Three Trinity cricketers awarded 'Lions'

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

CRICKET LIONS: Three cricketers from this year's Trinity College cricket team were awarded the Cricket Lions, the highest award in school at the College Assembly held at the Trinity College hall.

These awards were made by the Acting Principal of Trinity College Brigadier Udaya Ariyaratne.

The recipients of the prestigious 'Cricket Lions' were left arm spinner Asmil Anas, allrounder Janishka Premasinghe and wicket keeper opening batsman Niroshan Dickwella. Allrounder and skipper Akila Jayasundera was awarded his Cricket Lion in 2009 following his excellent leg spin bowling when he captured 108 wickets and was only the third Trinitian to do so after spinners Sachith Pathirana and Rushan Jaleel.

The winning of the 'Cricket Lions' by these cricketers should go as a feather in the cap of their dedicated cricket coach and former D.S. Senanayake College cricket captain Sampath Perera who moulded the school cricket team in a fighting outfit during the 2011 cricket season. This year, Trinity scored a record ten outright victories including seven of them in-a-row.

They were also runners up in the school limited over cricket tournament and rounded off their season by winning the school twenty20 cricket tournament. This was Sampath Perera's third season as Trinity's cricket coach which has seen at this hill capital school reach new heights.

Left arm spinner Asmil Anas has been banboosling the schoolboy batsmen this season and captured 75 wickets during the season. He is the grandson of Environment Minister A.R.M. Abdul Cader. He played a little cricket in the early stages of his school career and later switched to rugby which too he did not concentrate much and at one stage he was lost to sports. It was during a class cricket match coach Sampath Perera re-discovered him and brought him into the 'A' team and later to the first II. He was an instant success. His best performance with the ball was 4 wickets in 4 balls which included a hat-trick. His haul for the season would have been much more if not for the fact that Trinity College had equally good spinners and the spin and the pace attack had to be rotated in keeping with the situation.

Dickwella - good wicket-keeper

Hireshan Dickwella is a top class wicket-keeper opening batsman. He scored nearly 900 runs during the season including two centuries but consistency was the hallmark of his success.

Though not keeping wickets regularly he had nearly 40 victims behind the stumps. Opening the side's batting and keeping wickets in a tough task. As he will have don the pads and the gloves for most part of the match.

Third to receive the Lion was allrounder Janishka Premasinghe who captured 89 wickets with his spinners and also scored over 400 runs during the season and played a major role in Trinity's success this season.

He turned out to be a match with his spinners and was Trinity's highest wicket taker this season. Earlier during the season, he batted lower down but was promoted up during the latter part of the season and he performed very consistently. He is the son of former Trinity College wicket-keeper batsman S. Premasinghe who passed away about two months ago.

Skipper Jayasinghe received colours 2009

Skipper Akila Jayasinghe received his colours in 2009 when his long-spinners brought him a haul of over 100 wickets and this was despite the fact that he missed four matches due to injury.

He is also a very attacking bat and scored very heavily this season including a century. Akila Jayasinghe has excellent leadership qualities and has the knack to get the best out of his players. Being a spinner himself, he did hardly any bowling as there were other spinners who were moving down the opposing batsmen and he allowed them to bowl and only did so when the occassion demanded and when others had failed. From how many schoolboy cricketers can you expect this kind of sportsmanship by putting team above personal glory. Many tend to over bowl but not Akila Jayasundera for him the success of the team was more important.

Akila Jayasundera will be playing for the school next season too and he may have to bear the brunt of the attack as leg spinners are few in the schools circuits.

Apart from the awarding of Lions, colours were also awarded to Kavinda Jayasuriya, Heshan Wanniarachchi, Keheliya Athugoda, Tissa Sanjeewa Bandara, Alwin Fernando, Rajitha Jayatunga, Dinuk Wickramanayake, and Ron Chandragupta. The last four named are from the under 17 team and the Trinitians could look forward to another season under Niroshan Dickwella next year, with coach Sampath Perera to guide them again.