Soccer Memories that linger
When Sri Lanka won the SAFF Bristol Cup final in
1995:
 With the South Asia Football Federation tournament being dribbled in
Nepal, it would be of interest to soccerites and soccer fans if the
winning of the final for the one and only time by Sri Lanka in 1995 is
recalled. To make a long story short, the protagonists in the final were
Sri Lanka and India, with India being the stronger team and fancied to
win. But the Lankans were not overawed by the occasion and took the
field a determined lot.
At the outset I must state that after cricket, my second love is
football.
That is because I had my grounding at St. Benedict's College,
Kotahena which was renowned for football and which school produced
champion soccerites and teams regularly and gave to the game the best
ever coach produced by the country, the only Brazilian and Germany
trained B. Albert Fernando.
I must also state that I covered football for 'The Times of Ceylon'
for over two decades, starting in the early 1960s when V.A. Sugathadasa
and B.G.S. David, Chief Magistrate and Additional District Judge were
Presidents of the Football Federation. I also covered the Asian Football
Championships which was conducted in Japan and won by Japan and the
previous SAFF Cup conducted in Nepal.
Promoters and benefactors
Down the line there have been football promoters and benefactors who
headed the FSL of the calibre of Dunstan de Alwis, DIG Ivor Van Twest,
DIG Herbert Weerasinghe, DIG A. Navaratnam, Lawrence Fernando, Minister
Weerasinghe Mallimarachchi and the man for all seasons, the incomparable
Vernon Manilal Fernando and J.S.N. Anandaraja. Later on there were
Hurley Silveira and Sarath Weerasekera.
It was when Anandaraja headed the FFSL that Sri Lanka beat India with
what was called 'golden goal' in extra time to savour and enjoy one of
their best moments in the history of the game and hold aloft the Bristol
SAFF Trophy at the floodlit Sugathadasa Stadium.
The Stadium was packed to capacity with many thousands of soccer fans
unable to gain entry. Fans from both countries cheered deafeningly when
the two teams took the field.It was a no quarter asked or given football
as the teams went for the net from the first whistle. Midway during the
game the heavens opened up and there was a deluge and indications were
that the game would not be continued because the deluge refused to
cease.
Thunder and lightning
With thunder and lightning shaking the foundations of the Stadium,
the curators got to work, forgetting danger to life and limb, and thanks
to the wonderful draining system that prevailed, the water that flooded
the field quickly subsided and play was possible.
After a goalless period of fulltime play, it boiled down to sudden
death - the team scoring the goal winning and the match being stopped.
W. Sarath booted the goal for Sri Lanka and did not all hell break
loose.The Lankan fans did not only sing, dance and celebrate on the
ground, but with Kotahena producing the most soccer playing clubs, the
fans were celebrating on the roads until the wee hours of the morning.
No doubt the happiest man was the President J.S.N.Anandaraja. Having
been very close to him, when everyone was showing praise on him, I still
remember what he told and confided in me.
All credit to Manilal Fernando
With tears of joy streaming down and whilst appreciating the
achievements of the team and the coaches, he told me that all credit
should go to Manilal Fernando, because it was he who above anyone else
who worked the oracle to see to the team's success. That's how simple
Anandaraja was in showing his gratitude to Fernando.'SPORTSCOPE' was a
column I began in the 1970s in the 'Times of Ceylon' and which I am now
continuing in the 'Sunday Observer', thanks to its Editor-in-chief
Dinesh Weerawansa who encouraged and coaxed me into continuing.
In my early days I was fearless and made exposures in the column on
the haphazard manner in which the affairs of the FFSL was run, so much
so that some officials threatened me with assault and death. It was no
different with the clashes I had with officials of the Cricket Board of
that time.But it finally boiled down to shaking hands and burying the
hatchet because my detractors realised that I was doing a job of work
and doing it for the welfare and betterment of the game and player and
took it in the spirit, because the officials were all sportsmen.
Scintillating soccerites
Also during those days Sri Lanka produced some scintillating
soccerites who were treats to watch with their natural flair and ball
play. They were magicians with the ball at their feet and need not be
told what the end line was.Those were the days when the player were
called or tagged - centre, extremes, halves and full backs, unlike now
where they are called strikers, forwards and defenders.And those were
the days that produced easily the greatest ball players that the game
saw and will ever see. Names that come to mind are - goalkeepers M.
Hassimdeen, who was classed as Asia's best, T. Wilson, Piyadasa Perera,
Oscar Wijetunge, K.B. Pussella, Issac Wenaden, Lawerence Fernando,
Vijaya Silva and Harold Anthony.
Ball players were Peter Ranasinghe, Mahinda and Richard Aluvihare,
T.O.M. Deen, Karunapala Fernando, Andrew Fernando, K.D. Somapala, T.
Synoon, Bernadus, Petha Premadasa, E.N. Nicholas, P.D. Sirisena, Edward
Wickremasuriya, A. Zainulabdeen, Judy Preena, Ran Banda, Denzil Walles,
M.A. Ameer, Subani Hassimdeen, T. Wanigaratne, Rumy Packeer Aly and M.
Seevaratam.
Game enjoyed its best years
That was the era when the game enjoyed its best years with coaches of
the calibre of V. Nandaraja, B. Albert Fernando and Neville
Abyegunewardene. They were coaches who made footballers out of novices.
Once the above mentioned quit the game, the game went into decline
until a footballing messiah in the form of Vernon Manilal Fernando
stepped in. In the two decades he rode the high horse he did wonders for
the game, the player and the administration.
Fernando created history by being elected as Vice President of the
Asian Football Confederation. Being a highly respected legal eagle and
with FIFA big boss Sepp Blatter recognizing his wonderful abilities got
him into the Legal Committee and Executive Committee.
While he had the courage to stand by his convictions which did not go
down well with the Ethics Committee of FIFA, what is inexplicable is the
hurry by the local body to crucify him.
Somebody's from nobody's
And those going for Fernando are the very ones he helped become
somebody's from nobody's. That is the gratitude he has got in return.One
should not bite the hand that feed it is said. But it is the very ones
who Fernando fed and made fatted cows who are shamelessly lining up to
bite his hand. It need also be mentioned that when Presidents of clubs
were guilty of allegedly assaulting referees, which penalty would have
been a ban for life, it was Fernando who pleaded their case and had them
freed.
These are the racketmen Fernando failed to beware of.During
Fernando's tenure when the team losses he had to take the blame. There
was a time when Sri Lanka used to beat the Maldivians by big scores. But
suddenly fortunes changed and it was vice versa.
Finally it dawned that there was match-fixing and the culprits were
fumigated and banned from the game. They are still in the land of the
damned, where match fixers rightly
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