Friday 24th March, 2006 11 Dharmaraja - Kingswood clash for 100th time Text & pix by Rukshan Razak, 167 for Kingswood, which is yet to be sur- Buwaneka Kandy Sports Corr. passed. Ekanayake is the Kandy will come alive when the cente- Upesh Wijesiri, a fourth year colours- wicket keeper. nary ‘Battle of the Maroons’ between man leads the Rajans this year. A depend- Other top players Dharmaraja College, Kandy and able top order batsman, he has scored 580 are Chamila DHARMARAJA COLLEGE Kingswood College, Kandy gets underway runs this season with his highest of 114 Ambagaspitiya, at the Asgiriya Stadium today. against Nalanda College. Upesh is also a Tharindu especially with the bat. attack will revolve round the skipper Records show that Dharmaraja College handy medium pacer. His deputy Rukshan Balasuriya, Rukshan Sooriyarachchi, The pace attack will be spearheaded by Deminthe Dahanayake, Asiri leads the series with 31 wins against 19 by Sooriyarachchi a yet another fourth year Dhanushka Mitipolarchchi and Tharindu Dhanushka Geeganage and Chathuranga Amarasinghe, Indika Senartne, Niroshan Kingswood College, with the rest of the player, with 320 runs and over 20 wickets. Perera. Samrakoon. They have picked up 30 wick- Perera, Ranpath Jaywansa, Heshan Coorey matches ending in draws. Irrespective of The top all rounder in the Rajan team, Fifth year coulorsman Deminthe ets each. Krishan Silva and Ashan and Anuradha Hettige. who could turn the tide to his advantage the result this encounter has continued to Dahanayake will captain Kingswood. He is Seniviratne will assist them. The spin Nirmal Jayasooriya keeps wickets. generate interest among all quarters every with some graceful and aggressive stroke- a top order batsman and an effective right year. play together with useful off spin is arm leg spinner. Right arm leg spinner and The Rajans registered their last win in Dhanushka Mitipolarachchi, who has a middle order batsman Asiri the year 1980 under Janaka Mendis, while made nearly 500 runs and bagged 57 wick- Amarasinghe is the vice captain. The two Seven Sierra Leone athletes do a Kingswood last won way back in 1958. ets. Senaratne brothers -- Indika and Prasad -- Anushka Ranaraja, who is another sen- In 1907, the Rajans record their first win would open the innings for the runner at Commonwealth Games ior player, is the opening batsman of the by a one run. But the following year they Kingswoodians. Indika has aggregated team. Samitha Rajapaksa, a third year were bowled out for a mere 9 runs. 49 years over 400 runs while Prasad is to reach his player, who has been able represent his after the inaugural match there appeared 300 mark. Both are useful off spinners too. the first centurions, P.L. Arthur for team only on five occasion due to an injury is a valuable bowler. The leg spinner had Niroshan Perera is a fifth year player. He is Kingswood and T. B. Talwatta for the a fine all rounder who has a ‘ton’ over S. Rajans. What is interesting here is that best figures of 5-32 against Mahinda Thomas’ College Mt. Lavinia. Talwatta was hit on his head by a ball when College, Galle. Tharindu Perera is consid- The others to be watched out for are on 90 and he was rushed to the hospital and ered as the best bowler of the side. Nirmal Jayasooriya, Ranpath Jayawansa on his return to the field he scored his cen- Chandimal Ratnayake, a middle order tury. The following year, Clifford left handed batsman is a third year player, and Krishan Silva. The trio has scored over Ratnavibushana set a record by thrashing who has accumulated nearly 600 runs this 350 runs each. Kanchana De Silva and season with a top score of 149 n.o. Roshan Lokuge could also be productive MELBOURNE, March 23, 2006 (AFP) - A search after the Games in Manchester four years ago with was underway Thursday for seven members of the immigration officials fearing that they used the event Sierra Leone Commonwealth Games team who as a ploy to gain entry to the United Kingdom per- have disappeared, bringing to nine the number of manently. athletes missing. Four Bangladeshi sprinters also vanished in The three female and four male athletes were Manchester as did Pakistani swimmer Abid Hussain. reported absent on Wednesday after team man- The Australian Immigration Department said it was agers noticed their beds had not been slept in. aware of the latest disappearances. Police said they included a weightlifter and six Earlier this week, an athlete from Bangladesh and members of the athletics team. Three of them were another from Tanzania went missing from the ath- scheduled to run in a four-person relay on letes village with police saying they were increas- Wednesday but were no-shows. ingly concerned for their safety. Sierra Leone team attache Robert Green told Bangladesh 400m sprinter Tawhidul Mohammad reporters that there were no “formal concerns” for Islam and Tanzanian boxer Omari Idd Kimweri dis- their safety, but “you do worry about what’s hap- pened to them”. appeared on Monday and have not been seen Green would not comment on whether the athletes since. could be seeking political asylum. “They left behind clothes and possessions. But “I don’t even speculate on this one,” he said. their visas are valid until April 26 and, until that time, “We’re hopeful they will return.” they are free to enjoy the country,” said Victoria KINGSWOOD COLLEGE Twenty-one athletes from Sierra Leone vanished police commissioner Christine Nixon. Ex-Seminarians win Fr. Michael Croos Trophy The ex-seminarians of St. Joseph’s OMI Seminary won the second edition of the annual basketball encounter between them and the present seminari- ans played for Rev. Fr. Michael Croos Memorial Trophy on Sunday. The ex-seminarians cap- tained by Prasanga Gamage had the game under control right from the start and won comfort- ably 56-40. Ex-seminarian Piumus Lasantha won the award for the Best Shooter while Rinzly Nissanka from the opposition won the ‘Best Player’s award’. The match was sponsored by East West Marketing and Rinzly Nissanka receives the Best Player’s award from Ajith Kuruppu, the Delmege Group. national basketball coach and the chief guest at the occasion. The champion Ex-Seminarians team with Fr. Michael Croos memorial trophy. A former player looks back at Kingswood-Dharmaraja ‘Big Match’ great educationist, was also a Principal of Another Dharmaraja boy who played in inquiry had told him (Thalwatte) to bring Treasury always came to watch Kingswood hope he will not, if we are defeated, utter Continued from yesterday this College. the big match in 1942 and 43, I met for the about 50 ladies from his electorate and ask play during these two years, having his famous explanation “What to do sir, the He used to watch this match, seated in first time, was not on a cricket ground, but them to raise their apparel to break up a obtained leave. He was a real inspiration to by Herbie Jayasuriya ball was swimming like hell!” This explana- front of his bungalow, with his three daugh- on the tennis courts. He is J. C. sathyagraha which was being conducted all of us. He was the late E. W. Fernando, tion may be valid now, because Kingswood I have also closely associated with my ters. I used to envy the Dhamaraja lads, Kariyawasam. He and I are presently mem- close to his electorate. This is a novel way the father of my two friends Maurice and has a swimming pool! We wish Wije the friend Clifford Ratnavibushana and Lionel especially the cricketers for having the priv- bers of the Cosmopolitan Tennis Club. of dispersing a peaceful crowd! Vimal Fernando. I also recall the very ‘high best in retirement. Sirisena for a considerable period of time. ilege of the Principal’s daughters watching Kari is a very I also recall the tea’ he gave us at the Paiva’s Tea Rooms, In conclusion I hope to be in Kandy on Both of them played in this big match. Of them at play! unique individual - cheering parties Kandy, after our victory against Dharmaraja March 24 and 25 to witness this historic the younger Kingswoodians Mohan However, at Kingswood we did not have he has two sons - organised by the in 1958. match. I sincerely hope I would be able to this privilege, because Mr. Nonis had two one captained Royal Kingswood boys of Kodituwakku is a person I always meet in The present Kingswood Principal, meet some of my team mates, who played sons. However his eldest son Harilal, vice- College, and the yesteryear at these the place of worship I go to, and Tissa Chandrasekera, who was gone through tri- with me in 1957 and ‘58, such as Maurice captained the Kingswood side, and played other captained S. matches. They were Jayatilleke who captained Kingswood after als and tribulations and has weathered and Vimal Fernando, Clifford in the Big Match, whilst his younger brother Thomas’ College - a led by Roy de Silva, our time. these storms with great fortitude, has done Ratnavibushana, Hilarian Gunaratne, Prasad was a very interested spectator at very creditable Ebert Perera, Lesley Tissa is the cousin of my youngest a great deal for Kingswood Cricket. It must Godwin Manamperi, Lou and Ranjit brother-in-law, Athula. Apart from being a these matches. achievement for a Abayasekera, Aron be remembered that two years ago Dharmawardena, M. Somakirthi and any fine cricketer, Tissa is an academic, and he I also had the pleasure of knowing one father who was an Herath and P. Kingswood became runners-up in the All others whose names I have forgotten! is presently the Director of the Fullbright of the most stylish batsmen produced by excellent cricketer.