Former Thomian Larry Schokman recalls his sporting days...

by S. M. Jiffrey ABDEEN - Kandy Sports Corr.

SPORTSMAN: Back in Sri Lanka on a short holiday after a lapse of 16 years is former S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia sporting star and Dimbula and Sri Lanka ruggerite Larry Schokman.

Larry Schokman - the former Thomian sportsman back here on holiday. - Picture by S.M. Jiffrey Abdeen - Kandy Sports Corr.

Seventy five years old Larry Schokman is an epitome of fitness and if Dimbula Planters Club had a rugby team this year, he is fit enough to scrum-down for them. Larry Schokman who did not play rugby for the Thomains (as this school did not play rugby in the early fifties) learnt the basics of the game as trainee planter at Talduwa and later turned out as a winger for All Ceylon (as Sri Lanka was known then) with distinction in the late fifties and sixties when the game was dominated by the Britishers working in the mercantile sector and in the plantations.Larry Schokman played cricket, soccer, swimming, athletics and hockey and won his colours in all these sports excepts cricket.

But, he was to reach dizzy heights in a sport where he did not touch a ball at school level - rugby. He left school in 1953. He started his planting career at Houpe Estate, Kahawatte with the Ceylon Tea Plantation Company in 1954. He took to rugby when he learnt that the Kelani Valley Club required a winger. Being fleet footed and the young blood in him rearing to go he took the challenge but he had to travel over 50 miles to attend practices which was once a week.

He recalled at that time Kelani Valley was captained by Michael Schokman who played as a centre three-quarter and was a ferocious tackler and he had persuaded him to play on the left wing. It is here he learnt his rugby. He played with much success with Kelani Valley.

From Talduwa, he was promoted as Manager of Somerset Estate and later to Uda Radella Group and he continued his rugby with Dimbula Athletic and Cricket Club. He turned out for Dimbula from 1959 to 1972 till he migrated to Florida in America where he retired as the Director, National tropical Botanical Gardens in Miami, Florida in the United States having worked there for 35 years.

Recalling his rugby experience he said that Dimbula is one of the finest clubs and though they did not practise regularly or have big names, they played as one unit and team work was the hall mark of their success.

Take for example in the year 1970, most of the ruggerites were past their prime and he himself was around 37 and they had only couple of hours of practise for a week and most of them had to travel from distant places like Kandapola, Udapussellawa, Kotagala, even Maturata and get back to their plantations. Time was precious and they made the best use of it. They were such a well-knit side that they became Clifford Cup League Champions in 1970 beating the Colombo Clubs in Colombo. Some of the players had to travel over 150 kilometres in their Morris 1000's on Saturdays to play their matches.

Larry Schokman was so dedicated to the game that he had souvenirs in the form of 11 broken ribs. He played for Sri Lanka as a winger at the age of 34. In one season, he scored 24 tries and at that time only 3 points was awarded for a try. He gave credit to his centre and skipper Stanley Unamboowe in scoring most of his tries. Stanley Unamboowe had always fed him with the ball without being selfish. His best moments was in 1970 when they beat the top favourites Havelocks Sports Club 5-0 at Havelock Park.

Some of the ruggerites who played alongside him were Vivian Blaze, Mahinda Ratwatte, Sunil Jayakoddy, Maurice Perera, Gamini Tennakoon, Mike de Alwis, Selva Canagasabay, Jeewaka Attapattu, Tissa Attapattu, Mohan Samarasinghe, Bryan Faithful, Mike Parry, Mike Waring, Bob Smith, Jayatissa Ratwatte, John Pyatt, Derrick Munaweera, Yasa Ratnayake, Mike Robbie, Ralston Tissera, Lester Caspersz, Robert de Kretser, Homer Titus, Tony Witham, Raji de Silva and many others.

In 1962, too, Dimbula won the Clifford Cup and they played 16 matches, won 12, lost 2, drew 2.