Kandy Club level hockey ship without a rudder

by Hafiz Marikar

A great effort is needed to bring club hockey in Kandy back to the position it was some years ago. It is sad that hockey has taken a back seat at club level in Kandy, despite this sport reaching great heights in the past, particularly when the Kandy District Hockey Association was headed by Roy de Silva. He promoted the game to great heights.

A hockey match in progress. File photo

He was also one time the Asian Hockey Federation President, Chairman of the National Olympic Committee of Sri Lanka and also acting president of the Asian Olympic Council. There was also Wesleyite, Dr. A Samad Ismail who introduced hockey to the Royal Ceylon Air Force and was a great promoter at all levels of the game.. At school level, hockey is functioning quite well, thanks to the principals of both girls' and boys' schools for their initiative and effort taken to get the game going.

Hockey introduced in 1907

Hockey in Kandy was introduced in 1907, when the Indian Rajput Regiment occupied the Kandy Military Barracks, currently known as Police Barracks. During that time St. Anthony's College was housed at the present St. Sylvester's College premises and they used the Army barracks square for all their sports. The youth of that era were attracted to hockey and played knocking the ball around with a borrowed stick or two. Youngsters somehow played the game whenever they found a vacant spot when the military men did not turn up for their games.

The first 'bully off' in Kandy was in 1907 at the Bogambara grounds, when Kandy Sports Club and the Industrial School team met. The captains of these two teams were Europeans S.R. Hammer and R. Sparks. These two clubs played regularly and had opposition from the Regiments stationed in Kandy. Once the Indian regiment left, hockey too followed suit, a game which was once in the forefront.

Later in the 1930's, the game was revived. Looking into hockey in Kandy, reveals that the game was re-introduced by a veteran of the game P.T. Rajan father of the famous Rotarian B.D.R. Suri Rajan. It was done with the support of people of the likes of V.D. Paul Raj and, J.O Mendis of Kingswood College and M.S.Jainudeen the doyen who promoting hockey in Kandy.

Late P.T.Rajan, who came from India as an educationist, arrived with a hockey stick in hand, the sport he loved so much.He was keen and soon went about popularizing the game in Kandy.

The rest is history with the game spreading and flourishing in Kandy, After the formation of the Kandy District Hockey Association in the early 1940s, the teams that took part were Indian Students Hostel (now known as Asoka Students Hostel), St. Anthony's College under the name of 'Hotspurs', Trinity College as 'Rabbits', Kingswood College, Kandy Rovers and the Imperial Motor Garage S.C.

Then in 1944, the Kandy District Hockey Association conducted one of its finest tournaments where fourteen teams participated in the league. They were St. Anthony's 'Hotspurs', Trinity 'Rabbits', Kingswood, Police, CLI (Army), Kandy Rovers, Sampans (Army), Blue Jays (Army), All Anglo Indians, Parklands (Army), Indians Legionaries (Army) and South East Command Team of Lord Mountbatten's staff.

The Kandy Rovers having the better side, including Philip Buultjens the greatest Sri Lankan sportsman came on top. He excelled in all games he played. Douglas Bartholomeusz, former Thomian cricket captain, F.H.B. Wood, the Chaplain Trinity a county player, Sam Elhart of Trinity, Victor Ratnawale, H.W. Bobby Jayaweera of Trinity led the side.

This team had the distinction of winning the league championship and also played in the Connor Cup in the same year and the Andriesz Shield tournaments in Colombo.

During the next few years, the standard of hockey was maintained and in 1950 P.T. Rajan presented a trophy called the P.T. Rajan Cup for the league, which including the Matale team as well. During those early days in addition to the P.T. Rajan Cup there was a M.S. Jainudeen Cup for the League runners-up, K.P.M.M. Seyed Ahamed Challenge Cup for the Seven A Side tournament and the V.H.L. Anthonisz Challenge Cup for the knock-out tournament.

Later on M.S. Jainudeen took over the mantle as President and P. Thangavelu became the Secretary of Kandy District Hockey Association. It was Thangavelu who did his utmost best to improve hockey at St. Sylvester's. People like P.T. Rajan, the man who introduced the game in Kandy, M.S. Jainudeen the doyen of Kandy hockey, Bobby Jayaweera, Rev. Fr. Robert M. Perera, S.R. Hamer, Philip Bulttjens, G.H. Robinson, George Mant, K. De Lanerolle, Dr. V.H.L. Anthonisz, R.B. Wijekoon, Lesley Handunge, P. Thangavelu, A.L. Perumal, P. Balasubramanium, M.D. Rupasena, Dr. A. Samad Ismail, Roy de Silva, , Parine Silva, D.R. Rajaligam, I.M. Anwer, Lakshman Senavirthne Rtd. DIG, offered their best services to the sport.

Every person who loves hockey in the hill capital are waiting eagerly for the revival of club hockey.There is no league or knockout tournamentsThey only play a one- day tournament and that too a seven side.,One tournament was conducted on the day of Kandy's oldest cricket big match. League tournaments are being conducted for months, followed by the knockouts and the 'Sevens?. Hockey is one of the cheapest games to play, which every youth can afford. It has taken a back seat in the club circle, despite the fact that some of the officials in the governing body hail from Kandy. The Kandy District Hockey Association today is like a ship sans a rudder. without proper organized tournaments and lack the administration capacity and one day it would eventually die a natural death.

The hockey loving public of Kandy humbly appeals to the Sports Minister to put things in order and instruct the Ministry to investigate and revive this International sport back to what it was or even go a step further.