Kandy SC AGM today

by Hafiz Marikar

The defending league and knockouts rugby champions Kandy Sports Club will present their Annual General Meeting today Sunday 28th June 2015 at 10.30 a.m at the Lt. General Denzil Kobbekkduwa Club house. The reputation that this club has achieved wherever the game is played has been earned as a result of the consistent success of Kandy Sports Club team spanning over several decades right throughout the ranks from school leavers to senior players. Many famous rugby players have grown to great heights from this club not only to represent the National team, but also playing for overseas grade one teams.

This club has been the most successful Sri Lankan club after the resurgence in 1992 winning all titles offered by the Parent Body such as the rugby League, Clifford cup knockouts and the rugby sevens on most number of times.

This is one of the oldest clubs in the country dating back to 141 years and was founded by a group expatriate coffee planters in 1874 as the Kandy Athletic, Boating, Cricket, Football and Dancing Club. In 1888, after 14 years, the name was changed to 'Kandy Sports Club' when the club started playing rugby, hockey and polo. The home grounds was Bogambara grounds until 1939 when the British Colonial Army took over during the Second World War.

Later the buildings were taken over by the General Hospital to house its offices, however Kandy SC continued to play rugby at the Bogambara grounds without a club house. In 1949 the Municipal Council released the garbage dumping ground area at Nittawela to the club. In 1954 the club was transformed due to the untiring efforts of the late Col. Stanley Ratwatte, Chandra Wijenayake and a few dedicated and keen committee members. Initially they started with a small hut, like a scout tent, which was used as its club house.

The Kandy Club which was housed behind the Elephant House Building (now known as White House) by the side of the Torrington Square, shifted their club to a building opposite former Walkers & Co., and during that time they had limited space at this premises, and they gifted most of their furniture cutlery to Kandy Sports Club, through the efforts of Col. Stanley Ratwatte, and few members, all of them were members of both clubs, later this club was shifted to Malabar Street, where they are now.

This was the beginning of Nittawela Grounds and the club house. Then the terraces on either side of the grounds, not in full was constructed by the late E.W,Balasuriya during his presidency in 1975.

Today, this club is an International venue with all facilities, thanks to Malik Samarawickrema and the rest of the committee the club is gifted with all what they need with a modern club house, dressing room, tiers, restaurant, gymnasium and everything that a club requires. The game of rugby has become very popular, with the largest spectator attendance at all matches where Kandy Sports Club is in action, since 1992, they have been dominating the game at all levels of sevens, league and knockout.

Actually they can be categorized as the kings of rugby in Sri Lanka by winning trophies after trophies, for that too Malik is the great motivator and can be called as the King pin of Kandy rugby. Malik Samarawickrema says Kandy Sports Club would be a threat once again in the coming rugby season. He said that talent and potential within the players is extra ordinary and the effort levels have been in creditable all season. Added to this there a bunch of very experience and National players as well to lead from the front, they go in to this year's sevens with two good talented sides with Saliya Kuamra as the coach.

The committee approved unanimously, Fazil Marija as the New Rugby Captain of the Kandy Sports Club for the season 2015 / 2016, He has earlier captained the side and currently the 15-a-side and 7's rugby captain of the National team. He along with some top players, are planning for another big season. There are over 40 players in the squad and standing there to put everything into the season with much more. Today the club playing kit is from Canterbury of New Zealand, the team sponsors are Singer Sri Lanka, Cargills (Ceylon) PLCE and Etisalat Mobile PLC.

Last season, It was another season of great challenge, opportunity and achievement. On the field there were many pleasing performances by the men who brought back both the league and the knockout trophies.

Following will be elected today at the Annual General Meeting to serve in the coming season:-

Patron - Dr. Sarath Kapuwatte, Trustees - Malik Samarawickrema, Hemaka Amarasuriya and Dr.Sartah Kapuwatte President - Udaya Balasuriya, - Vice Presidents Mahesh Weerasinghe, Nihal Ratwatte and Hafiz Marikar, Secretary - Channe Jayatilake, Treasurer - Anizal Laphir, Secretary - (Social Events) Anurudha Ranasinghe, (Pavilion) Sujeewa Liyanage, (Ground) Araft Abdeen, (Restaurant Bar) Janaka Pathirane, committee - Lesly de Zoysa, Rohan Daulagala, Damika Swarnasinghe, Samsheer Jaleel, Anton Nanayakara, Upali Silva, Upul Jayasuriya, Jehan Sirimane, M.M.Jiffery, rugby Chairman Lasantha Wiajsuriya, Captain - Fazil Marija, Team Manager - Kapila Silva, - Assistant Team Manager Saliya Silva, Rugby Convener - A. Jamaldeen -Asst: Convenor Nalaka Weerakkody. Head Coach and Consultant Johan Taylor, Coach Sean Wijesinghe, SLRFU representative - Shyam Siddik - CPRFU Representative - Milroy Mendis.