A flame-load waiting to explode

One-time crowd puller Hisham Abdeen on a crusade for kids as former rugby greats regroup to marvel:

by Callistus Davy

He was an unparalleled force on the field of play and a player of his caliber is yet to grace the playing fields of Sri Lanka. Now in retirement his unmatched ways are no different as he keeps the flame of rugby aglow by grooming kids as young as eight years some of whom come from far off rustic villages to see the oval-shaped ball for the first time.

When he opened his Hisham Abdeen Rugby Football Academy (HARFA) six years ago, none in the Sri Lankan fraternity doubted it would collapse under a scrum. Seven ex-Sri Lanka Rugby Football Union presidents and several others who donned the Sri Lanka elephant jersey, graced the occasion at Havelock Park. Today the former flanker who wore the Sri Lanka jersey at the age of 18 is silently producing more players than any other retired exponent of repute has done.

In the first six months alone of the founding of HARFA as many as 17 players came through to make the A division grade for their respective schools after learning the fundamentals of the game. The latest to come through was none other than Royal College's trophy-winning captain of the last season Bhanuka Gamage and his team-mate Keshan Peiris.

Nothing gives Abdeen more satisfaction than to learn that most players who passed through his nursery would never have been known to rugby if not for HARFA which has become a national academy in a country where pompous rugby administrators push ahead with their social and business interests ahead of player welfare.

"Some players who enrolled at HARFA would have had no chance in their school teams, but now they are the ones who are playing a leading role", said Abdeen who drew paying crowds by the busloads when he played for Havelocks on the domestic scene from 1980 to 1991.

At HARFA's annual academy championships early this month Abdeen brought together some colourful personalities of the past that included Jeyer Rodriguez, Dan Ratnam, Maurice de Silva, Christopher Harridge and Beverly de Kauwe whose presence was an endorsement of Abdeen's crusade for end-of-the-line recruits while one of Sri Lanka's finest cricketing cover fielders David Heyn was an honoured guest. In front of them were more than 600 boys showcasing their dreams in a way nothing else could do!

Abdeen, few people know, became a double International by wearing the Sri Lanka football jersey in a match against South Korea and also represented the Colts Cricket Club as a fast bowler. But rugby was inseparable from Abdeen and the flame is still indistinguishable from a man who led the Sri Lanka Sevens team to win what is still being hailed as the best prize ever won by the country, the Bowl championship at the world famous Hong Kong Sevens in 1984.

"It was always my dream to give something back to the sport that gave me so much of pride and honour. And through HARFA I think I am doing just that", said a modest Abdeen.

It seems HARFA is not only producing young players in a way that no other private academy has done in the country, but also turning Abdeen into an undisputed genius. On his far-reaching and sometimes barrier-ridden journey, Abdeen has a long list to chronicle. Playing for Havelocks he once crossed the line for as many as eight tries against the formidable Army team in 1981, a year after he scored a record 25 tries for Isipathana College in just eight games.

He is no stranger to coaching and if one school, St. Peter's College, can boast of staking their place in the Sevens circuit they owe it to Abdeen who made them a champion in 2004. He may not have had much success as a Sri Lanka coach and selector, but Abdeen as a man who can take his own decisions has succeeded without shifting the goal posts.

He is probably number one on the list when it comes to recalling players of his era while everyone else comes after. Yet Abdeen to this day still remains the down-to-earth rugby intellect who speaks very little but has proved enough to turn heads never asking for anything but delivering when it matters.

As a player Abdeen epitomized rugby in all its brilliance and HARFA is a continuation of that crusade where many others had failed.