Saliya Kumara to coach Vidyartha besides playing for Kandy Sports Club

by Hafiz Marikar

Vidyartha get coach .... Kandy Sports Club and senior Sri Lanka ruggerite Saliya Kumara will coach his first school Vidyartha College. Saliya, a fine back division player, has played as scrum half, centre and fullback and learnt his rugby at Vidyartha College before joining Trinity College.

After his school career, he played for Havelock Sports Club for a few seasons, and also for CH and FC one season.

Later Saliya came over to his hometown and joined Kandy Sports Club. Now he is a regular and mainstay of the Nittawela Club.

Undisputedly the best Sri Lankan utility back division player, with more years of rugby before him, he rightfully deserves this coaching contract. Vidyartha College is a school which started playing rugby in 1963, has produced several national players. Saliya Kuamra is one them, but has also emerged as a top rugby playing school which matched up with the leading rugby playing schools.

Saliya is a experienced full-back, and he led the Jaffna Challengers this year at the Carlton Sevens, a Kandy Sports Club player has been around the Lankan rugby circuit at club level for more than eight years with exceptional performances for his club and country.

Saliya who is a nippy style of player is all out to give off his best, for the school where he started his rugby career.

Saliya says he started as a fullback, and the duty is usually to position, several meters behind the back line. His work is to field any deep opposition kicks and is often the last line of defence. On attack, we enter the back line, usually near the centres or wings, with the aim of providing an extra person and overlapping the defending players.

The most important attributes of a good full-back is good catching ability under a high kick, the ability to punt the ball a long distance with accuracy and the speed and skill to join in back line attacking moves, especially counter-attacks.

He says full-back is the player most likely to field the high ball or "up and unders" kicked by the opposition.

Good hands are needed to ensure the ball is caught cleanly to deny the opposition the chance to regain possession. As the full-back will inevitably catch the ball deep in their own territory with little support from their own players, a full-back should either kick the ball downfield or as is the more common practice run forward to link up with their backs to start a counter-attack. With years of experience as a top class player, Saliya should help him in a big way to groom the young up and coming players.He is sure to get the best of support for the Vidyartha College, Old Boys Rugby Wing, who do a lot to keep the game alive and kicking, in the last couple of year with the backing of one of their old boys Wasantha Dissanayke and his able support they have given their best for the game.

So, much can be expected from Saliya's coaching.