scored the first try for the Joes which was goaled by centre Dinesh de Silva. Suranga Jayakody scored the Maliyadeva try which was also goaled by Jayakody.
Ananda scrape through. Ananda gained a close 8-5 win over Kingswood at the Sugathadasa Stadium. The scores were deadlocked at 5 all at the breather.
Lumbini 's first win. Lubini beat Science College 18-3 at Havelock Park. Centre Lalindra Chathuranga scored Lumbini's first try with fly-half Sham Pradeep failing to goal it. The Havelock Town lads scored their second try through winger Kumara with Pradeep again failing to add the extra points.
Narrow win for Thurstan. Thurstan got the better of Dharmaraja by 19 points to 14 at Longden Place. Thurstan led 19-6 at half time.
POW win. Prince of Wales crushed Royal Panadura, the 'babes' of rugby, by 77 points to nil at Moratuwa.
The Inter-School rugby football game between S.Thomas' Mt. Lavinia and St. Sylvester's Kandy at the Trinity College Rugby Stadium at Pallekele ended in a free-for-all on Friday.
It was sad to note that the Police appeared on the scene when everything was over. Even the referee was assaulted by a section of the crowd.
The absence of a doctor at the grounds was also noticed. To add insult to injury, even a vehicle was not available to take the injured players to the hospital until the Principal of St. Sylvester's obliged. The bus carrying the Thomian players to Colombo was also stoned, reports say.
BOMBAY, Saturday (AFP) - Indian captain Sachin Tendulkar hinted Friday it may still be some time before his predecessor Mohammad Azharuddin is recalled to the national squad.
In his first comments on Azharuddin's unusual omission for the ongoing four-nation Independence Cup, Tendulkar said: "He is a great batsman who can come back into the team by making runs."
Tendulkar's emphasis on runs effectively rules out Azharuddin's return till the next domestic starts in October, although the Indians have a busy international schedule before that.
India is due to tour Sri Lanka from July for the Asia Cup and two Test matches, followed by two back-to-back limited-overs series against arch-rivals Pakistan in Canada and Pakistan in September.
The 34-year-old Azharuddin, the only Indian to score more than 6,000 one-day runs, was dropped after a poor tour of the West Indies where his top score was 40.
Azharuddin said he was disappointed at not being part of India's independence celebrations but vowed to come back.
"I am not retiring yet," he told reporters. "I did not expect to be dropped for such a historic event, but I will be back."
Azharuddin's omission evoked mixed a response from former cricketers, but his fans were livid.
A group of 30 in the western city of Aurangabad went on a hunger strike and requested Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral to intervene in the matter.
India's five-member selection committee, headed by former Test fast bowler Ramakant Desai, is appointed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, an independent body free of government control.
In a separate development Pakistan's Independence Cup squad, preparing in for next week's showpiece match against arch-rivals India, received invaluable tips from an unexpected ally.
Former Indian captain Bishan Bedi accepted an invitation from old friend Mushtaq Mohammad, the Pakistani coach, to visit his team's training session at the National stadium in New Delhi.
Bedi, rated by many as the world's best left-arm spinner, spoke at length about the art of slow bowling to the Pakistani spin trio of Saqlain Mushtaq, Shahid Afridi and Mohammad Hussain.
"You must enjoy your game, only then can you perform," said Bedi, who took 266 Test wickets in 67 Tests as a member of the famed Indian spin quartet two decades ago. "Keep working at the nets to bring more variety to your bowling."
A grateful Saqlain said it was an honour to speak to the Indian master. "I learnt a few things about spin bowling I never knew even existed. I'll be happy being half the bowler he was."
Bedi and his former Northamptonshire colleague Mushtaq Mohammad were rival captains when India and Pakistan resumed cricketing relations in 1978 after 17 years.
Pakistan take on India in their last league match at Madras on May 21. They lost their opening match to New Zealand but upset world champions Sri Lanka in their second.
Ishan Muthaliph of Maris Stella College Negombo was voted winner of the Horlicks Trophy, Most Popular under 13 schoolboy cricketer in the competition run by The Sunday Times, Midweek Mirror and Lankadeepa concluded last week.
Muthaliph pooled 2424 votes while his nearest rival Nadeeka Wickremaratne of D.S. Senanayake College pooled 1994 votes followed by Jehan Jayasooriya of St. Peter's who pooled 1734 votes.
Hadlee Jayawardena of Joseph Vaz Wennappuwa finished in 4th place with 642 votes followed by T. de S. Wijeratne (St. Joseph's) - 419, D.H. Eranga de Silva (St. Thomas' Kotte) - 392, Ishan Sanjaya (Prince of Wales) - 368, H.G. Cooray (Lumbini MV) - 349, Lasith Fernando (St. Sebastian's) - 312, G.C. Gunatilleka (Wickremabahu MMV) - 191, P.D. Ranawaka (St. Anthony's Katugastota) - 187, K.M. Sanjaya de Silva (Sri Devananda Ambalangoda) - 125, G.D.P. Gunatilleka (Maliyadeva) - 102, Amal Buddhika (Moratu Vidyalaya) - 66.
The awards ceremony for the under 15 and 13 Horlicks Trophy most popular schoolboy cricketer will be held shortly at the BMICH. During the season Muthaliph stroked 71 boundaries, a fantastic feat indeed by any standards for a young cricketer with plenty of potential. Keeping wickets for his side, he accounted for nine victims five caught and four stumpings. (AF)
Joseph Kenny and Prasanga Kariyawasam in a GP 14 retained the Dunlop Bell Trophy at the Regatta concluded at the Bolgoda Lake.
Lalin Jirasinghe crewed by Ranil Dias in an Enterprise who crossed the finishing line first was placed second, with the husband and wife combination of Anil Goonawardena crewed by Michelle came in third followed by Olaf Kronham and David Governey.
In all 23 boats came under the starter's orders, while twenty boats finished the course with two boats capsizing and one retired.
Sailing was very competitive and had different leading boats during the one and half hours race which was organised by the Yachting Association of Sri Lanka and hosted by the Ceylon Motor Yacht Club at its Headquarters at Bolgoda.
In the Optimist Junior Nationals Victor Olmon defeated the favourites Philip Olmon and Rehan Dias. (AF)
Kandy maintained their winning streak by crushing Petersons by 50 points to 15 in their Inter-Club A Division league championship encounter for the Carlsberg Trophy at Nittawela yesterday. The winners led 30-5 at the breather.
For Kandy Dunstan de Silva, Priyantha Ekanayake, Suranga Kodituwakku, Nalaka Weerakody, Apsi Nagata, Thuruwa Opethi scored a try each and Weerakody goaled two tries and also put over two penalties.
For Petersons Rohan Weeratne, Sarath Perera and M.Deen scored a try each.
Referee: Orville Fernando
On Friday, CH&FC lost to the Air Force. Air Force scored 13 points (1 goal, 2 penalties) to 8 (1 try and a penalty) at Maitland.
TODAY: Old Trinitians vs Police at Nittawela
The Bank of Ceylon Veterans cricket team scored their second successive victory defeating CWE by 98 runs in their Nationalised Services D Division tournament encounter played at Ratmalana.
Bank of Ceylon totalled 154 for 5 with Ranjith Wijayakulasuriya and S. Paranawitharana scoring 41 and 42 runs respectively.
CWE were bundled out for 56 runs with M.S.K. Mikdar, Anura Fernando and S. Paranawitharana capturing 3 wickets each.
Bank of Ceylon 154 for 5 (Ranjith Wijayakulasuriya 41, Smithra Fernando 42, S. Paranawitharana 27, Chandana Peiris 23 not out, S. Arukkgoda 2 for 17).
CWE 56 all out.
The Jafferjee Brothers Group inter-company cricket tournament played for the Sheik A. Jafferjee Memorial Trophy will be played on May 25.
This popular tournament will be played at the Nomads grounds.
An all-star quarter mile quartet that carried Sri Lanka to its greatest heights in international athletics 23 years ago were recently brought back together on national television for a memorable reunion and to share their experiences and ideas with today's athletes.
All four had come from villages, barefoot and with few of the comforts or facilities that today's sports people enjoy. But volunteering for a tough schedule of training with a lot of commitment, dedication and discipline they carried Sri Lanka to a spectacular record in one of the star events of the Asian Games in Tehran in 1974. Due to the unusual heat in Tehran all four collapsed at the end of their laps but they brought glory to Sri Lanka by finishing not only first but also far ahead of their nearest rivals.
The quartet comprised Major W. Wimaladasa, Captain K.C. Premachandra, Sunil Goonawardena and Kosala Sahabandu. After the glory of the Tehran Games they again went their separate ways, two of them to the army and others elsewhere. Seldom or never did they meet together again until Sports Minister S.B. Dissanayake, himself an athlete brought them together again.
Last Sunday's Rupavahini interview with these four great sportsmen indeed had many valuable lessons for today's young sportsmen and women. They spoke of the hard struggle they went through. For their village meets they did not have spikes and had to run on hard ground. Even after making the grade and coming to Colombo for major national contests it was a hard grind. Major Wimaladasa recalled how he would come for training from far away and get back by bus, carrying heavy bags and often sweating to the annoyance of other passengers. They had no cars as so many sports people have today.
The four athletes emphasised that the hard training schedule they followed was not imposed on them by anyone but something they did on their own from early morning while others slept. It reminds one of a famous poem:
The heights reached by great men, reached and kept
Were not attained by sudden flight,
But they while their compatriots slept
Were toiling upward in the night.
Competence and talent alone are not enough. Commitment, hard work and discipline are essential, the athletes said, at a time when many sports stars have gone for millionaire lifestyles amidst allegations of misbehavior and dr -unkenness.
Asked why athletics standards in Sri Lanka had come down so much, the 1974 stars were convinced that one major reason was a breakdown of discipline and a tendency for an easygoing lifestyle. They advised young sports people to recommit themselves to hard work and discipline which would teach them not only to fly like a bird or swim like a fish but most importantly to walk like a human being.
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