Sports
Rugby’s rich history full of silverware and remembering Commander Matthysz
By a Special Sports Correspondent
Sri Lanka rugby’s riches surface time and again when a match is played in the name of a trophy or a shield. The game played with the oval shaped ball has a long and illustrious history in this island spanning 145 years. Last Saturday (January 13) Ceylonese Rugby & Football Club (CR&FC) hosted Havelock Sports Club (Havies) in their traditional rugby encounter which is now played for the Commander Eustace Matthysz Trophy.
Rugby is a household name in this island and more than in the clubs scene games are played for shields and trophies when it comes to school rugby. When games are played in remembrance of individuals of repute it adds to the sport. The best example for this is the Bradby Shield which is played in the name of former Royal College principal E.L Bradby. This tradition can be seen in school rugby where there are so many games played for shields and trophies. The payback time for starting such practices is seen when a team is demoted to B Division, but still gets to play against A Division teams because the annual game is a traditional fixture and there is a trophy on offer. Luckily teams are not demoted in A Division club rugby; hence the tradition of all clubs playing against each other in the first round continues.
There was a period in rugby where much of its face was changed. Starting with the traditional home and away fixture club rugby had much to look forward to. But now there is no second leg between two teams if one team doesn’t make it to the Cup Competition. The bottom half teams in the league tournament are forced to play in the Plate Competition. Only the best four teams in the points table get the opportunity to contest the Cup Competition. This season reigning champions Kandy SC, CR & FC, CH & FC and Havelock SC are likely contenders to qualify for the Cup Competition of the tournament, which has one more week of matches left to complete its first round. Hence it’s these four teams which would see a rematch in the second round of the tournament.
The CR & FC vs CH & FC game and the CR & FC vs Havelocks SC games took top billing. But all that changed in the early 1990s when some renegade players from CR & FC left the Longden Place club and joined Kandy SC; going on to make the Nittawela Club a force to be reckoned with in the club rugby scene. Even this season despite the much publicity given for the CR & FC vs Havies game all roads will lead to Nittawela this Saturday (January 21) when the all-conquering Kandy SC, under the leadership of Lavanga Perera, hosts CR & FC in a game that will decide the leader of the points table after the first round of matches. Still with all the planning at matches in Western Province venues, the Nittawela Stadium, up in the central hills of Kandy, remains the much-visited ground to attract large crowds.
Another tournament that has still held on to its lofty status is the Clifford Cup competition. The trophy to be given away at this tournament was initially introduced by Lady Clifford for the game between All Ceylon and United Services Kandy. Match arrangements were to coincide with her birthday which fell on August 26, but the match was postponed and played on September 2. The war disturbed the tournament and it was revived as a quadrangular in 1926 before being recognized as the main tournament for clubs in 1950. Havelocks SC were the first winners of this event when it took the form of a fully-fledged inter-club league rugby tournament. The cup was used at rugby for many years after that, but it lost its pride when many other trophies were awarded. It was last offered in 1985 before it resurfaced in the rugby scene when SLR decided to bring the trophy back as a piece of silverware in rugby.
New Zealand completed a stunning chase to beat Afghanistan by two wickets in their final one-day international (ODI) warm-up before the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.
Rahmanullah Gurbaz top scored with 110 off 107 deliveries, while Sediqullah Atal hit 52, as Afghanistan posted 305-9, batting first at the National Stadium in Karachi, Pakistan on Sunday evening.
The Kiwis, who open the tournament on Wednesday against hosts Pakistan, looked in trouble when they were reduced to 152-5 in the 30th over as Rashid Khan snared two of the wickets. Dean Conway (66), thereafter, and Glenn Phillips (46), previously, were, however, both able to retire out to offer match practice for those following.
Daryl Mitchell, who ranks seventh on the list of ICC ODI batters, made full use of the opportunity, proving the ever-reliable finisher for the Black Caps as he and Matt Henry saw their team over the line with an unbeaten 74-run partnership for the ninth wicket.
Mitchell’s 36 off 25 balls was heavily complimented by Henry’s 31 off 20.
Both sides used 15-man teams on rotation for the 11-a-side match, which substantially helped to the aggregate total of 613 runs as batter after batter was sent to the middle.
It was still a close call for New Zealand, though, with Henry having to play his part to seal the victory with the highest strike rate of the match by anyone reaching double figures.
Hashmat Shahidi (40) and Ibrahim Zadran (32) helped to top up the Afghan total before their Champions Trophy debut against South Africa on Friday. Zadran shared an opening stand of 96 with Gurbaz, who was eventually removed by a combination of Mitchell with the ball and Henry in the field.
The latter claimed two wickets, as did Jacob Duffy and Mitchell Santner. Afghanistan had reached 234-3 in a dominant start before Mitchell’s intervention to remove Gurbaz slowed matters.
The chase played out in reverse fashion with the slow start from the Kiwis, but cameos from Mark Chapman (47) and Santner (33) ensured there was at least a foundation upon which Mitchell and Henry were able to launch.
The Kiwi victory was achieved with 13 balls to spare and was a considerable marker laid down by a side considered dark horses for the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy.
Mitchell Santner’s side already warmed up for their opener by beating hosts – and second favourites – Pakistan by five wickets in their tri-series on Friday. New Zealand will play Pakistan again in the opening match of the Champions Trophy in Karachi on Wednesday.
The Champions Trophy, regarded as second only to the World Cup in the one-day game, runs until March 9 and is the first global cricket tournament hosted by Pakistan in nearly three decades.
[Aljazeera]
Defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) made short work of a full-strength Delhi Capitals by keeping their batting line-up to 141 and then chasing the total down with ease to continue the trend of the chasing side winning, for the fourth game in a row. Even though RCB were without the trio of Sophie Molineux, Shreyanka Patil and Asha Sobhana, which brought them glory in last year’s final against DC, the trio of Renuka Singh, Kkta Bisht and Georgia Wareham combined to bundle out DC to a below-par total.
In reply, RCB openers Smriti Mandhana and Danni Wyatt-Hodge put on their second century stand, having earlier done so for Southern Brave in the Hundred in 2021. Mandhana scored her fastest WPL half-century, off 27 balls, and Wyatt-Hodge peppered the off side with six fours out of her seven during her 42 off 33. By the time she fell in the 11th over, RCB needed only 35 off 55 and they cruised over the line in the 17th over.
Renuka landed DC the first big blow when Shafali Verma struck her first ball for the simplest of catches to mid-off for a golden duck. With Meg Lanning looking scratchy at the other end, just like she did against Shabnim Ismail two days ago, it was Jemimah Rodrigues who led DC in the powerplay. Rodrigues herself didn’t start too well – she survived a review on zero and took six balls to get off the mark – but she launched into the RCB attack at first sight of spin, gloriously lofting Ekta Bisht over the covers for a six. DC were also helped by plenty of byes and extras in the powerplay which Rodrigues combined with another six and two fours off VJ Joshitha in the sixth over to give DC their second 50-plus powerplay in as many games.
RCB, however, made inroads through the introduction of Georgia Wareham in the seventh over. Once Rodrigues missed a reverse sweep to be stumped in a flash by Richa Ghosh for 34 off 22, DC lost Lanning as well in the next over when the captain miscued Kim Garth to Ellyse Perry at deep-backward square leg. Annabel Sutherland soon launched Bisht for a big six on the leg side to show that DC weren’t going to be bogged down by the double blow but her attacking approach handed a catch straight to cover in Renuka’s second spell. New batter Jess Jonassen miscued Bisht to midwicket five balls later and DC had suddenly slipped from 60 for 1 to 87 for 5.
It could have been 95 for 6 had Kanika Ahuja not put down Marizanne Kapp at short fine leg and even 103 for 6 if the mix-up between Kapp and Sarah Bryce had not been followed by a fumble, also by Ahuja, but it did become 105 for 6 when Kapp holed out to long-off off a 69.2kph delivery from Bisht. Bryce chipped in with another useful cameo with a 23 off 19 that saw RCB past 125 but they needed a lot more to make a match out of this. Wareham handed them a double blow in the 18th over and Garth wrapped things up in the last over to finish with 2 for 19, while Renuka bagged 3 for 23 and Wareham 3 for 25.
Even with Kapp and Jonassen back in the XI after recovering from sickness, DC hardly posed any challenges for the RCB top order. Mandhana cashed in on the wayward lines from Kapp in the first over and turned the tide of her record against offspinners (she’s been out to them 10 times in the WPL) when she swept Minnu Mani for two fours in the third over. Wyatt-Hodge pierced the gaps square on the off side, especially against Shikha Pandey, for four fours in the powerplay.
At 57 for 0 in the powerplay, RCB’s asking rate was just over six an over. Even bowling changes didn’t work for DC. Both Jonassen and Annabel Sutherland were carted for fours by both batters in their first overs, and when the reliable Rodrigues dropped Wyatt-Hodge on 34 after Mandhana had collected back-to-back boundaries, the game was all but over.
Mandhana dispatched Kapp for six over midwicket and continued to attack Jonassen with lofted strokes on the off side to take her for 27 runs off 14 on the night. Even though both openers fell towards the end, Ellyse Perry and Ghosh ensured there were no jitters to seal the eight-wicket win and top the table.
Brief scores:
Royal Challengers Bengaluru Women 146 for 2 in 16.2 overs (Smriti Mandhana 81, Danni Wyatt-Hodge 42; Shikha Pandey 1-27, Arundhatti Reddy 1-25) beat Delhi Capitals Women 141 in 19.3 overs (Jemimah Rodrigues 34, Sarah Bryce 23, Annabel Sutherland 19; Renuka Singh 3-23,Kim Garth 2-19, Ekta Bisht 2-35, Georgia Wareham 3-25) by eight wickets
[Cricinfo]
by Reemus Fernando
St. Joseph Vaz’s College Wennappuwa regained a spot in the top Division of the country’s premier Under 19 cricket tournament just a year after being demoted as they beat Lyceum International Wattala by 74 runs in the Under 19 Division II Tier ‘A’ cricket tournament semi-final at Hingurakgoda on Monday.
Chasing a target of 197 runs to win Lyceum were shot out for 122 runs as off-spinner Mathisan Fernando grabbed seven wickets to go pass the 50 wickets milestone for the season. Mathisan completed a match bag of eleven wickets.
St. Joseph Vaz’s were a totally transformed unit under the tutelage of Denuwan Rajakaruna this season. They recorded seven outright victories in the tournament proper to reach the knockout stage. The team captained by Shehara Fernando beat Dharmapala (by innings and 104 runs), St. John’s, Panadura (by an innings and 47 runs), Maris Stella Thimbirigaskatuwa (by 197 runs), Piliyandala Central (by ten wickets), Kalutara Vidyalaya (by innings and 22 runs), St. Peter’s Negombo (by innings and 11 runs) and Sri Devananda Ambalangoda (by 33 runs). The other tournament match against Lyceum ended in a first innings win. They eliminated Royal College Panadura in the quarter-final with an eight wicket victory before sealing the final sport and the Division I promotion with an outright win over Lyceum in the semi-final yesterday. Among the other impressive performances this season was their outright win against St. Sebastian’s College Katuneriya, a Division I team.
Himal Ravihansa has a
tally of 105 wickets.
The team’s only blemish this season was the outright defeat at the hands of Division I powerhouse St. Thomas’ College Matara.
Of the best performers for them this season leg spinner Himal Ravihansa stood out. He has passed the 100 wickets milestone in 12 matches.
Ravihansa has 105 wickets against his name now. His impressive tally includes 12 five wicket hauls. He has bagged more than ten wickets in a match on five occasions.
Randeer Dinesh is the Master in Charge of cricket of this transformed outfit.
Scores:
St. Joseph Vaz’s
172 all out in 78.1 overs (Shehara Fernando 26, Kavinda Rathnayaka 55, Savio Fernando 25, Eshan Mihiranga 48; Kavindu Kaushalya 3/48, Rasith Nimsara 3/53, Tharusha Ranasinghe 2/19) and 148 all out in 70.2 overs (Shehara Fernando 30, Induwara Jayasekara 20, Savio Fernando 23, Eshan Mihiranga 38; Kavindu Kaushalya 4/40, Tharusha Ranasinghe 5/50)
Lyceum Wattal
a 124 all out in 44.1 overs (Vinuth Thisaraka 24, Pravishka Nadeen 36, Rasith Nimsara 35; Himal Ravihansa 3/50, Thathnula Liyanage 2/20, Mathisan Fernando 4/20) and 122 all out in 41.3 overs (Tharusha Ranasinghe 44, Pravishka Nadeen 20; Mathisan Fernando 7/55)
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