Royal People

The Rollicking Royal Regiment

2012-12-31T14:48:00.000+05:30

Magnificent Men, Women & Boys of Royal

Royal Primary School & Royal College have seen the personalities and passage of so many distinguished and magnificent men and women who have walked the corridors within the hallowed premises, and taught and served the many thousands in the most prestigious and premier educational institution, in Sri Lanka, since 1835.

The multitude of students who spent many a wondrous day in class, in the labs, outdoors and on the sports arena, excelling in their efforts and who now may be the custodians of many a prestigious institution, business, profession, organization or field will always remember these teachers and staff members who spared no pain in extending their services with committment, responsibility and justice.

They were the ones who helped us, in no small means, to learn of books, and learn of men, and learn to play the game!

This blog is dedicated to all of them and attempts to capture and portray their personailities, traits, funny moments and significant contributions in every possible and simple way. To those who have passed away we bless their departed souls. For those who still tarry along with us, we wish you many more years of goodness on earth. You have done your job well. May you be reap the best of rewards.

Please send your stories to kadalay@gmail.com for publication on this blog.

The date of this post has also been postdated to Dec 31 2007 in order that it will remain at te top of the blogger, as a header, while all other posts are contained beneath it.

LINKS TO RC PEOPLE

The Royal Video Clip
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pHkeQqgdqKk

Royal Thomian Match Souvenirs
http://www.royalthomian.info/HTML/Articles/Articles.htm

RC '59 Group
http://www.rootsweb.com/~lkawgw/rcgroup59.html

Past Principals of Royal College
http://www.royalcollege.lk/aboutroyal/pastprincipals.shtml

Sacred to the Memory of Principal E L Bradby (TDSA Dissanayaka)
http://www.rootsweb.com/~lkawgw/rcbradby.htm

Dudley K G de Silva [Dudda]
http://www.rootsweb.com/~lkawgw/dudley.html

Brevet Lieutenant Colonel M K J Cantlay ED JP (AF Sameer, Laki, Rohan Jayatilleke, Daily News)
http://www.rootsweb.com/~lkawgw/cantlay.html

Bevil St Elmo de Bruin (Sunday Island, Rev Mervin Stoddart, Mel Cooke, Sunday Times)
http://www.rootsweb.com/~lkawgw/debruin.htm

E C Gunasekera [Kataya] (Lalanath de Silva LLM, Siddiq Ghouse)
http://www.rootsweb.com/~lkawgw/ecg.html

M T Thambapillai [Thamba] (ULK)
http://www.rootsweb.com/~lkawgw/thamba.htm

Kadalay of Royal
http://kadalayroyal.blogspot.com/

1961-Groupies
http://royal-1961.blogspot.com/

61 Group Pics
http://www.sirimanna.com/RC61/rc61.html

Class of '49 (TDSA Dissanaike)
http://www.rootsweb.com/~lkawgw/class49.html

1960 Roll Call - sent in by Kusum Perera
http://www.rootsweb.com/~lkawgw/royal1960.html

Class of '62
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/RoyalCollege62/

Snippets from the past
http://www.rootsweb.com/~lkawgw/rcsnip.htm

'61 Group Classroom Antics - 1 [SAPEY]
http://royal-1961.blogspot.com/2006/02/rcem-61-group-classroom-an_114080654800895623.html

'61 Group Clasroom Antics - 2 [RUPPERTY]
http://royal-1961.blogspot.com/2006/02/rcem-61-group-classroom-an_114080626509075149.html

'61 Group Classroom Antics - 3 [GHANDI]
http://royal-1961.blogspot.com/2006/02/rcem-61-group-classroom-an_114080605110791479.html

'61 Group Xlassrooim Antics - 4 [Canto & RITA]
http://royal-1961.blogspot.com/2006/02/rcem-61-group-classroom-an_114080605110791479.html

'61 Group Classroom Antics - 5 [Bella]
http://royal-1961.blogspot.com/2006/02/rcem-61-group-classroom-an_114080605110791479.html

RC Hostel 1959 Pic
http://www.rootsweb.com/~lkawgw/rchostel.jpg
L to R
Row 1: R G Hapuarachchi, , B.N.Ranasinghe, N. Chellappah, Thiagarajah, Zahir Mohamed, M Thassim, Somasunderam, , Pathirana, H.A.Karunasekara.

Row 2: C.Abeywickrama, S Y Samaraweera, Samaratunga, , C S Fernando, , J D M Kulatilleke, L A D Sirisena, Wimal Gunawardena, N.Mendis, Wendell Solomons, Dayaratna, Raheem, S.Canagasabey, , Garret.Fernando, , , S L de Silva, U C Jayasinghe, N R Kumarage, R L Wickramaratne, M A S Dawood

Row 3: N Kalupahana, R Sabapathypillai, Sunil Mendis, N P Nilaweera, , Cassim, Samararatna, , , N M DeRun, A.PL de Vas, Thambiraja, L J K Hettiarachchi, S D Atukorale, T.de Alwis, Lal Ratnayaka, T Sivanesarasa, N Ranasinghe, N G Patikirikorale, P N W Kannangara, P de Silva, Ismail, M D Illangage, , D Kalupahana

Row 4: Leon Belleth, , T B C Edirisinghe, S R K N Sabaratnam, , R Rudran, , Wijayanayagam, L A W Sirisena, L S P Rajendra, S G Gunaratne, , , , ,Hutan Hettiaratchi, Mapa Gunaratne

Row 5: , R A Pothuhera, Mr. L Samararatne, Mrs. Belleth, Mr. C E Belleth, Mr. Dudley K G de Silva, Mr. B St. E de Bruin, Miss Ratnayake, Mr. W Devapriya, T V Wickramasuriya, Sivathondan

Row 6: O K P Gunasekera, Nihal Canagasabey, K I Mahmud, R Chandrasena, D R Pulleperuma, S W Atukorale, D.E R Hapuarachchi, N.S. Kumaranatunge, K K Amaradasa, P G W G Premaratne, K A Gunawardena, M H Subasinghe, W Mallawarachchi, S J W Ambepitiya, S N Jayasinghe, G S C Perera

[Note: space between comma delimiter denotes missing names]

RC Masters 1953 Pic
http://www.rootsweb.com/~lkawgw/rcmasters.bmp

More ROYAL Links
http://www.rootsweb.com/~lkawgw/rclink.html

Royal College Old Hostellers' Association
http://rocoha.com/

Royal College OHA Forum
http://rocoha.com/forum/

Old Royalists in the UAE
http://www.rcuae.net/

Royalists in Parliament 2002
http://www.rootsweb.com/~lkawgw/rcob.html

100 Royal Volunteers at Sarvodaya
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sarvodaya/sets/68545/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sarvodaya/2659068/

Gihan Nilendra Wickremanayake
http://www.ucsc.cmb.ac.lk/People/gnw/index.htm

Dr Colvin Goonaratna
http://www.doctorndtv.com/profile/profile.asp?alias=CGoonaratna

Mr William Norman RAE
http://www.open.ac.uk/ou5/Arts/chemists/person.cfm?SearchID=3095

Group of '86
http://www.royal1986.org/

Royal Crazy @ Blogsome
http://royalcrazy.blogsome.com/2006/03/

Royal College '59 Group Photo Album I

http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~lkawgw/rcpa01.html

Royal College '59 Group Photo Album II

http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~lkawgw/rcpa02.html

Royal College '62 Group

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/RoyalCollege62

IN MEMORIUM
http://www.rootsweb.com/~lkawgw/im.html

The Little Theatre

2012-01-28T11:30:00.002+05:30

January 27, 2012, 7:52 pm

by Upatissa Attygalle

The above named institution had its origin in the Amateur Cinematic Society which was inaugurated in 1945. One of the principal persons who was for it having been mooted was the revolutionary, the wittiest, the most discerning, the most integrated and now legendary teacher of English, Ceylon ever had - the late R. C. L. Attygalle popularly known as ‘Dickie’. He persuaded the then Principal of Royal, the late J. C. A Corea to allocate funds for the purchase of a 33mm film projector and a copy of the film Henry the V for the Film Society. Dickie Attygalle had hoped to build up a library of films for the Society, regrettably Royal being a government school he was unable to obtain funds to buy more films.
Dickie had the extraordinary ability to make the classics of English Literature come alive and kindle the interest of all his students. Therefore the Technicolor 1944 version of William Shakespeare’s Henry the V produced directed and starred by Sir Laurence Olivier was a big hit with the students. Dickie Attygalle had many students in his class who acquired a love for the humanities thanks to his skill not just as a teacher but as an educator. Most of his students in later life excelled in their respective fields. One such student who distinguished himself as a politician was the late - Felix Dias Bandaranaike then known as Felix Dias.

Just after a year since the commencing of the Film Society, Dickie Attygalle left Royal for Paris as he was appointed as the chief of the division managing all UNESCO’s adult education programmes. The mantle of continuing the Film Society then fell on the able broad shoulders of another brilliant teacher and multi-talented master Mr. Bevii St Elmo de Bruin, who passed away on his 80th birthday on the 28th of August this year in Montego Bay, Jamaica. Mr. Bruin who was fondly referred to as ‘Bruno’ by students was a teacher of Mathematics English and English Literature, Cricket and Athletics during his tenure at Royal College. He, too, like Dickie Attygalle had the unique ability to make students who never read anything but comic books to take anything but comic books evince an interest in English and English Literature. Many students, who did science as I did, took up English Literature as a subject thanks to Mr. Bruin showing us the beauty, the might and the grandeur of the English Language.

Mr. Bruin arranged with the British Council to hire films from their library to be screened at our Society’s film shows. During my stay at Royal Mr. Bruin screened a number’ of top grade films on a variety of subjects and themes. Some of them I remember are Nanook of the North, a documentary on the life of an Eskimo and his family made by the very influential American documentary pioneer Robert Flaherty, Scott of the Antarctic, the Technicolor film about the ill fated 1912 expedition to the South Pole starring Sir John, Mills as Captain Scott, and Kind Hearts and Coronets, a first class British Ealing comedy. Sir Alec Guineas who was one member of the admirable cast played eight roles in the film. Out of all the films I saw at Royal, there is one particular film that I shall never forget and that film was Arsenic and Old Lace. It was the screen version of the immensely popular comedy written by Joseph Kesserling for the stage. The film version was directed by the legendary Frank Capra and starred the inimitable Hollywood star Cary Grant supported by a distinguished cast who played their parts brilliantly to make the film one of the funniest rib—tickling comedies ever made up-to-date. I recall the film was screened in one of the Science lecture rooms which had pews of tiered seats and, we were all rolling in the aisles clutching our stomachs in uncontrollable laughter. Many of us had to walk slightly crouched the next morning due to the pain in our over strained abdominal muscles. I have seen the film over a dozen times since then and even today have the same reaction to it.

I am not sure whether there is a film Society in Royal College today but in our time at College we enjoyed the film shows and had a lot of fun during the breakdowns of the rather old film projector. I am sure all old Royalists who attended these film shows must-be fondly remembering those wonderful hours spent in the darkened lecture room watching the silver screen unfolding great films.

Prasantha moves on

2012-01-26T12:04:00.001+05:30

obit:

DIAS ABEYGUNAWARDENE, PRASANTHA NIMAL (ex Deputy Director SACEP) - Loving son of late Norman & Daisee Dias Abeygunawardene, precious son-in-law of late Ernest & Ruby Muthuvaloe, beloved husband of Subashini, darling father of Sulakshana, brother of Dushyantha (Dinko), brother-in-law of Mano, Emmanuel & Jo, Kamalini & Freddie, grandfather of Aevahn, Ayrron & Syesha & father-in-law of Elmo Anthony. Cortege leaves residence No. 09, International Buddhist Centre (IBC) Road, Colombo 6 at 4.30 p.m. on Thursday 26th January for Burial at Kanatte Borella (Roman Catholic Section). 023680 DN Jan 26 2012

Tributes from '59 Group members:

I just got the news about Prasanna. Fortunately I was able to see him last week. I then called a couple of others eg Jiggs, Huna etc and asked them to go and see Prasanna as soon as possible.

Prasanna was a real gent and we will all miss him.

Upali, please give Subarshini my deepest sympathies if you happen to go to the funeral

Regards

Firoz Nilam
----------------

I am glad i visited Prasantha few weeks ago. Had a long chat and indeed he was very happy to reminisce the past and forget about his sickness. I never expected him to leave us so soon.
He is a thorough gent.
May the turf lie gently on him.

Jiggs

-------Guys,

Now that we are all passing through 64 the rate of movement to the other side will certainly accelerate and I do hope and pray that we have all lived our lives well to be content and pleased with our contribution towards humanity, our families, and the world in general.

Its been a long 6+ decades on the planet and lets hope we can all meet on the other side, someday.

Regards

Fazli

--------

Some have been there early and some will be dead on time and a few will be, as usual late. What ever it is let us think of the good we did,do and will be doing in future (provided always, if time permits).

Summarizing the 6 decades we have not done bad. Only a few (Less than 5) have failed in their duties. Out of 36x6=216 only about 5 have failed. Work out your first form arithmetic and see the percentage.(2.3148%) right or wrong?

Among many achievements, the latest is Lukshman Samaranayaka.(King James IV Professor).

Have we failed? NO!

Let us do more to help the needy.

Love

Hapu
-------

Yes, Daya ndeed a very sad moment!! He was a decent bloke, and tried hard to taech me to play tennis!!!

Did call on him, about 2 months ago, but frankly in a way it was a merciful ending. May he rest in peace!!

Mazher
---------

Keep clicking Mate that's all that will be left of us once v are gone.As Skanda said,the 59 G is unique and v hv held together for so long,I still remember Ducky playing Tennis,like Muthu he too thought he was a Mcanroe
Suren Cooke
------------------

His most outstanding quality was his intense Loyalty.....to College, his Friends ,his Peers and of course his Family. Will Miss You Ducky ! Rest in Peace !.
Skanda
----------

Hello, All:

All the wonderful, heart-felt tributes to Prasantha make we wish I had gotten acquainted with him. He seems to have left an enduring legacy of love and service. May the fond memories of his life sustain his wife, family, and friends.

Fifty years have slipped by with little or no effort on my part to stay connected with my "Group." Most of the names on this distribution list are, therefore, just names to me, with various degrees of recollection of some of you. I am blessed by being included in this network, and express my appreciation to those who have taken the initiative to keep this going. The interest in each other, the support, and caring are quite evident.

My visits to Sri Lanka are rather infrequent (every other year, or so). If the timing works out, I would love to attend one of your ("our") gatherings.

My best wishes to each of you in your various endeavors to make a difference in this world.

Raj Attiken, USA
----------------------

May he Rest in Peace!

----------------------------

Tribute to Rama Sellamuttu

2012-01-26T12:01:00.003+05:30

In a message dated 24/01/2012 18:11:08 GMT Standard Time, kvelupillai@gmail.com writes:

Dear Vipula,

Thank you for informing me, too, about the interesting event, with its noble concomitant - of remembering Rama with the generous gesture of dedicating a Rama Sellamuttu Memorial Trophy. I am sure Rama's spiritual blessings will be in abundance for the success of the event.

Rama was easily my oldest friend, although we drifted apart long before I left old Ceylon, as we had to, when we grew and matured and our interests changed and diverged.

But my earliest memories of friendship, going back in fact to my first year at RPS, in 1953 (our class teacher was a Mrs Rajakariayar), are vivid. We used to sit next to each other and one day, the Head Master, the very lovable A.F. de Saa Bandaranaike, came around to our class, bringing with him a tall, mightily-built, black man and asked us whether we knew who he was. I nudged Rama, because I thought we knew who he was, partly because we were already collecting cricket pictures from the Daily News and The Hindu and this mighty man was in our scrapbook. He was, of course (then) , Learie Constantine, later Lord Constantine.

Rama grew up, as you would know better than I, as the son of his 'real' Father's eldest brother. His natural Father was Balendra Sellamuttu, the youngest son of old Adikhar Sellamuttu. Balendra Sellamuttu's childless eldest brother, Somasundaram, decided to bring up Rama, partly because Balendra was a bit reckless and the home he was able to offer Rama was less than stable.

In a very distant sense we were also related: Nagendra and Sangarappillai Sellamuttu, two elder brothers of Balendra, married two sisters, Kamini and Gnaneswari Tambyah, my Maternal Grandmother's brother. One of Balendra's sisters married Alfred Tambiaiyah, then MP for Kayts, when my Father was the MP for Chavakachcheri and they were both together with GGP first in the TC and, then, for a short while, also in the UNP.

Rama was brought up in a very protected way, perhaps even overly-protected. He used to be sent to spend the day with me, during a weekend or two, every month, when we were living down Madangahawatte Lane. Old Mr Somasundaram always - in those days - had a large, shining black, American car, which, if I remember well was a Buick in the old-style of a curved/slanting rear. They also had a loyal driver, who we called, interchangeably, Kaka or Nana (he was a Muslim) and was also fiercely protective of Rama - and the car! When Rama was sent home to us to spend the day with me, the car would stay, with the driver. So, we had also to feed and look after the driver.

Our home was not as palatial as that of Somasundaram Sellamuttu's, at 22 Queen's Road, but we were too young and too absorbed in each others' pranks to think of such things.
Rama's home had a talking parrot; his adopted Father owned award winning horses - one of which was called Joshua!

One day, in the very early 1960s, I spent the day at Rama's home, invited by the family, to meet a distinguished American athlete. I was not told who this distinguished person was, in advance. While we were playing with various of the luxury items in Rama's room and home, this handsome man, a little like Lord Constantine in appearance, turned up. It was Rafer Johnson, who had won the gold medal for the Decathlon at the Rome Olympics! Many years later, in the early 1990s, when I was a Visiting Professor at UCLA, my host there, Professor Axel Leijonhufvud, told me that the preacher at their Church was Rafer Johnson! I told him and his wife, Earlene Craver, the above story and asked them to enquire from Rafer Johsson whether he remembered his visit to 22 Queen's Road. Axel asked, as I requested, the following Sunday and Rafer Johnson had told him not only that he remembered his visit very well, and with much pleasure, but that he maintained contact with the family for many years!

Rama was a very special (and generous) person, who almost always had the courage to choose his own path, even when it was not easy to do so, coming from such a wealthy family. One manifestation of this - in the context of the trophy in his memory - was the kind of cricketer he chose to be. He was thoroughly unconventional, a very special kind of leg break bowler, which was always a difficult art. I remember with absolute and crystal clarity his run up to the wicker and his idiosyncratic action.

In those young days, in the 1950s, I was always invited to his birthday parties at 22 Queen's Road - and his birthday, if my memory serves me well, was in October - where one always met and shook hands with the majestically clad old Mr Adikhar Sellamuttu, always in immaculate sherwani and a pocket watch running across the lapels of it.

At least in all the years I knew Rama well, I was never allowed to sit anywhere but the front seat of the family car, micromanaged by Kaka/Nana! No 'outsider' was allowed to 'contaminate' the backseats, where Mr and Mrs Somasundaram sat in splendour.

I always thought Rama very intelligent, bordering on extreme cleverness, but it was rampantly undisciplined. Had his undoubted natural talents been harnessed and channelled in effective ways I have no doubts whatsoever that he would have achieved academic greatness.

By the early 1960s we had drifted apart and I lost all contact with him for over forty five years - and, then, suddenly, I received a most wonderfully sculpted e-mail from him, just bef0ore his untimely death. He attached a photograph of himself with his current wife; the illness that had consumed him and that eventually brought him down was written all over the way he had grown thin and wane. But the happy and mischievous face and glint in the eye was evident even in a photograph, sent by these less than perfect means. I wrote back, reminiscing fondly, and hoping we would soon get together again - which was, alas, not to be.

Ironically, I had been invited to spend several months at the University of Technology Sydney, as one of its ten Distinguished Visiting Scholars for this academic year and was, actually, scheduled to spend January to March in Sydney. However, as the time for departure neared, I did not feel like making the long journey and spending so many months away from what has become my intellectual and cultural base, here in Italy. Had I mustered the courage to spend the time in Sydney it would have given me the chance, finally, to pay homage to an old and valued friend.
I know you were very close to him and I salute you for your selfless act of remembering a good, generous, friend. It was a blessing to have known him, and to remember the times I shared with his playful, joyous, generous ways.

I am copying this to some of my almost equally old friends of times gone by.

Warmest, even if melancholy, wishes,
Vela
--
Department of Economics
University of Trento
Via Inama 5
381 00 Trento
Italy
Tel: +39 0461 282379
http://www.assru.economia.unitn.it/

Suren Cooke comments:

26/1

Does anyone Remember Rama learning to Drive?

His Father had an Opel and it was either at lunch time or at the end of day,when Rama got behind the wheel

And his driver fixed the big L board and sat beside him,and Ramas Car was parked near Deraniyagalas facing College.

He took off like Michael Schumacher and couldn’t straighten the wheel and the Car which was parked with the rear to the wall ended up with the front smashing the wall,he did a U turn,we all hooted and laughed and Rama didn’t know what to do.That was the last we saw Rama behind the wheel.

Suren

Muthu says:
Can't remember seeing this one, do you rmemebr this one Suren? 4th form detention by Alavi without notice we were all kept back. After about 30mins, Kaka , Rama's driver came to the class and started shouting at Alavi and we were all set free.

"You have not converted a man because you have silenced him."
Viscount Morley, 'On Compromise', 1874.

Mike Satchie

2011-09-12T17:14:00.000+05:30

Sunday Island Sep 11 2011

Dr. Michael Satchie (USA)

September 10, 2011, 5:43 pm

To put pen to paper in writing an appreciation on the demise of a close friend is a sorrowful task. SATCHIE (Satchitananthan) and I entered the portals of our hallowed school Royal College, Colombo way back in 1954. He was admitted to the Tamil stream while my admission was to the English stream. Fate had it that a last longing bond between me and Satchie covering three score years was to commence in 1956 when we were absorbed into the same class. It maybe the not so vociferous nature of both of us could have cemented this friendship as Satchie was a soft spoken personality thus blending us together. Satchie was a genius in many aspects but never asserted this characteristic in him; he was also methodical in his ways. He had an unusual trait generally stepping out of line as many of us opted to do Geography as a subject and if my memory serves me well Satchie chose Greek as his subject and was the only one in our batch to do so. His versatility was proved that in spite of doing classics, he ended up being a doctor.

Satchie was an excellent swimmer. I reminisce with a touch of melancholy the days when Satchie and I used to go to the St Joseph’s College pool (as Royal did not have a pool then) for swimming, Satchie coming all the way on his push bike from his Wellawatte residence to mine at Colpetty to pick me up, and then I do the riding while Satchie is on the bar avoiding the watchful eyes of the cops. After a good swim at the pool we go back on the same route I getting off at Colpetty and Satchie pedalling all the way home to Wellawatte

Satchie had extraordinary literary talents as were exemplified in his poetry and anecdotes, and another outstanding strait that he possessed was a beautiful fist which we all envied. His calligraphic writing was quite exquisite. I have a treasured possession of a beautiful rendering in poetry he composed in 1991 in commemoration of the marriage of my daughter, a grand masterpiece reflecting the close friendship we bore through the several years. He was an excellent chess player and also a versatile cook.

Satchie opted to do Paediatrics as a career. He proceeded to the US. In my long association with him I observed he had a habit of coming up especially after graduation with some intriguing and problematic questions which often kept us dumbfounded and grappling for a reply. One instance he posed me being an eye surgeon, the question what types of dreams the people born blind do dream of. I was unable to find a suitable reply and threw this question to the audience during my Presidential address at the College of Ophthalmologists. I still do not till this day have the correct answer. Satchie was very keen on music and his repertoire ranged from Classics to contemporary music. In those halcyon days he used to advise me on what type of Hi Fi equipment I should invest on.

I last spoke to my close buddy Satchie about a month ago and I was sad to hear of his decision not to fight his illness which plagued him for sometime. His family life also had many a pitfall losing his father in the dark days of the 1983 riots. His brother, Dr.Harin, too predeceased him having passed away a few years ago after making a name in New York as a leading Paediatrician.

Satchie spent his retirement glued onto the computer and he used to call his room the Ashram. Many a time we had long conversations on the phone on the subject of religion where we had diametrically opposite views. I sorely miss those long discussions and friendly discourses that kept us glued to the phone for hours with Satchie,which will retain in my memory for a long time.

Goodbye farewell my dear friend I will surely miss your grand association and warmth friendship in the years ahead.

I conclude this tribute to Satchie with a befitting couplet from Gray’s Elegy which our great teacher and icon at Royal, the late Viji Weerasinghe taught us in his English Literature class which is etched in my memory.

"FULL MANY A GEM OF PUREST RAY SERENE

THE DARK UNFATHOMED CAVES OF THE OCEANS BARE

FULL MANY A FLOWER IS BORN TO BLUSH UNSEEN

AND WASTE ITS SWEETNESS IN THE DESERT AIR"

Thomas Grey

Dr. Sirry Cassim

Those were the Days

2011-08-25T19:36:00.001+05:30

Off to School in

that red double Decker
the ride was a must

in that CTB bus
One leg on the footboard
The other dangling free
Imminent danger
Was all mere glee
20 kids plus
In a space for three
Hung on the silver pole
How many It could it hold?
Galle Road to Maradana
5c half price ticket

Cost was not so dear

nothing like a picket

Cut school on Friday
Off to the matinee

3.30 at the Liberty,
Queuing down the street
the sun biting our feet
ABBA the movie,

the latest release

Gallery or nothing

destination please
at 55 cents

what better ease?
Friend had a Morris,

we'd all pile on in
His friend had Ford,

a little more space
Uncle too had a car
That kept us all fit
With a “thallu” start

to gain more pace
Waited for March,

big match day
And the Cycle Parade

was before that day
Collecting the cash

for the thosai kade
And the fun was
to ring the College bell
Before the end of the school day
Meet the kellas on a bet
Holding hands was all we could get.
Bus halt the preferred place
Those were the good old days.

Zellers, Knickerbocker Glory,

Lion House, Mayfair, Thurstan

Poly and the Bamba Flats

And so they move on

2011-06-16T10:39:00.001+05:30

Daily News June 16 2011

ex Teacher RC

EARNEST AMARASEKERA - (Retired Teacher, Royal College, Colombo). Eldest son of late Mr & Mrs M.S. Amarasekera of Medihena Watta, Radawana, expired. Remains lie at Jayantha Funeral Parlour, Gampaha. Cremation at Kasagahawatta Cemetery, Gampaha at 4.00 p.m. on 16th June Thursday.“Sisila”, Medihena Watta, Radawana, 033-2267393.

ex Student RC

TENNEKOON - UDDAKA Beloved husband of Ovadini (Dammi), beloved father of Sudath and Sanjeeva, beloved father-in-law of Niluka and Lelanthi, grandfather of Umangi, Anishka, Adhira and Saira, brother of Sepalika and Vira. A private funeral was held on 15th June according to his wishes. No. 21, Boteju Road, Colombo 5.

May they Rest in Peace

FLOREAT!

Mahesha Rodrigo

2011-05-03T10:31:00.002+05:30

Royal honours double International Mahesa Rodrigo

Yasaratne Gamage

Royal College honoured late Mahesa Rodrigo, the former Royalist who represented his country in both cricket and rugby, at a simple commemoration ceremony held at Royal Sports Complex on Thursday.

Upali Gunasekara the principal of Royal College unveiled the plaque to name the home dressing rooms at Royal College Sports Complex in Rodrigo’s memory in the presence of his family and a large gathering.

Mahesa Rodrigo was honoured for his remarkable contributions to rugby as a player, captain, coach, administrator and sporting ambassador and also as one of the few Royalists to lead his school team and represent the national team in both cricket and rugby. He captained his school cricket and rugby teams in 1946 and later leaving the Royal became a life member of Singhalese Sports Club, CR and FC and led the latter in 1952.

Rodrigo represented Sri Lanka in the national rugby team and his passion and brilliance in rugby saw him gaining the captaincy in the national team, being the first local to lead European dominated Ceylon team.

Legendary Mahesa played scrum half in rugby and was a wicket keeper batsman in cricket in his best days of sports and will always be remembered for his magnificent century (135 not out) against West Indies in the First Test in Galle in 1949. With his vast skills and experience in both sports Rodrigo shaped the

future of young players by coaching Royalists. His penchant for rugby took him to S Thomas’, Mount Lavinia to guide Thomian ruggerites. As an administrator of sports he did his best at Royal and at CR and FC. There must have been so many who brought fame and honour to their alma mater but Mahesa Rodrigo stands out among them.

“Rodrigo was a double International who represented his country in both

cricket and rugby who forged a unique place for himself in history as a man

whose talent remains unsurpassed. Mahesa Rodrigo’s lifetime contributions to Royal College , the sporting world and Sri Lanka will never be forgotten and his legacy will live on through his teammates, family, friends, colleagues, and all the youth who benefited from his invaluable coaching and guidance. It was indeed a fitting tribute to a man to whom Rugby and Royal meant everything.” The members of the Royal College Rugby Advisory Committee, eminent former ruggerites of all generations , the current rugby team were also present on the occasion.

DN Tue May 3 2011

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahesh_Rodrigo

Mahes Rodrigo - The end of a glorious innings

Tribute to a great sportsman

By Bernie Wijesekera

Mahesa (Mahes) Rodrigo one of Sri Lanka’s early double-internationals has passed away after a brief illness. Mahes represented his alma mater, Royal College and later his country then known as Ceylon, both in cricket and rugby football as a diminutive wicket-keeper and scrum half respectively. His clubs were the Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC-cricket) and the Ceylonese Rugby and Football Club (CR&FC-rugby). He was particularly fond of the ‘CR’ where he was a live-wire for decades as a Life Member.
He was 84 years old.

Mahes Rodrigo

Mahes Rodrigo played as Ceylon's wicket-keeper in the pre-Test status era and his 12 first-class appearances consisted of matches against Pakistan, the West Indies, Commonwealth XI and the Marylebone Cricket Club, amongst others. He also took the field for Ceylon in a one day match against Don Bradman's Australians in the 1947/48 season.

In 1949, at 20 years of age he represented the country in cricket, blasting 135 not out, as an opening batsman against 'fiery' fast bowlers of a first class West Indian test cricket team that visited the island. It was considered the 'gutsiest' innings played by any batsman on the 'Sara' Stadium Grounds described as 'the fastest, grassiest and bounciest' ever seen. In the 'one-dayer' against the world famous Australian test team captained by the great Don Bradman, Mahes performed with great distinction scoring a confident 26 runs and taking a 'superfine' catch to dismiss Loxton in the outfield.

Playing under the brilliant and crafty F. C. de Saram, young Mahes received his 'baptism' into big-time Cricket in the company of classy players like, B. R. Heyn, Sargo Jayawickreme, C. I. Gunesekera, R. L. de Kretser, S. Nagendra, V. G. Prins, M. Sathasivam, Bertie Wijesinghe, Sathi Coomarasamy, Ben Navaratne, Malcolm Spittel, Lucien de Zoysa and C. V. Abeysekera, to name a few.

In later years, Mahes coached several Royal College teams both cricket and rugby in the 1960s and early 1970s. Mahes never demanded respect but he commanded it, which he duly received from everyone who was associated with him. His 80th birthday was celebrated in style at the ‘80 Club’ and in the midst of the gathering, shining out were Golden Oldies Bertie Wijesinghe and his wife Doreen, Ian Peiris, the Cambridge Blue and his wife Gun, Gamini Salgado, the 1942 Royal cricket captain, Summa Navaratnam, yet another die-hard old Royalist, also a ruggerite and once renown as Asia's fastest sprinter, Ifthika Cader to name a few. Joining him on this grand occasion were his charges U.L. Kaluaratchi, Vijaya Malasekera, Shaw Wilson, Chanaka De Silva, Malik Samarawickrama, Jagath Fernando, Susantha Ratnayake, Dhammike Wedande, Ray de Silva, Nalin Pattikirikorale, Ana Wimaladharma, Dr. Fred Perera and other vintage cricketers and ruggerites.

Glowing tributes were made to Mahes at this reception. The tributes paid to Mahes were sweet and were relived by greats such as by Bertie Wijesinghe who said: "He keeps some things to himself and never throws his thoughts around. He is quite a shy personality, but never shy when the pressure was on. A great pal since my days at the SSC."

The cortege lies at his residence at No. 69/8A, Senanayake Avenue, Nawala till 2 pm. today (Sunday) and will leave for the General Cemetery, Kanatte at 3 pm., The Royal College Union has requested past cricketers and rugby players of the College to be present at the Main Gate of the cemetery at 2.15 pm while the General Committee of the CR & FC have requested members to be present at 1.45 pm clad in club tie.

Sunday Times 9 Jan 2011

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MAHES RODRIGO

January 22, 2011, 5:25 pm

by Commentator

Sri Lanka lost one of its sporting idols when Mahes Rodrigo passed away on January 7. He was one of our few double internationals, winning his Cricket and Rugger caps by his early twenties. He shone in both sports - as a top-class batsman and wicket-keeper, and as a brilliant scrum-half and captain.

Lest We Forget

Within a few golden years he had performed stirring deeds in both cricket and rugger. Who can forget the runs he scored, or his brilliance at scrum-half? As he walked out briskly to bat, or ran out leading the CR or Ceylon, the crowds would buzz with expectations of thrills to come. They were rarely disappointed.

Presented below are some cameos from his cricket career. No doubt other scribes will do justice to his feats on the rugger field.

At Royal

He won his cricket colours for Royal while under 16, as not only a batsman but a tearaway fast bowler and a brilliant fielder. Early in his first season he turned to wicket-keeping. His batting was a model of orthodoxy combined with aggression, and his wicket-keeping steadily improved. He stood out too for his perkiness and briskness on the field, traits which foretold the unveiling of a new facet in his armoury.

This happened in his third year, when he was appointed captain. From day one, he showed a god-given flair for leadership, for decisiveness, for the bold unexpected move, and for inspiring his team to perform at 110%. Probably his crowning achievement as captain was when he led Royal to an incredible one-run victory against Trinity, completely against the run of play. Needing only 120 to win, Trinity slipped from apparently easy victory to sudden collapse, with Royal storming back inspired by the infectious confidence of the skipper, his spot on bowling changes, and his brilliant wicket-keeping.

He went out on a high in the 1946 Royal-Thomian, playing two flawless innings of 48 not out and 35 not out, and leading the team to a decisive win.

Opening for SSC

By this time the champion SSC team’s talent scouts had spotted him as a coming star. He was soon playing for the SSC, with the discerning F.C.de Saram elevating him from his customary school middle-order slot to that of opening batsman. Mahes graduated rapidly to the SSC First XI. He scored his first century for SSC on that historic day in 1947 when SSC blasted 530 for 2 in only three and a half hours’ batting, with four centurions. Mahes, opening the batting, was first to reach his century, followed by FC de Saram, CI Gunasekera and Bertie Wijesinha.

Debut against Australia

His first taste of international cricket came against Bradman’s Australian team of 1948 when they played in Colombo en route to England. Whistle-stop games though they were, these one-day matches were among the rare opportunities to face international sides. Mahes took a spectacular high catch and batted aggressively, and earned praise from Australian Test opener and leading cricket journalist Jack Fingleton, who wrote: "..Rodrigo made a really great catch to dismiss Loxton in the outfield. Probably Rodrigo found it difficult to sight the ball at first against the dark background but he brilliantly retrieved this initial error of judgment by taking a grand overhead catch in true baseball fashion. It is catches like these that linger in the memory and win matches." Fingleton was equally complimentary about Mahes’s batting: "..Rodrigo began to bat as if there was not the slightest venom in the Australian attack. He is a very attractive batsman, this Rodrigo. He uses his feet smartly to get into position and his bat is impeccably straight in defence. He is a good model for the young to follow. Especially as he does not hesitate to give the loose ball all it deserves."

Epic Century against West Indies

The next milestone remains one of the epics of our cricket. While All-Ceylon were being crushed by the mighty West Indies in 1949, visiting after a successful tour of India, Mahes made a record fighting 135 not out on his unofficial Test debut, overtaking Sargo Jayawickrama’s 132 against All-India in 1932. There was no protective gear those days, and the Windies quicks, Prior Jones and John Trim, made the ball fly on the fast Oval wicket. Mahes stood up to them unflinchingly, with a blend of impeccable defence, attractive stroke play and sheer guts. The great C.I. Gunasekera, who partnered Mahes in a century stand, described this knock as "the most gallant innings I have ever seen."

Century against Pakistan

Runs continued to flow. When a strong Pakistan team toured here in 1949 Mahes scored a century in the tourists’ warm-up match against the SSC. In addition to making the first century against the West Indies, he had now become the first centurion against Pakistan.

Standing up to the MCC

Another innings stands out as testament to his grit and technical soundness. This was in 1952, when an MCC team had been thrashed by a powerful Ceylon-India-Pakistan-Australia Combined XI, led by F.C. de Saram. Smarting at their defeat, the MCC came out with all guns blazing in the Test against Ceylon, and Statham and Ridgway ran through our side – except for Mahes, who withstood the blitz with a fighting 42, an innings worth many a century.

Complete Cricketer

Mahes Rodrigo was the complete cricketer. As a batsman, he had all the shots in the book. The foundation was a technically perfect defence – essential to flourish as an opening bat against such masters of pace and swing as Selvadurai and Coomaraswamy of the Tamil Union and Spittel of the NCC. Loose balls received short shrift, because he excelled in crisp cover drives, square cuts and hooks – and he was among the very few batsmen who could play the late cut. Fingleton captured the essence of his batting in his report on the Ceylon-Australia one-dayer (see above) when he wrote: "He is a very attractive batsman... He uses his feet smartly to get into position and his bat is impeccably straight in defence.. he does not hesitate to give the loose ball all it deserves." In style he resembled Gavaskar, with his compactness, tight defence and crisp all-round stroke play. As a wicket keeper he was second only to the incomparable Ben Navaratne. He was brilliant in the outfield, and could bowl fast if required. And to crown it all, a marvellous captain, who, as Australian fast bowler Rodney Hogg once said about Mike Brearley, "had a degree in people."

He was a natural to captain Ceylon, after the giants of the fifties, but a knee injury derailed his game, leading to his premature retirement from serious cricket.

Coach

Mahes was also an outstanding coach for Royal. There was no age or communication gap – here was their young old boy, brilliant skipper, and maker of a heroic century against the West Indies imparting his knowledge, and teams and captains lapped it up. He never over-coached, pointing out only major flaws, and preferring to teach captains, batsmen and bowlers to think for themselves. Unlike other coaches, he did not sit in the pavilion but watched from afar in the crowd. Having said what he had to at practice, he wanted captains to take full charge and work things out on their own. The invaluable quiet comment or advice would come after the match.

Devilry

One reason for his immense popularity was that on or off the field he was the bright young man, sprightly, provocative, and mischievous. It was the irrepressible streak of devilry in him that made him, after rugger practices at the C.R. & F.C., roar off on his motor bike, stand up on the seat, hands aloft, and motor along until traffic got too heavy. Fortunately for our cricket and rugger, he survived this trick motor cycling!

Combativeness

Even in his senior years the combativeness of the man was clear to see. One day, playing 10 holes of golf, he lost the first four in a row. Totally undaunted, he remarked tersely, "Good match to win", and marched off jauntily to the next tee. And he did nearly win.

Joining three laid-back 70-year-old golfers, he managed to coax and cajole them into playing matches, and transformed them into reasonably competitive golfers. Not for him the aimless hitting of a ball. He wanted a battle, and he wanted to win!

One of a Kind

Sri Lanka will produce many more sportsmen, but it is hard to imagine another Mahes Rodrigo. The immense talent and knowledge was enhanced by an unique blend of sprightliness, humour, mischief , intelligence, fighting spirit and leadership flair – a combination hard to replicate.

May the turf lie gently over him. //

The Island May 3, 2011

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Mahes Rodrigo Master of Cricket and Rugby

Sporting Personalities with Ken de Joodt :

Sporting Personalities: Over 3000 years ago, a true encounter was staged between a giant named Goliath and a 'small-sized' David! It is recorded that David used a stone and Sling-shot to 'whack the daylights out of the Giant' - slaying him instantly!! In the last century of the 2nd millennium (1900's) there was a 'duplicate Little David' who 'whacked the daylights' of 'bigger giants' on the fields of Rugby and Cricket - to 'knock-up' some great records! This was the 'Maestro' Mahes Rodrigo, another legend in his time, whose brilliant 'run' of achievements are worth recording, to be read fifty years later! As Bertie Wijesinha, a brilliant Cricketer, Coach and Author of 'Love of Life Time' - states in his book "Our cricketers have proved themselves in the shortened version of the game.

Mahes Rodrigo

It is perhaps justifiable and apt to remember what Mahes Rodrigo prophesied 50 years ago with 'acute Cricket brains' in this country" - when he remarked "We should stick to One-Day-Cricket - we can beat the World!!"

Forthright, humorous and famous as he has been and still is, Mahes at 20 years of age represented Sri Lanka in Cricket in 1949, blasting 135 runs not out, as an opening batsman against 'fiery' fast bowlers of a first class West Indian Test Cricket Team.

It was considered the 'gutiest' innings played by any batsman on the 'Sara' Stadium Grounds and described as 'the fastest, grassiest and bounciest' ever seen. In his first International outing, a 'one-dayer' against the world famous Australian Test team Captained by Don Bradman, Mahes performed with great distinction scoring a confident 26 runs and taking a 'superfine' catch to dismiss Loxton in the outfield.

Playing under the brilliant and crafty Cricket Captain, F. C. de Saram he received his 'baptism' into big-time Cricket in the company of classy players like, B. R. Heyn, Sargo Jayawickreme, C. I. Gunesekera, R. L. de Kretser, S. Nagendera, V. G. Prins, M. Sathasivam, Bertie Wijesinha, S. Coomarasamy, Ben Navaratne, Malcolm Spittel, Lucien de Zoysa and C. V. Abeysekera, to name a few.

In the same year, Mahes scored a glorious century for S.S.C. against Pakistan, the second century made in quick succession against two International teams, West Indies and Pakistan, which was then considered a unique Sri Lanka record.

Mahes was described as a 'good thinker of the game' whether it be Cricket or Rugby, with the mind of a 'Tactician' and as a 'model Cricketer for the young to follow' - From the mid-forties he kept-wickets for Royal College, Colombo, displaying dazzling performances in batting, which entitled him to Captain Royal Cricket in 1946.

Mahes led Royal to a memorable victory against Trinity, with G. T. Kapukotuwa taking 6 wickets for 50 and Mahes as Wicket-keeper brilliantly stumping four batsmen behind the wickets, to win by one run! By the end of the season Mahes proved his mettle by leading the Royalists to a sensational win against the Thomians in the 'Battle of the Blues' by 84 runs.

Mahes top scored in both innings, creating a remarkable record in the series by scoring 48 not out and 35 not out, making a total of 83 runs without losing his wicket. In 1939, Bertie Wijesinha the Thomian Captain, scored 63 and 70 runs but he was 'out' in both innings.

In Cricket, he was considered the best 'stumper' in the schools, a sound right-hand bat with powerful stroke-play, which continued throughout his Cricketing career for Clubs and for Sri Lanka. As he said "I never had any pretensions of being a top stroke-maker, but as an opener I played the bowling essentially on its merits-the runs came later. I specially favoured the 'hook' and the 'cut' in batting."

Born on 30th June 1928 to a wealthy family, Mahes studied at Royal College Colombo, from 1939 to 1946, where he had a glittering school career. Shortly after leaving college, he commenced employment at Walkers Ltd. and worked for ten years at Wakers Ltd., along with his good friend and record-breaking 'Cricket-Partner' C. I. Gunasekera. During this time between 1948 to 1954, Mahes was in the limelight, as a "Superstar" shining bright in Sri Lanka Cricket and Rugby!

In the midst of all the 'glamour', he played his best 'late-cut' and 'got caught-out', to a beautiful young Yoga Sellamuttu, (daughter of Adigar Arumugam Sellamuttu, whose wealth and regality was evident on "Sellamuttu Avenue," in Kollupitiya) and married Yoga in 1954.

With one son Maitra (53 yrs), who is presently in England and married to Dale (daughter of Raine Wright, elder brother of former Sri Lanka Rugby Captain Malcolm Wright), they brought forth a 'bundle of joy' a daughter Tharini (42 yrs).

She is currently working for the "Dubai World Cup" office in Dubai, - the biggest Horse Racing event in the world! Tharini married Mike Wasper, a former Welsh Rugby Forward who was working for the British High Commission in Colombo.

Mahes's father Cyril Rodrigo, was the sole Proprietor of Rodrigo Restaurants (Green Cabin and Pagoda) until 1966, before it was made a Limited Liability Company. He was married to Mallika, sister of Sri Lanka's former Cricket Captain S. S. 'Sargo' Jayawickrema.

His parents coincidentally died at the same age of 76 years! As Vohara de Silva, the longest serving Manager in the company, a nephew of Cyril Rodrigo, agreed that his uncle Cyril Rodrigo and the family, have all been generous, kind, compassionate and acted with concern. Mahes's younger brother Devaka Rodrigo, now 72 years of age, also played top-class Rugby for CR & FC and for Sri Lanka in the 50's, along with him.

Recently, Mahes was honoured by the CR & FC and made a "Life Member" for all the great performances and splendid service he has done for the club.

In 1959, Mahes Rodrigo (then 47 years younger!) commenced work, as a Freight Broker for Somervilles Ltd (a British Brokering Company handing tea, rubber and coconut products) to service Export Companies and canvass valuable export cargoes from Sri Lanka to the UK, USA, Far East, European Continent and other countries around the world. After about 10 years, he worked with Mackinnon Mackenzie Ltd in Shipping. By 1979, Mahes assumed a Director's role in the administration of the Rodrigo Restaurants.

Simultaneous to his prowess in Cricket from 1943, mahes also proved his exceptional class as a superb Scrum-Half, and was appointed Royal Rugby Captain in 1946.

It stands out in his mind, that Trinity were so impressive in their smart attire on the Rugby-field, with their dazzling red, yellow and blue rugby jerseys - that it gave them the 'jitters' and 'butterflies' in their stomaches each time the Trinity team ran onto the field!!

In 1952, Mahes was the first Sri Lankan to be appointed as Captain of the Sri Lanka Rugby Team against the Australians and again in 1953 versus the New Zealand Colts.

He captained the CR & FC in 1955 and the Colombo Clubs playing as Scrum-half to pair-off with Ago Paiva, several other great players like, John Arenhold (a South African Trialist), Lionel Almeida, Kavan Rambukwelle, Ivan Diasz, Rajah Williams, Dr. Trevor Anghie, Devaka Rodrigo, Ashey Cader, Conrad and Desmond Ephraims, Summa Navaratnam, Neville Leefe Peter Sawdy, P. Mahendran, Maurice Perera, Malcolm Wright, Barry Cameron, Donald McRae, David Parker, Hugh Keith Anderson, Nick Dewing, Phil Sparks, A. K. Doray, Fred Kreltszheim, Geoff Weinman and Norman Gunewardena.

After the New Zealand tour of Sri Lanka, a Manager of the team J. Steward, had told a meeting of the New Zealand Rugby Union at a press conference - "Mahes Rodrigo, Captain of the Ceylon (Sri Lanka) team was well up to the best New Zealand Provincial standards."

On the 30th October 1999, the great "Royal Explosion" was staged as a Parade down the streets of Colombo and over 13,000 people turned out to honour their Alma Mater.

Mahes was one of the distinguished Old Boys who was among those who were honoured for their great contribution to the College. In addition to being the Head Prefect, Captain of Cricket and Rugby while at Royal, he also coached the boys for many years in Cricket and Rugby, till very recently.

As one senior old boys said Mahes Rodrigo instilled into the players at all times - "Let it be a Sport, not a fracas - and play it in the correct spirit, with its true traditions!"

Rugby football is a game for gentlemen in All classes but never for a bad sportsman in any class" is a motto picked up from a Rugby club in New Zealand.

DN 21 Oct 2006

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RC Masters Guild 1955

2011-04-08T12:36:00.004+05:30

left to right from back row:

S.D.F DISSANAYAKE, C.PATHMANATHAN, H.C. (Arul) ARULANANDAN, S.JAYAWARDENE, E.M.J.S FERNANDO, H. MENDIS, E.C. (Kataya) GUNASEKERA, C. MAHAENDRAN, B. ST. E. DE BRUIN (Bruno), L.S. SAMARARAATNE (Pol Toks), A. TENNEKOON, VIJI WIRASINHA (Duckie), L.PARANAVITARNA, W.A. WICKREMASENA M.B.H. WARIAPOLA, B.G.N. SARIFODEEN, H.C. ABEYNAIKE, M.D. FERNANDO

middle row:
A. RATHNATHICAM (Rat), A.L. BALDSING, J de S.ABEYDEERA, S. SIVARAMAN,
H.M. SAMARAWEERA, K.L. IYER, L.F.M. SAMUEL, S.E. DIAS, A.I DE ABRERA, E.W.
RUPASINGHE (Rupperty), H. PERERA, R. RAJARATNAM, E.F.C. PEREIRA,
M.T. THAMBAPILLAI (Thamba), L. DE SILVA, K.C. FERNANDO (Kusaya), H.W. NATHANIEL, A.D. BAPTIST,

seated:
S.H. PERERA (Saapey), R.C. EDWARS, C. SAMARASINGHE,C P de S ABEYSINGHE (CowPox), C.E. BELLETH (Bella), M.K.J. CANTLAY (Canto), A.V.P. JAYATUNGE, DUDLEY K.G. DE SILVA, M.M. GUNARATNE, T.M.
WEERASINGHE, S. MUTHUKUMARU

Those Wilde Olde Days

2011-04-03T10:29:00.001+05:30

The Afternoon the Boys Went Wild(e)

Forty years ago, on April 5, 1971, a Colombo school drama society was all set to stage a Victorian comedy, when another real-life national drama broke out – the first JVP insurrection.

R. Stephen Prins recalls that historic moment - Sunday Times Apr 3 2011
http://www.sundaytimes.lk/110403/Plus/plus_04.html

Wildly excited the boys were that Sunday, April 4, in 1971, almost exactly 40 years ago. It was the eve of a public performance in Colombo of Lady Windermere’s Fan, the famous Oscar Wilde comedy. The play was to be put on by the drama society of a leading boys’ school, its young men dressed up as Victorian ladies and gentlemen, and it was to be performed at a leading girls’ school round the corner.

The boys had been rehearsing the play for months, and had their lines and cues in place, and their costumes – top hat and tails and frilled and flounced Victorian gowns – cut and re-cut to fit. The stage was set. Props, lighting, posters, handbills and programme, and at least one newspaper preview – all had been taken care of. And there was no shortage of help from students eager to escape the classroom.

The dress rehearsal for the play that was aborted.

If any were to wonder what Royal College, Colombo was doing with a comedy about 19th-century England (Oscar Wilde’s hit play was first performed in 1892, at the St. James Theatre, London), their attention might have been drawn to the school itself – a solid red-brick Victorian institution, dating back to 1835, just two years before Queen Victoria ascended the English throne. The school was a Victorian monument.

The idea of performing a Victorian play came from a young Cambridge graduate from England, who was spending a year in Ceylon teaching English. He believed that mouthing the best of English dialogue was one way to teach quality English, and everyone agreed that Oscar Wilde’s poised and cadenced lines were as close to perfection as English dialogue could get.

Also, curiously, Oscar Wilde was the vogue in those years, in the ’60s and early ’70s. The school debate society was in full swing, and it venerated Wilde, the renowned wit who had a ready and memorable answer for every occasion (“if we could give Oscar Wilde-type replies, the opposition would be floored’’). Oscar Wilde was read studiously and furiously in the hope that the Irish writer’s verbal brilliance would rub off at inter-collegiate debates.

It was hard not to be fascinated by the personality and legend of the great and disgraced Irish writer and entertainer. Schoolboys have a natural sympathy for anyone who flouts the rules, and the outrageous Oscar broke many of the rules of his time. Wilde’s flamboyance and effrontery, his moral and social anarchism, had huge appeal to certain English-medium educated teens. How could one not warm up to a famous/notorious adult who said such provocative things as, “I never put off for tomorrow what I can possibly do the day after” (a sterling excuse for late homework); “There is no such thing as a moral book or an immoral book. Books are well written or badly written. That is all” (the assurance you needed when secretly reading banned classics), and “The only way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it” (solace for the guilt burdens of pubescence). Oscar was the schoolboys’ hero – at least for those five hectic, hyperactive months of Lady Windermere’s Fan.

By the evening of Sunday, April 4, 1971, all details to do with the production were in place. There was only one problem, a serious one. Lady Erlynne, a crucial part played by the fair “Tweeny” Abeyewardene, had started to lose “her” voice some weeks earlier. The problem was thought to be a combination of laryngitis and nerves, and Lady Erlynne was urged to visit both a general practitioner and a psychiatric counsellor. He/she did, but the condition persisted. Everyone was getting jittery. One especially nerdy Fifth Former with a reputation for quoting Wilde at every turn was given 48 hours to memorise the part of Lady Erlynne. A couple of days ahead of Monday’s opening, Lady Erlynne’s voice came back, albeit a bit hoarse and masculine-sounding.

Victorian monument: Royal College, Colombo, was established in 1835.

And while all this was happening, far behind the scenes, in the greatest secrecy, unknown to Lady Windermere, the rest of the cast, the school, and the greater world outside the school gates, there was another, bigger drama unfolding. This drama was of epic proportions, with a plot of nation-shaking consequence, and it had a cast of thousands. It had been rehearsed for months in scattered and distant parts and was ripe for public “performance.” The players would be young adults, about the age of the Lady Windermere set and a little older. This national drama had been scheduled to open the following Tuesday, April 6, but due to unforeseen developments the “opening” was brought forward by a day to Monday, April 5 – which was also Lady Windermere’s big day.

While the Lady Windermere set went to bed early that Sunday night and had nightmares of missed cues and forgotten lines, the cast of the bigger drama were up all night, fanning across the country, arming themselves, and taking up positions.

By noon the next day, Monday, April 5, telephones were ringing in every home and office. There was trouble in the country. Big trouble. The state radio announced that there would be an islandwide curfew, starting at 5.00 PM.

Lady Windermere would have to take a seat and await her call. What followed that day, and in the days and weeks after, was one of the country’s most extraordinary, and most bloody, episodes. The Marxist-inspired Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) took the country by surprise, overpowering police stations around the country, and challenging the regime and its ill-prepared armed forces. The ’71 insurrection, the first offensive of the JVP, would be crushed decisively. But that Monday, we all thought the revolutionaries would be in the city by nightfall.

The curfew was lifted a month later. A tense moment in history had come and gone, but it would be a long time, years, before the magnitude of the uprising and its quelling would be understood.

By May 1971, normal life in the country had resumed and students were going back to school. Lady Windermere was invited to return to the stage at Royal College, Reid Avenue. By that time, however, the cast and crew had lost much of its enthusiasm for the play. Nevertheless, it was decided not to let all the hard work and preparation go to waste, so rehearsals were resumed, although half-heartedly. This time there would be no public performance; just one school show. The preview that appeared in the Daily News on April 3 had kind words for the production, while observing that it was “off-putting to see Victorian ladies built like rugby players.”

The afternoon school performance was something else altogether. The entire staff and student body were present, filling the hall up to the balcony and spilling into the corridors.

The cast and crew had secretly arranged to have a little fun during the matinee, in collaboration with Mr. Oscar Wilde. The plan was to give a farcical, fast-forward version of the play, with lines rewritten to include in-jokes about the teachers and the prefects.

There were other jokes as well, gags aimed at unsuspecting members of the cast. Props were mischievously manipulated. A glass of ginger ale that was to substitute for whiskey was in fact a solution of vinegar and salt mixed with something stronger, causing a sputtering, spluttering effect on the actor who had to drink it. At another point, a framed photograph was brought out for inspection, but instead of the expected Victorian lady’s portrait there was a centrefold ripped out of Playboy magazine, the sight of which caused the startled actor to fling the object across the stage.


"If you want to tell people the truth, make them laugh, otherwise they'll kill you".– Oscar Wilde. Irish dramatist, novelist, and poet (1854-1900)	Oscar Wilde: revolutionary in his time.

The audience guffawed, not so much at the dialogue and antics as the spectacle of fellow schoolboys attired in sweat-soaked Victorian outfits, while the cast exchanged little knowing smiles. Teachers familiar with the play knew something was wildly askew, but went along with the jollity. The sense of things going hilariously out of control was growing by the second.

One act of daring almost cost the actors their school careers. Cigars mentioned in the original script had been deleted from the school show. The actors, however, had pinched a handful of Havanas from a cigar-puffing parent and smuggled these on stage inside their waistcoats. During a strictly men’s scene, the young swells not only produced the cigars, but lit and smoked them.

The audience roared. There was one highly graphic and original moment that took all by surprise. The resplendent Lady Erlynne was to make one of her exits, but instead of going out backstage, she descended the steps of the platform, and stepped outside, her back to us, the sunlight shimmering on her pink chiffon glory. And, as if departing forever, she glided through the garden and out of sight. It was a surreal, unscripted, cinematic and strangely inspired moment.

That afternoon was entertaining and baffling; it was wild, and wilder than Wilde. It was the talking point for months. All that stylised dialogue, and all those protestations of love addressed by boys to cross-dressed boys was amusing and bemusing. Forty years later that long-ago afternoon retains its queerly absurdist, anarchic, and anachronistic pitch.

Meanwhile, there was the other, bigger drama taking place, on another scale – the long moment between the cancelled April 5 performance and the school show. In that month of curfews and suspended animation, when schools closed and we all waited, the sound of gunfire pattering in the distance, between 15,000 and 50,000 young revolutionaries – the figures vary – were eliminated in a ferocious crackdown across the country.

These revolutionaries were young adults a little older than the young men involved in Lady Windermere’s Fan, and they were targeting the urban elite who were enjoying privileges not available to them.

One of the key privileges was language: while the elite had access to English – at home, in school, in the community – the rest, represented by the young revolutionaries out in the country, had little or no English. Lady Windermere’s Fan was symbolic of a small privileged class nurtured on English. It was an explosive play, in a sense, with the potential to fan a revolutionary’s fury.

If there had been no curfew on April 5, 1971, and the opening night of Lady Windermere’s Fan had gone as scheduled, we might have had youthful revolutionaries storming the city that day. Their first destination would likely have been the fancy precints of Cinnamon Gardens.

We can imagine them marching through Colombo Seven, smashing up the posh cars lined up along Flower Road, and charging into the Ladies’ College Hall, where they might have either caused great harm, to persons and property, or sat with the rest of the audience to watch the play. If that had happened, a bit of comedy with boys dressed as women might well have had a softening, calming effect on the revolutionaries. Who can tell?

Comedy is the other side of tragedy, and vice versa – the two being the opposite faces of the same intricately patterned Chinese silk fan.

The cast and the crew, and their roles, then and now

The Director: Anthony Gates, a volunteer service officer, who had just graduated from Cambridge University, spent a busy year in Ceylon, from 1970 to ’71, working as an English Language and Literature teacher and producing plays at Royal College, Colombo. Having lived outside the UK for many years, he is currently the Chief Justice of Fiji.

THE CAST:

Lady Windermere – Imtiaz Muhsin: Founder and Managing Director, Crescent International School, 1985-2006; currently developing an innovative website - Encyclopedia of Sri Lanka Through Postage Stamps (www.stampodepedia.com)

Lord Windermere – Dr. Rohan Fernando: General practitioner, based in Melbourne, Australia

Lord Darlington – Hari Gunasingham: Chief executive officer (CEO) of an IT company in Singapore. Hari produced the artwork that appears on the cover of the programme for Lady Windermere’s Fan (shown at left).

Mrs. Erlynne – Dr. Siridev (Tweeny) Abeyew-ardene: General practitioner, based in Sydney, Australia

Lord Augustus Lorton – Suresh Gunasingham, CEO of a Sri Lanka-based civil engineering firm

Mr. Dumby – Capt. Mehran Wahid: Ex-ship Captain, currently working for a German shipping company with close ties to Sri Lanka

Lady Jedburgh – Michael Matthysz: Director, CMS Garment Technology, Sri Lanka

Mr. Cecil Graham – Chulan Weeresinghe: Qualified Accountant based in the UK since 1973; maintains an interest in rugby, cricket and music

Lady Plymdale – Christopher Parakrama: Director of a Sri Lanka-based software company; former president of the Sri Lanka Arts Centre, and past president of the Sri Lanka Computer Vendors Association, and the Sri Lanka Association for the Software Industry. Christopher was also Sri Lanka’s first schoolboy national chess champion.

Parker, the Butler – Christopher Storer: Retired from the ship industry, having worked overseas for many years

THE CREW

Among the backstage crew in 1971 were: C. I. Gunasekera Jr: Qualified Accountant, based in the UK since 1972 Dhammike J. Wedande: Director, Asia Siyaka

Devinda R. Subasinghe: Former Sri Lanka ambassador to the US and Mexico, currently serving on APCO Worldwide's International Advisory Council (IAC), as a consultant on emerging markets and foreign policy

Zaki Alif: Director, Stassen Group, Sri Lanka


Anthony Gates	Imtiaz Muhsin

Dr. Siridev Abeyew-ardene	Capt. Mehran Wahid

Devinda R. Subasinghe	Zaki Alif

BawaTales2

2011-03-28T17:19:00.002+05:30

A couple of months after we entered Royal in 1956, Bobby Edwards , the Head Master lower school retired and Cowpox Abeysinghe succeeded him. Cowpox turned out to be even more dexterous with the cane than old Bob Ed, as the exercise books that padded our bottoms did not protect us from the wild swings with the cane or as the saying goes “ six of the best”.

T.M. “ Penda” Weerasinghe soon followed Bob Ed into retirement and so did the legendary
Cameron “ Baapa” Samerasinghe, the cigar chomping Vice Principal. F.B.Crozier was the Cricket Captain and the tall lanky Jothilingam was the Vice Captain, who scored a superb 121 runs. It was in this match that Ronnie Reid of STC scored 158 not out to surpass Norman Siebel’s score of 151 not out. Unfortunately Jothilingam was down with fever or else he would have had a higher score.

We were excited to join the Royal procession that started at 7.00 am on Friday to pay a courtesy call to all the girls schools that surrounded us. The procession started off from Reid Avenue and wound its way to Visakha Vidyalaya, then, on to Galle Rd towards Holy Family Convent and before saluting the girls at Methodist College there was an unofficial “pit stop” at Crème House, so that the boys could run across for refreshments at the Arrack tavern on the opposite side of the street.

After this brief interruption the procession trudged its way to Methodist , then to Bishops , Ladies , Buddhist Ladies finally St. Bridgets and then back to ROYAL.

I am not sure if it was in 1957 or 58 that Ladies was boycotted, after the incident the late Aru S had with the Ladies College Principal. Aru plucked the roses from the Ladies Principal’s prized
rose beds , walked into her class and carried her and presented her with the
bouquet of roses from her own garden. She in turn called the Cinnamon gardens cops and that incident resulted in ladies being boycotted . Also that led to the Ladies Principal giving a holiday on the RoyalThomian Friday.

School closed at 10.20 am , as the match in those days started at 12 noon Friday. By the time the procession of old crocks got to the oval it was around 2.30 pm.

In those days there were no terrorist attacks or parcel bombs. However, C.J.Orloff , the Trinity Principal did send a “Parcel Bomb” to the Royal Principal , Dudley de Silva, which blew up in the Royal Prefects Room. Immediately, after the Bradby in Kandy , Orloff collected all the cigarette butts and beer bottle caps that were in the Royal teams room and mailed it to Dudley, who de-badged all the cops in the Royal team. Luckily there was no Sunday Leader in those times to publish this incident like the coverage given recently to the Thomian prefects ragging fiasco.

After the Orloff incident Kadalai created the one man “Homeland Security” regiment at Royal. Kadalai ensured that no more parcel bombs were sent to Royal. Kadalai inspected the rooms that the Royal teams stayed in to make sure that that were no butts or bottle caps left behind.
In the 3rd form, Umesha S used to bring stink bombs, which we exploded in Cock Mune’s Sinhala language class. Cock Mune enters class with his hanky covering his nose, he does’nt sit, the stench is overbearing “lamai Rawhini potha kiyawanne” and he leaves. (Rawhini that’s how he pronounced Rohini).
Phase 1 is a success, now for phase 2. The lower school classrooms had two doorways, one at the front and the other at the rear .We enter the Tamil class from the rear entrance once good old “Mudguard”, Mr. Sethukavalar, turns towards the blackboard and as he does so, around 25 of us jump into his class. He turns to face the class, but does not realize that the class has almost doubled, we are cramped 2 to a chair. He turns again towards the blackboard and there is an uproar, “Ado Mudguard”. “Ado Mudguard”, about 60 boys screaming. He turns, and shocked, he shouts “Bloody fellows from where did you come” and he lines up the whole lot to be marched up to Cowpox Abeysinghe, the headmaster, for a caning. The boys march out and instead of turning left to go up the stairs to the headmaster’s office , turn right and march back into class from the rear doorway. This goes on and on till the bell rings, all the while screaming, “Ado Mudguard”. It was only the translation of his name into English?.

1959, fourth form boyswe were thrilled to join the Royal procession in our first old croc, organized by Boorah Welikala. Unfortunately, we were arrested at Galle Face after the match and detained for about 2 hours at the Fort Police Station. The following year too, the cops stopped us at Borella junction. One of the guys , went over too see which station the cops were from and he comes back “Machan , they are from the Ceylon Police”. In his drunken state he only saw the Ceylon Police Silver Badge on the cops shoulder . To this day he denies this.

1960, Lower Five how unfortunate, Arasa is our form master and we are in Room no:10, next to the main staff room and opposite the VP’s office. The holier twin (though at that time he was not that holy), Tissa , Shaw , Potte Jansz , Chandi W, Kobbe U, N.G.Pati , the late Umesha, and Hari, were some of the guys in this class. Arasa never gave a free period. The day before the RoyalThomian we were warned not to enter class without our books. And so on the match day we had to attend Arasa’s math class from 8.45 to 10.20. What a rag that was. In order to break the boredom in Arasa’s class Chandi once organized one of his pals to call Arasa and blast him in raw filth. We had Arasa for 2 periods in the afternoon too and so when we heard the phone ringing in the staff room we knew it was the long awaited call. A staff member came over to our class and informed Arasa that there was a call for him. It didn’t take him long to get back straight to the blackboard and carry on from where he was stopped. Suddenly without a warning he threw the duster right at Chandi, and before long Shaw, The Archdeacon, Potte, Kobbe, Umesha and I got kaneyed. To this day we do not know how he realized that we were the ones behind the call. He must have some sixth sense intuition?

Meanwhile , our batch mates in the other classes had John Hill a Trinity Lion as their Statics and Dynamics teacher. John Hill bellowed if in trouble apply 4MDL/D squared minus L squared the WHOLE thing squared. And so after the term exam when John Hill asked them why they wrote this formula as the answer to all the questions they screamed back, “ Sir you said to apply the formula if in trouble, so we applied the formula, coz we were in trouble”.

A couple of years back (44 years later) , I had my 4MDL moment, which we never had with Arasa. Dr.K……. called me one evening, “ ado how good are you in maths?”. I could’nt tell him I was clueless. I said “good you bu…..her, why”. And so he told me he was trying to solve a problem for his daughter and he was stuck, so I offered to help. I made him repeat the problem about 5 to 6 times , but I wasn’t listening , I kept him on the phone for about 15 minutes repeating the question and then I kept silent, this made him impatient and he snaps, “ado what the f….k are you doing “, so I replied “ wait u b…..her, I am solving the problem”, and finally I said “ado simple no machan, take a pen and paper and write down the answer”, and so he was scrambling for paper and pen and when he was ready , I said “ 4MDL/D squared minus L squared the WHOLLE thing squared”. I could hear him saying “ F…… off”, before he cut the line.

A dear friend in the 4th form was in K.C. “ Kusaya” Fernando’s Buddhism class , in 1960. Kusaya was talking about Sakra Deiyyo while our good friend was ogling at the pics in the Playboy Magazine. Kusaya knew that he was otherwise occupied and so asked him, “Wi…………..he, Sakra Deiyyo kohomada aawey” . Poor guy got up fidgeting a bit and answered, “ Sir, Bus eke
Aawa”. And so he was christened “Sakra Deiyyo”. Sakraya , later on captained the Rugby team who won the Bradby for us.

The facilities fees levied by the school at that time was Rs. 4/- and Arasa used to always remind us in his own way to pay up. He used to say “Yeh man , you monkeys sell your mothers in the market place and bring the money”. Foenander in the batch before us, was the last to pay up. That was because he was collecting 400 one cent coins to pay the fees. Finally when he got the coins , he brought it in a Bothal Karaya’s malla and triumphantly walked over to Arasa to hand him the fees. Arasa took the malla and flung it and the 400 coins went flying across the classroom.

Jothi Godage, was the Sergeant of the Senior Cadets. The cadets have drill on Mondays , (the last period), while the rest have PT in the college grounds. Jothi used to march the squads to the St. Bridgets Convent back gate, where we stand at attention. As the girls come rushing out , when SBC is over, the sergeant commands us to salute. The girls are saluted and we march back to college.

The following Monday the squad is marched to Ladies College, front gate, for the customary salute from the Royal College Senior Cadet Corp. This went on for some time, with marches to SBC one week and Ladies the following week. Dudley finally got wind of it, and we were not allowed to march out of the Boake Gates.

Talking of marches, I am reminded of the late Lohicca S. It was in either 1964 or 65, that the Aswa Vidyalaya was formed. The race course was converted to the Arts Faculty and till such time the premises were ready for lectures, the arts students, all freshmen, used to assemble at the College Hall, after 4.00pm. Lohicca, used to drop in around this time, pretending to be a senior undergrad and get all these innocent fresher undergrads out and give them drill practice. He used to line them up and march them up and down from the Flower Road roundabout to the Reid Avenue round about. This went on regularly until one fine day Dudley when driving by recognized Lohicca, and stopped the car called him over asked him what he was doing as he was not the Sergeant, in fact, not even a Cadet. Then Dudley realized that the boys were not students of Royal but the new undergrads of the Asva Vidyalaya. That was the end of Lohicca ‘s ragging.

To go back 55 years in time, to the 1st form , we yearn, To relive those great days and of books and men to learn, Knowing that it is impossible to go back to the past,
To those treasured memories, we hold steadfast.

Bawa (Reza Ashroff)

'59 Group Members

2011-03-15T13:28:00.005+05:30

'59 Group - Jan 2011

2011-03-15T13:20:00.003+05:30

'59 Group Bash Jan 2011

Anil Kannangara, Upali de Livera, S Skandakumar, KPG Fernando, MBM Naizer, DG Wickremasinghe

61 Group Golden Jubilee Oration

2011-03-15T12:11:00.007+05:30

ROYAL COLLEGE ’61-GROUP CELEBRATES GOLDEN JUBILEE

Tuesday, March-08, 2011, 08.30-Hrs. Venue: Royal College, Colombo-7. Golden rays of sunlight cascade from blue skies via cumulus clouds; fresh foliage springs from trimmed lawns dividing tarred driveways leading from silver-grilled gates into a series of doorways at the brick-studded, stucco façade of the Assembly Hall.

Sixty-six old boys, some from overseas, reaching 60-plus, mostly attired in a neat confection of white shirt, striped navy blue and gold tie, dark blue and gold metal badge displaying the gold College crest and legend, The Class of 1961, Royal College – a gift from an overseas member, Eric Manny, from Vancouver - affixed on shirt pocket, dark pants, stride sedately through the Boake Gates from Rajakeeya Mawatha. To celebrate and rejoice its golden jubilee at Royal College, the RC-’61 Group, has arrived!

Inside the College Hall, at a special assembly, they sit in front row seats backed by two hundred and fifty students from senior grades. Onstage sits Principal Upali Gunasekara in white suit at centre table, rightflanked by Deputy Principal Lakshmi Attygalle, three teachers and Group Treasurer Rohan Abeygunawardana, retired accountant. His left flank covers three past masters: V Sivalingam, RBA Jayasekera and WA Wickramasena, Group President Shanthi Pathirage, chairman of Creative Blinds (Pvt) Ltd; and past Secretary Firoze Sameer, company secretary, American Premium Group.

Everyone stands, for the College song; sung from lusty throats in all its inevitable strains and cadences. One minute’s silence is observed for the 18-departed Group members: names are solemnly announced:

Arulampalam Balakrishnan, Vigneswaran Balasingham, VSK Bamunusinghe, N Chenthil-Kumar, Amal De Mel, MV de Tissera, M Noor Deen, TG de S Gunasekara, MF Jaldeen, UKD Jayantha, AR Moosa, TRS Pieris, Rajeswaran, Lakshman Ranasinghe, NA Ranjith, HS Roberts, NS Wannaku, Dhammika Weerasekera. The principal introduces the Group, explaining the day’s significance. While serving as compere, Sameer delivers the opening address followed by His Excellency the President’s Secretary Lalith Weeratunga, addressing the assembly in Sinhala; Indrajith Coomaraswamy attached to the World Bank, and Special Municipal Commissioner Omar Kamil, both speak in English.

Rohan presents a cheque for Rs 323,426 to the principal for a proposed project, followed by special financial tokens of appreciation to the 3-past masters. Vote of thanks is delivered by past Group President Kumar Fernando, onetime director, General Treasury, closes this memorable, momentous occasion.

Old boys drift out chatting to each other; amble towards the tuck shop to snack and tea. Later, familiar corridors are explored, old classrooms are visited; the splendid 5-star washrooms admired; playgrounds are trod; past glories and times are discussed under the two inevitable tamarind trees; good ole days are reminisced five decades back; while group photo-catchers click intermittently on digital cameras and video units move about shooting the ever-changing scenes. Towards noon, a simple lunch at the tuckshop. One o’clock chimes and the Group departs; two luxury buses move out towards a hotel down south.

Waves break heavily on rocks in the azure Indian Ocean, a salubrious nip in the wind, coconut trees sway their fronds shading the floury sands; leisure hours spent protractedly; tea and snacks follow swimming and varied games, entertainment, competitions and prizes, into the long hours of the night; a Wok-special kitchen dinner amidst DJ-music and dance; special T-shirts emblazoned with College crest and legend 50-Years of Royalty. The following morn extends a sumptuous Sri Lankan breakfast washed down with steaming tea. And then, with undying memories to relive, the Group returns to base.

Friday night, 11 March, the revelry continues at Kumar’s Kohuwela home over dinner well past midnight. Each member receives a copy of the group photograph removed outside the College Hall premises and a DVD of the proceedings.

Friendships of over fifty years with former classmates, consolidated and relived perhaps for the last time. A splendidly memorable week to remember and reminisce in the years ahead. The RC-’61-Group moves on.

- RC-SixtyOnews

=============

OPENING ADDRESS BY FIROZE SAMEER, PAST SECRETARY, ’61-GROUP, (COMPANY SECRETARY, AMERICAN GROUP OF COMPANIES), AT THE SPECIAL ASSEMBLY HELD IN THE ROYAL COLLEGE COLOMBO HALL, CELEBRATRING THE GOLDEN JUBILEE OF THE ROYAL COLLEGE ’61-GROUP, ON TUE., 08 MARCH, 2011, 09.00-HRS

Good morning.

Principal Mr Upali Gunasekera;

Deputy Principal Ms Lakshmi Attygalle;

Teachers present;

Teachers past: Mr WA Wickramasena, Mr RBA Jayasekera, and Mr V Sivalingam;

My friends, Lalith, Indrajith, Omar, Kumar, Rohan and Shanthi;

Senior Students;

Old Boys of the ’61-Group.

Today, standing here in this august forum, I’m reminded of the days we sat over there, where you young students are now sitting. We sat at assemblies held in every week in this very same Hall. I remember the principals then. First Mr Dudley KG de Silva. Later came Mr Bogoda Premaratne, a very kind and caring principal who, I believe, is still active in service to the community.

I see the hallowed prize-winners listed in these name boards which adorn this great Hall. They have hardly changed, except for the additions.

***

Most of us Old Boys present here began our education in Class One at the Royal Primary School in January, 1955. Those classrooms still exist over there. We left Royal Primary in December 1960, at the time Mr HD Sugathapala had succeeded Major AF de Saa Bandaranaike, as Head Master.

We entered Royal College in Form-One in January 1961. A few students joined us from outside schools. That was Fifty years ago! We now celebrate that event today.

***

Our School Song endorses, “School of our Fathers!” Several of our fathers studied at Royal College during the reign of Major HL Reed and Mr LHW Sampson. My father’s name is listed as a Boake House prefect in one of those boards.

I remember that great teacher Mr CE Belleth. Mr Belleth taught my father in this School. Years later, he taught my brother Fazli in the ’59-Group. And thereafter, Mr Belleth taught me! That was the dedication teachers had in committing their entire lives to establish education in our College.

***

Four members of our ‘61-Group have played in the Big Match.

They are BNR Mendis, Sahadevan Thalayasingham, CAP Samarasinghe and Beverly Paul.

***

There are several ’61-Group members who have contributed to the College in various ways. However, a few come to mind as unique, which I shall now mention here, briefly.

***

In earlier times, it was the practice for one of the reserve players in our cricket team to serve as the Scorer. That changed in 1971. We didn’t have computers then. The color-code system of scoring in cricket matches was introduced. Under this new scheme, my classmate, Mazhar Ghouse, who is here with us today, was the first official scorer to be appointed for Royal College.

Mazhar did a grand job during that cricket season, culminating with that memorable Big Match where Jagath Fernando and Gajan Pathmanathan made that record-breaking partnership.

***

Another unique feature was the Train leaving Fort Railway Station for the annual Bradby Shield Rugby fixture with Trinity College.

Sometime in the 1960s, my classmate, the ever-ebullient Moin Ahamed, who is present here today, had the courage to take two huge College flags, and, with the permission of the station master, fix them on both sides of the railway engine. Moin was also the first to organize a paparé band in the train. This practice has continued over the following four decades.

***

Another unique feature was Kumar Fernando, my friend, over there.

Kumar has been very gracious in opening his home to us on every first Saturday night in every month.

We all meet in Kumar’s home in Kohuwala. We interact and consolidate our College friendships there, over an extended dinner. That is how friendships are nurtured over the years.

***

Last but not least, I must not fail to mention the pains taken by the President of our ’61-Group, Shanthi Pathirage. Shanthi has strived successfully to organize these events for us today.

***

I shall leave you students with a small piece of advice.

Friendship is important in College, and even after you leave College.

Especially long-term friendships.

You will leave this illustrious College one day, and go your separate ways into the world, to seek your fortunes.

But, please remember to continue your friendship with your classmates, as we, in the ’61-Group, have done. Friendship of fifty to fifty-six years!

***

I wish you all will emerge as the future leaders of this country;

That you will set a fine example of being an excellent citizen of Sri Lanka;

And that you will prosper in an environment of peace.

Thank you

Firoze Sameer

------------------

ADDRESS BY OMAR KAMIL, VICE PRESIDENT, ’61-GROUP, (FORMER MAYOR OF COLOMBO; FORMER SRI LANKA AMBASSADOR EXTRAORDINARY AND PLENIPOTENTIARY TO THE REPUBLIC OF IRAN WITH ACCREDITATION TO AZERBAIJAN AND TURKMENISTAN; PRESENT SPECIAL COLOMBO MUNICIPAL COMMISSIONER), REPRESENTING THE ENGLISH MEDIUM, AT THE SPECIAL ASSEMBLY HELD IN THE ROYAL COLLEGE COLOMBO HALL, CELEBRATRING THE GOLDEN JUBILEE OF THE ROYAL COLLEGE ’61-GROUP, ON TUE., 08 MARCH, 2011, 09.00-HRS

A very good morning to all of you;

Mr Upali Gunasekera, Principal, Royal College;

Ms Lakshmi Attygalle, Deputy Principal;

Present teachers.

Teachers past: Mr WA Wickramasena, Mr RBA Jayasekera, and Mr V Sivalingam;

My colleagues Lalith, Indrajith, Kumar, Firoze, Rohan and Shanthi,

and members of the ’61-Group of Royal College.

Senior Students.

When I walked through this corridor this morning, memories of the good old days in this School flashed through my mind – of the days when we used to trudge in school – books and bat in hand, as the afternoons and evenings was cricket all the way.

***

I remember entering Royal College in January, 1961. Being called upon to line up outside the West Wing lobby. And there, before us stood that giant-sized master, Captain MKJ Cantlay, who called out our names in his stentorian voice, allocating us to our respective classes in Form-One. Unlike today, there were three mediums of instruction: Sinhala, Tamil and English.

We were a mixed group every morning, and moving into our respective medium of instruction except for the English language class.

***

The 1961-Group could consider itself as an extremely fortunate group, as its members were given an extra one year in the year 1965, on account of the Siyarate Exhibition which was held in our grounds, thereby the syllabus for the year could not be completed. In the following year, we were termed the 5-R Group. “R” meant Returners.

And due to that extra year being granted, we earned the notoriety of the masters, as most of us became semi-rioters. Very few masters were spared in nicknames being imposed on them. Looking at our Group, most of our masters, including our principal at that time, Mr Bogoda Premaratne, sympathized with us, as they thought we would end up nowhere. However, I find today that the majority of this Group is well-set, holding prestigious and acclaimed positions in society.

***

My two sons, Ziyam and Zakir, could claim to be third generation old Royalists as my father too was an Old Boy. I hold in my hand a postcard dated 27.02.1933, addressed to my father by Principal LHW Sampson. The subject refers to a science deposit, and goes on to say: “Sir, I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your letter, and to inform you must call here for it.” It is signed as: “I am, Sir, Your Obedient Servant. L. Sampson, Principal, Royal College.”

I am thankful to my friend, Firoze Sameer, for having unearthed this document from among documents of his father, which he found in recent weeks. I believe this document would enable my two sons to gain easy access to Royal College when the opportunity comes to them to admit their sons to this glorious institution.

***

Most of our Group left Royal in the latter part of 1960; some to university to purse academic studies, while some others chose professional studies, while others entered their family business, like me.

***

Although we left College and moved in different strides, we continued our regular meetings during the Royal-Thomian period, and today we are among the few who could boast of a fifty to fifty-six year friendship, which is a rare phenomenon in today’s context.

***

On this occasion, I will be failing in my duties, if I do not place on record our sincere thanks and deep appreciation to Kumar Fernando, who continued to keep the College flag flying, by ensuring that our members had a regular domain to meet, greet and eat in his home, assisted by our good friend, Shanthi Pathirage.

***

I, for myself, owe what I am today: thanks to what Royal has taught me; great values and discipline, which were instilled in us by our former masters and principals, some of whom are here today. Thank you, Sirs. They spared no pains in moulding us, and directing us, to what we are today.

***

My dear students, you are the present generation of students in this great institution, which has surpassed a hundred and seventy-five years last year. You should carry the great traditions of your forefathers.

When you leave the portals of this great institution, please bear I mind that you will carry with you the Royal tag of that great name, which has to be maintained and preserved wherever you are, at all times.

***

On this occasion, when the 1961 Group of Royal College celebrates its golden jubilee today, we are glad to reflect on those very happy days we used to spend in this School in which “we learnt of books and learnt of men and learnt to play the game.”

Thank you.

Omar Kamil

RC 1948 Group Bash March 2011

2011-03-14T16:31:00.004+05:30

R.K. Thas, Themiya Gunasekera

R.K. Thas, M.M. Mansoor, M.N.A. Cader

N.M.S. Jayawickrama, W.N.K.Fernando, M.H.V. Cooray, R.K. Thas

J.H.de Saram, M.H.V. Cooray, N.M.S. Jayawickrama

J.H.de Saram, L.D. Wijeyaratne, H.H.R.S amarasinghe; C.C.S. Welikala

L.P. Mendis, M.H.V. Cooray, R.K. Thas, R.W.E. Ameresekere; Themiya Gunasekera, S.K. Samaraweera

RCU turns 120

2010-12-15T10:12:00.000+05:30

One of the oldest school boy alumni fraternities in Sri Lanka symbolising unity in diversity, the Royal College Union (RCU), counts 120 years of dedicated services to its alma mater, members and society.

The RCU founded in 1891 with a few old boys, has grown to comprise 11,000 members, speaking volumes for its longevity, commitment, and solidarity.

The RCU has had 33 honorary secretaries in office and many distinguished past Royalists as office-bearers.

The RCU works closely with the college principal and school authorities, with the intention of promoting the advancement, progress and welfare of the students and also the interest of its members. It continues to promote educational, cultural, social and economic welfare of the students of the college.

Throughout its colourful history, a host of events and activities have lent personality to the Union. Last year, RCU was engaged in a spate of activities to mark the 175th anniversary of the college, witnessing religious, social and sporting events.

The RCU champions academics, gifting scholarships through the Loyalty Pledge Management Committee to students demonstrating academic excellence, and or requiring assistance for continuity at the college and also at university level.

The support rendered by the Union is most often reciprocated by the College and its students, for example Royal College being named the "Best Innovative Microsoft School in 2010". Royal College also boasts of superior results at the GCE O/L and A/L examinations.

The annual EDEX exhibition is a hallmark of educational excellence, extending support to empower youth to be globally competitive, whilst offering them choices, options and opportunities, upon completion of their secondary education.

The partnership that RCU has with sports at Royal College is noteworthy, and many sporting events championed by the Union have resulted in accolades.

In the sporting arena the best recognition and glory have included the fields of rugger, cricket, swimming, water-polo, rowing and boxing. The Skills Centre of the RCU also caters to a host of activities that encourage and promote skills and talents of students and is also open to the public.

New initiatives include the RCU audio, video, and print studio that will cater to young Royalists who wish to pursue careers in media.

The convention facilities also cater to RCU member meetings, and its state-of-the-art facilities are open to the public to conduct professional events and social functions.

The J.R. Jayewardene Pavillion and Cricket Complex and the Royal College Sports Complex are also managed under the aegis of RCU for the benefit of past and present Royalists.

The RCU has close links with its fellow alumni association branches overseas, and maintains links with other old boy and old girl associations in Sri Lanka.

To mark its 120th anniversary the RCU will have a multi religious ceremony on January 17 at 7.00 a.m. followed by a fellowship breakfast. The RCU will also be organising more celebratory events to mark this milestone

Hussain Rahim

2010-08-15T12:40:00.004+05:30

Tribute to a brother who played all his roles in life with honour and dedication

Hussain Rahim

Hussain Rahim was my immediate younger brother, born four years after me. Despite our differences, we remained close for 59 years, until his departure on August 8, 2010, two months short of his 60th birthday.

What moves through us now is a silence and a quiet sadness. There is a longing for just one more day together, one more word, one more touch. Little by little, we realise his life has given us memories too beautiful to forget. So, rather than mourn his death, let us celebrate his life.

Hussain belonged to the Royal College 1962 Group. He was a good sportsman. After captaining the college Under-16 cricket team in 1966, he found himself in the First XI squad for the 1966/1967 season. For some unknown reason, he did not figure in the Royal-Thomian of 1967. He was the 12th man on the side. Shortly after, he quit cricket to focus on athletics, and went on to represent the school at sports meets. A glowing moment was when he won the Under-16 440 yards challenge trophy at the inter-house sports meet in 1966, four years after I had laid hands on the same prize.

In the 1969/1970 cricket season, I coaxed him to forget the past and get on with life. He finally agreed to get back into the game. Getting into the team after a three-year lay-off was not easy. But he applied himself with a firm resolve and found a place in the team. He grabbed the opportunity with both hands, and found himself playing in the Royal-Thomian of 1970, at the Colombo Oval. Sportswriter T. M. K. Samath wrote in a special box story in the Observer: “When Royal’s M. H. Rahim walked out to bat in the 91st Battle of the Blues, it marked a unique achievement. He is the first Malay in 42 years, since M. S. Ahamath, to play in the big match”.

I took along my parents, who saw their first and only Royal-Thomian cricket match. Hussain was elated to see them in the invitees’ block, reserved for the players’ parents. He won the Fielding Prize for his fine performance that season. He also turned out for the Colombo Malay Cricket Club in the early Seventies.

After leaving school, he joined an accounting firm and continued to play sports. In 1976, he married his sweetheart, Mufliha Jaldin, and they had two children, a boy and girl, who were brought up in the best Islamic tradition. Son followed father at Royal, and like his father, the son represented the school in sports. He was in the Royal College First XV rugby team and won his rugby colours. The daughter studied at Sirimavo Bandaranaike Balika Vidyalaya and graduated with a Bachelor of Information degree from the University of Colombo School of Computing.

Hussain was deeply religious and performed Haj twice. The first time was to fulfil his obligation as a Muslim, the second to accompany his dear wife on her first holy pilgrimage. In later years, he built a separate prayer room, adjoining his house, where he spent many an hour in spiritual communion with Allah.

Hussain was laid to rest on August 9, 2010, as the sun was setting and the shadows of the adjoining buildings began to lengthen on the Kohilawatte Muslim Burial grounds, by the banks of the Kelani River.

A dear friend said: “It was a very well attended funeral, and the sermon reflected the high esteem in which your brother was held by the local community.”

Goodbye, Hussain. May your path to joining the Creator be free of obstacles, and in the fullness of time may Allah grant you the Bliss of Jinnathul Firdouse, which you so richly deserve.

Branu Rahim
===========

Comment: I have known both Branu and his late brother Hussain since the ole school days at Royal, The Malay Club and even thereafter, for almost 5 decades. The memories of the years gobe by will never fade away. May Hussain enjoy the music, birds and ripples, on the other side.

Fazli Sameer / Riyadh
Aug 15 2010

CIGunasekera

2010-07-29T11:42:00.003+05:30

Former All Ceylon Cricketer Conroy Ievers Gunasekara, better known as C.I Gunasekara, passed away today. He played first-class cricket prior to Sri Lanka being granted Test status.

Born on July 14, 1920, Gunasekara was educated at Royal College Colombo where he played in the Royal-Thomian encounter, starting from 1938.

He started playing cricket for the Sinhalese Sports Club under the captaincy of Fredrick C. de Saram. Thereafter Gunesekara went on to play for the Ceylon team and captained it. During his time playing for Sri Lanka, Gunasekara had many remarakable knocks including a double hundred against Pakistan.

He also represented the Commonwealth scoring a hundred in the match England vs. Commonwealth batting alongside Australian great Keith Miller. Up till the 1980s he played for the SSC.
http://www.dailymirror.lk/index.php/sports/cricket/5429-ci-gunasekara-no-more.html

Daily Mirror Thu July 28 2010

Kataya

2010-05-29T11:48:00.002+05:30

The E.C. Gunasekera Inaugural Memorial Oration
at the NAVARANGAHALA, Sri Lanka, June 2000
by Lalanath De Silva, LLM

If I were asked to pick out one personality from my days at Royal College - I would have no hesitation in naming Mr. E. C. Gunasekera. He occupies a very special place in my memory of College days. We all called him kataya (behind his back of course). So did all those who went before and after us! How and why that nickname came to be coined for him is a great mystery. I have gone to great lengths to discover its history, but failed miserably. The explanations are as numerous and diverse as those who offer them.

My earliest recollections of him are dark and foreboding - a thin tall man with a cane who walked round the school using it freely on those who fell short of his expectations. A man with a fiery straight face and peering, piercing eyes - a quick gait and alert ears - agile and commanding. Like the roar of approaching monsoon rains, deafening silence preceded his daily walk through the school. Each class he passed was filled with beaver-like, frightened and worried looking students. Unfortunately, most students perhaps left the college with that impression and years later moulded themselves likewise - never really having seen the man beneath the rough exterior. Others looked upon his corporal punishment gratefully, acknowledging that they were the better for it. For a few, the hatred and dark impressions never left their hearts.

But then, I asked myself, why is it that old boys of the College have gathered together to commemorate Mr. E.C. Gunasekera? Obviously, there was something special in the man and a multitude of old boys seem to recognize this fact. Given my own experience with Mr. Gunasekera, I was perhaps, one of the least qualified to deliver this inaugural oration. While in College I had twice challenged his authority as a Prefect and there were other old boys who had a much closer relationship with him. However, I accepted with a deep sense of humility.

I have a deep respect for the man. He was honest, hard working, forthright, courageous, disciplined and to quote from Shakespeare's Othello, full of 'the milk of human kindness'. In these aspects he resembled my father and I had a great admiration for him. I had the privilege of experiencing his kindness first as a student and then as a prefect. Perhaps, this is my qualification to deliver this oration tonight - a qualification, which many others will share with me. In this sense I can make bold to say, that I am one of many and perhaps will speak like the many.

As I said earlier, my earliest recollections of Mr. Gunasekera were negative. I received two strokes on my posterior with his cane for failing to name my fellow students who had shouted "kataya" as he passed. The whole class of 40 stood on our chairs as he went round the class caning each student, one by one. The student in front of me had long hair. After caning him, he was asked why he had not cut it short. With great trepidation my friend lifted the lock of hair on his left side and showed Mr. Gunasekera a deformed ear that was well hidden by the long hair. Mr. Gunasekera's embarrassment was manifest - he left the boy alone and moved on with his task. Long hair may be justified but failure to bear testimony against offenders and harboring them was unforgivable.

My own impressions began to change when I was in the tenth grade preparing to sit my 'O' levels. The school bell had corroded and fallen off its post! The substitute bell could hardly be heard around the school - certainly not in my class located near the pool. We all followed "the herd" when school closed - the underlying assumption being that someone at the head must surely have heard the bell. Unfortunately, all it took was someone mischievous to lead and the rest to follow. One such day as I scurried down the corridor with a dozen other boys dreaming of lunch at home, we were stopped in our tracks by a familiar voice. "Get back here and stand at the back of the class". Mr. Gunasekera had ventured into a class where the teacher was absent and was taking one of his improvised lessons when we had run past it!

He was teaching the boys the meaning of "geography". "Geo means earth" he said and "graph means to draw". My mind was on the punishment that would ensue - for it had then struck me that the bell had not yet been rung! Soon the bell rang and the class was dismissed. Cane in hand he approached. "Why did you run away before school was over?" He asked the first in line. The boy received two strokes for responding with silence. Two others followed suit. I was the fourth in line. When questioned, I summoned up all my courage and said, "Sir, I cannot hear the new bell in my class - I left since all the others did - I actually thought school was over - I am sorry". I closed my eyes and braced myself for the sting. It never came and instead I heard his voice. "All right" it said, "that's a good explanation... you can go"! I did not wait to see what happened to the others.

For the first time it dawned on me that one could actually defend one's actions with Mr. Gunasekera and that he was prepared to consider it and accept it if reasonable. He did ask me my name on that occasion and never ever forgot it during the rest of my stay in school or thereafter. I had two further experiences with him while I was a Prefect. As Prefects we had the privilege of working closely with him - planning the Prefects' duty rosters for the Royal-Thomian and Bradby Shield matches and discussing day to day discipline.

The first occurred within a couple of months of my appointment as a Prefect. Our Head Prefect had decreed that the inner room attached to the Prefects' room was sacrosanct and that it was only for the "senior" Prefects. All complied for awhile, but soon a few of us led a rebellion and "nationalized" the inner room - entering and remaining within it and putting up a poster to that effect! Our Head Prefect was horrified but calmly summoned an emergency Prefects' meeting. What we did not know was that he had arranged with Mr. Gunasekera to grace the occasion half way through the meeting.

The meeting commenced and proceeded with fiery force - after all there were no less than half a dozen English and Sinhala debaters in there, not counting the gallery remarks coming from cricketers, ruggerites and hostel prefects. The argument centered on the "authority" of the Head Prefect to reserve rooms for a few and whether there was in fact a class of prefects called "senior" prefects. Suddenly there was a knock on the door - someone opened it angrily - and in the doorway was a stern looking Mr. Gunasekera. We all rose as he entered and took his seat next to the Head Prefect at the head table. "Carry on" he said looking round at some of us who appeared flustered. The Head Prefect slowly got the meeting going again. One of my fellow-prefects continued explaining his point of view.

Mr. Gunasekera's presence was unexpected and it became clear to me that it had been carefully "arranged". Something had to be done to counter this move - some show of resistance to this act was called for. Again, I took courage and rose to a point of order. "Mr. Chairman" I said, "I would like to know who is chairing this meeting, is it you or is it our vice-principal?" There was a deathly silence - I seemed to have been guilty of heresy. The Head Prefect conferred briefly with Mr. Gunasekera and responded. "I am presiding at this meeting" he said "but Mr. Gunasekera can intervene at any time as the Vice-Principal". I stood my ground. The fat was in the fire and there was no turning back. Two others joined my motion. "Sir" I said, "There cannot be two chairmen at a meeting - the rules of meetings that I know don't allow this - I must know who presides at this meeting". The response of the Head Prefect was the same.

Mr. Gunasekera was growing impatient and then suddenly tapped the table with force. "Stand up de Silva, stand up... all of you have challenged my authority and you will withdraw what you said and apologise" he thundered. My colleague who seconded my point of order followed the prudent course and tendered amends. He was warned never to repeat the offence. I was the last in line - I reconciled myself for expulsion or suspension and said "Sir, I refuse to apologise - I have committed no wrong". "What do you mean?" asked Mr. Gunasekera. "Sir, the reason I raised this point of order is because I believe that it is the duty of the Head Prefect to vacate the chair in deference to you and to invite you to preside at this meeting". "The rules of meetings call for one presiding officer Sir, and when you are present at a Prefects' meeting it is you, and you alone who must preside."
There was a painful silence as Mr. Gunasekera contemplated my answer - he never took his eyes off me all that while. I stood frozen expecting the worst. Finally he said "de Silva, knowing the constitutional pundit that you are, I will accept you explanation - I am presiding over this meeting from now". I sat down in a cold sweat, relieved. The meeting continued and we were duly chided for our rebellion, but the inner room was opened to all and we ended up with tea at Mr. Gunasekera's expense!

The final incident I wish to share with you was at the end of my tenure as a Prefect and on the eve of my leaving school. It was almost the end of term - a time when Prefects climbed the roof of the main hall to write their names into history. The all-important Prefects' photograph had been arranged. I was full of the nationalist spirit. I asked Mr. Gunasekera if I could stand for the photograph in national dress. He declined saying that the Prefects' uniform was white coat, College tie and white trousers. A rule was a rule and must be complied with.

I went back to the Prefects' room and did some research. On the wall was an earlier Prefects' photograph with Philip Gunawardene or one of his sons in national dress. I was elated that I had found a precedent that I could cite in my favour. I thought that Mr. Gunasekera's commendation of my premature knowledge of the law would hold well again. I took the photograph off the wall and evidence in hand met Mr. Gunasekera in his office. "Sir" I said, "I have found a precedent for the national dress in the Prefects' photograph - Should I not have the benefit of that precedent?". He took the photograph from me and looked at it carefully with a smile. "You never give up do you?" he said after thinking awhile, "de Silva, a precedent remains a precedent, it never becomes the rule" he said declining my request.

I was disappointed and disagreed with his decision. I asked for permission to appeal to the Principal Mr. L. D. H. Peiris. Mr. Gunasekera said "yes you may appeal to the Principal, he is my head and can over-rule me." So I went to the Principal and made my request to him informing him honestly that Mr. Gunasekera had refused it. Mr. Peiris looked at me curiously and in his deep voice said "No...no...you cannot come in national dress". That was the end of my appeal. I then asked the Principal if he would allow me to stand out of the photograph altogether if I could not wear the national dress. He permitted me to do so. Five years after I left College and had begun to practice the law, I was privileged to have Mr. Peiris as my client in his father's testamentary case!

On hearing this last ruling, Mr. Gunasekera said to me "de Silva that is not an option I would have given you - but he is our Principal and has the last say". So it is thus that in the 1978 Prefects' photograph, I am 'absent'.
In all of these experiences, Mr. Gunasekera appeared to me as a person willing to give a fair hearing and ready to be convinced on a matter with which he had disagreed. On many occasions he revealed a kind-hearted personality, full of simplicity and honesty. On many occasions I have spent time discussing controversial issues with him in his office. Every time I came out edified by the discussion and often educated as well. When I left Royal College in 1978 and joined the Law College, he had given me the confidence I needed to study the law. Although my desire was to become a professional musician, he had advised me to follow career in law.

Given my experience with Mr. Gunasekera, I would like to use the rest of this oration to raise some current social issues with you - issues which I am sure would have been the subject of discussion with Mr. Gunasekera had we been in College now. Over the past two decades, our nation has been in a state of war. Since 1971, from the time I was an adolescent, this nation has been governed under emergency regulations most of the time. My father served in the Prisons Department and I have lived through these periods cohabiting with arms and ammunition, hearing the cries of parents over dead or missing children and seeing the misery of the refugees of violence. I have also experienced the great fear and anxiety that comes from having a parent in a public service that requires risk of life and limb. My generation and those that came after, are children of violence and war. What is our hope and what is our future? Is there hope and is there a future for our children?

We were often taught in school about the greatness of the civilization of our forefathers - the great irrigation based civilizations of Ruhuna, and Raja Rata. When we look at these civilizations and the great Veheras and tank systems built by our ancestors over two millennia ago we marvel at their achievements. However, when I look today at our society and our people, I wonder whether it was people like us who created these wonders? Were they different? History teaches us that such civilizations were built in situations where society could be organized and disciplined. Often there was a natural catalyst like scarce water resources. If that were so, were our forefathers far more disciplined and organized than we are? If not, why do we not have great achievements to show in our own time - achievements that we can claim as our own - achievements that are indigenous and not with foreign support - achievements that are "great", in the same tenor, as those of our ancient forefathers?

In the middle of the last century Sri Lanka had a higher Gross National product than Singapore. We were seen as a "model developing nation". Today we have been reduced to a nation at war with its own people - with no solution in sight and with 25 per cent of our national budget being diverted to arms and ammunition and the maintenance of the war machine. The arms dealers are the direct beneficiaries of this war, while most of its victims are innocent civilians who crave to live a normal life with security and hope for their children. We cannot also forget the lives lost on both sides and the legion of differently-abled persons that the war produces - all of them an ensuing responsibility and added cost to society. Yet there are politicians who preach the gospel of ethnicity.

As a person associated with the performing arts, I have witnessed the rising tide of dramatic and other creations that seek to mirror our society and through this art raise issues of conscience. Several films have been made that have the same objective. Political and social groups have been mobilizing with a call for peace. Despite these efforts the tide has not yet changed. The peace lobby has not yet gathered the force that is required to force and end to this war. Yet we all know that if we do not achieve peace quickly, this nation's chances of rising from the ashes will recede into darkness. It is only we as a people who can resolve to stop this violence and bloodshed and enter into an acceptable and visionary political solution.

Recently, we lost a great soldier and a great gentleman - both old Royalists - Major General Percy Fernando and Hon. C. V. Gooneratne. Royal, like other schools has sacrificed many young men in this war. Each such sacrifice brings with it a catastrophe - widows and orphaned children. The tales of this war are never ending - of dead lovers and husbands and children and fathers - of maimed men having to be rehabilitated - of women and children killed in retaliation or crossfire. How many more must die before we say "enough is enough". That thought-provoking lyric by Bob Dylon, so relevant to our times, comes to my mind. I quote-

"How many times must the cannon balls fire,
Before they are forever banned?
How many years must one person have,
Before he can hear people cry?
And how many deaths will it take till to know,
That too many people have died?"

Some say the solution is with the militants. Others blame the government. But the fact is that the solution really lies with us as a people. It is we who carry the social conscience and it is our duty to bring this conscience to bear upon our leaders and the leaders of the militants.
But this oration is not about solutions to the war. Nor is it about social movements for peace. It is about discipline, that element which is axiomatic to development.
The other day I was approaching a railway crossing in my car. The gates closed and two lines of traffic formed on either side of the gates. Soon, a second line of traffic formed on the right side of the road on both sides of the gate. The train passed and the gates opened - the chaos that followed needs no explanation. Some Sri Lankans behind a wheel are like wound up toys - they will speed through narrow streets violating traffic rules, negligently and with no concern for pedestrians or other road users. Then having arrived at their destination they will laze about the rest of the day reading a newspaper, animated in gossip and shuffling their feet at work.

Is it not a national trait that when a project or persons is doing well that somebody must write anonymous letters and petitions to persons in authority? Is it not common practice that we take un- signed letters seriously - perhaps even more seriously than we take signed letters! Is it not a fact that our public service rarely responds to a letter from a citizen and hardly ever even acknowledges receipt of such a letter. Is it not a fact that members of the public who call at government offices are treated as if they were a "nuisance" rather than as persons rightfully entitled to be served? Corruption in government has reached such alarming proportions that nothing moves from one desk to another without a bribe.
Insufficient fiscal accountability of the government has become a matter of great public concern. The Public accounts committee in Parliament has been done away with and agencies take years to file annual reports and audited accounts in Parliament. Besides, a number of Government Agencies that are required by law to publicly notify (by Gazette) fees and charges for services rendered hardly ever do so. Such fees are changed (almost always upward) without any public notice or parliamentary approval and in a very arbitrary manner. Last year I took some of my friends from USA to the Horton Plains National Park. I was charged Rs. 20 and they were charged Rs. 800 each as entrance fees. At the Peradeniya Botanical Gardens I was charged Rs. 15 and they were charged Rs. 150.

On an examination of the Gazettes I found that the last approved fee was in 1973 designated as Rs. 1.50 for locals and Rs. 5 for non-residents for National Parks. The Botanical Gardens have not gazetted their charges though required by law. How could one agency of the government charge foreigners 3900 per cent more than local visitors, while another agency charged 900 per cent?

How many times have we stood in a line waiting for our turn, only to find that some other breaks the line either by force or by favour afforded by the officer at the counter. Another interesting feature of a Sri Lankan line is that the person behind must lean his/her body against yours, perhaps even push if not climb on your shoulder! There is no personal space between persons in a bus or other public area and certainly not in a line. Yet, when it is discussion or question time at a lecture delivered by an erudite person - hardly anyone will raise a controversial issue. We seem to recognise some inviolable "intellectual space" that defeats the very purpose of vigorous discourse, while being blind to the existence of any "physical space".

To oppose, question, raise controversial issues, argue or dissent is offensive - dealt with by social marginalisation. In Sri Lanka we call such people "saboteurs" and "extremists" while in the west they would be referred to by the sanitized term "activist" or "reformist"! In schools and even in our universities students have learnt to submissively copy out a note read by the teacher. They are never encouraged to research or analyse on their own and are certainly not challenged to "think on their feet". Nor, are they ever encouraged to question the teacher or raise and debate issues in class. Giving them reading material for completion before the next lesson is a vain exercise - a hard lesson that I learnt while lecturing in Building and Contract Law to Master's level students in Architecture, at the faculty of Architecture in the Moratuwa University.

The late Professor Mylvaganam, Professor of Physics at the University of Colombo (under whom I had a privilege of learning "A" Level Physics) speaking at a Convocation of that university articulated the pith, and substance of a good education as (a) the ability to retrieve information and (b) analytical skills. Any school or educational institution that fails to equip its students with these abilities fails in its mission. By this yardstick, the majority of our students both at secondary and tertiary level fail. The results of our education system are evident when we look around. We have achieved a high literacy rate, yet our students are slow to retrieve the necessary information and analyse and apply it to the problem at hand. We are literate but refuse to read - there are none so blind as those, who having eyes and yet refuse to see.

I have a theory as to why we as a people are so slow and never plan ahead. I think it has to do with the influence of the weather - and this I say not in jest but with all seriousness. In the temperate climes, there are seasons, spring, summer, autumn and winter. The seasons set a regular rhythm to life and in spring one must prepare and plan for the coming winter. In this module the psyche develops a "clock" that sets a pace and forces people to plan and work hard. In the tropical climes there are no seasons - it is sunshine time mostly or monsoon time for the rest. This natural pattern does not set a regular rhythm to life. Instead it brings uncertainty, for one never knows when the next cyclone, earth quake, volcano, tidal wave, flood or drought will come and sweep away what you have done. In this regime the psyche does not develop a "clock". Instead one begins to think that there is no point in storing-up or working hard - for tomorrow may take it away - and so we simply laze around waiting for the next disaster and enjoying the bounty of nature in the meanwhile.

The war and violence of our time has shaken the very foundations of our society. We were taught that Sri Lankans are a hospitable and caring people. We were proud of this image and indeed retain some of that for the visiting tourists. Despite this history, we have seen the brutality of rising organised crime and the pogrom of 1983 brought home the brutality with which we can treat our fellow citizens. When I was a child, I recall how people rushed into help someone who fell by the roadside. Today most people walk by with an uncaring and unconcerned air even when someone falls and calls for help. When there is an accident, it immediately becomes a spectacle to be watched and enjoyed! Something in our base instincts have begun to rise up to the surface - something that has for Millennia been kept in check by Buddhist and Hindu philosophy.

The war has added to our uncertainty. It has brought with it a sense that we must take what we can, when we can - a philosophy that has led to mass scale virulent corruption on the one hand and a total disregard for elements such as the environment on the other.

That uncertainty has also led to our loosing respect for the law and common decency. As we scramble, push and shove to get into buses and trains or for services at an official counter, survival of the fittest becomes our law. The weak, the handicapped, the children and the aged are swept aside to fend for themselves as best they can and as we go home with our prize, we only think of ourselves. All the great precepts that the great religions and philosophies have taught us are thrown to the winds only to be mouthed each morning in ritual chant. Some will even argue that in a time of war and uncertainty, concern for others is a luxury.

Our parents and we as a generation have much to be responsible and accountable for - we have sown the wind and reaped the whirlwind! We owe it to our children and progeny to set the record straight. While those in power try to do their duty to bring peace we as individuals have our contribution to make. In our day to day lives, we need to bring discipline to the fore - for it is through discipline at all levels that we can build renewed strength, hope, faith and love.

Are we truly the children of our great ancestors? Are we only genetically connected to them but far removed from their ways? Should we be proud of what they achieved or ashamed that we fall far short of their stature? All the descriptions of the achievement of our forefathers point to one conclusion - that they were a more disciplined people, at least during the times when the great tanks and dagobas were built.

We may be genetically connected to these great people, yet I wonder if our basic psyche widely differs from theirs. Today, we do not have the discipline or the work ethic that seems to have guided our ancestors. We have excluded their collective wisdom in many matters.

I am a lawyer and hope you will forgive my drawing upon a few examples from our legal heritage to illustrate my point. Today we have so readily capitulated to the Roman-Dutch and English law as the law applicable in many areas. The colonial powers jettisoned our indigenous law and legal systems five hundred years ago and it only survived in fragmented pieces in the Kandyan areas. Yet with advancing legal ideas and the new frontiers of science there are concepts embedded in our ancient legal heritage that we can and should draw upon.

A major legal debate rages on today about whether animals have legal rights and personality. In a landmark study made by Professor Christopher Stone argued that the law should recognise the legal personality and rights of inanimate natural objects and animals. Justice Douglas of the US Supreme Court in a leading case has cited Professor Christopher Stone's work and argued in a dissentient judgment that -
"Inanimate objects are sometimes parties in litigation. A ship has a legal personality, a fiction found useful for maritime purposes. The corporation sole - a creature of ecclesiastical law - is an acceptable adversary and large fortunes ride on its cases. The ordinary corporation is a "person" for purposes of the adjudicatory process,... So it should be as respects valleys, alpine meadows, rivers, lakes estuaries, beaches, ridges, groves of trees, swampland, or even air that feels the destructive pressures of modern technology and modern life... The river as plaintiff speaks for the ecological unit of life that is part of it."
Since then several judgements of US Courts have recognised the rights of animals to sue or to be sued in their own names.

Is the notion that animals also have rights and that they have an independent legal personality something modern and attributable to western thinking? A search of our own Buddhist literature shows that we have accorded an equal right to life and freedom for animals as we have for human beings. The Karaniya Metta Sutta states in the clearest terms that our loving kindness must extend to other creatures with whom we co-habit the earth and to future generations yet unborn.
Our legal history shows instances where the rights of animals have been recognised and enforced. The story of the Cow who rang the bell of justice at King Elara's palace in Anuradhapura to complain about the King's son who had killed her calf by driving his carriage, shows us that our legal system allowed access to justice for animals and recognised their own rights. The King is reported to have meted out just punishment even to his own son by having a carriage driven over him - a clear manifestation of equality before the law and of the rule of law. The ancient chronicles says it thus -

"At the head of his bed he had a bell hung up with a long rope so that those who desired a judgement at law might ring it. The king had only one son and one daughter. When once the son of the ruler was going in a cart to the Tissa-tank, he killed unintentionally a young calf lying on the road with the mother cow, by driving the wheel over its neck. The cow came and dragged at the bell in bitterness of heart; and the king caused his son's head to be severed (from his body) with that same wheel".

Justice A. R. B. Amerasinghe in his recent judgement on the Eppawala Phosphate case has likewise cited from our ancient chronicles and from research on our traditional land tenure systems and concluded that in our law" (T) the organs of State are guardians to whom the people have committed the care and preservation of the resources of the people". Again the notion of "sustainable development" - a buzz-word that appears to have emerged from the report of the World Commission on Environment headed by Gro-Harlem Brundtland and the earth summit of 1992, is not new to Sri Lanka. Our ancestor not only believed that resources must be harnessed for the benefit of man in an efficient manner but also in a way that furthered the welfare of our people.

The ancient chronicles, speaking of the rule of Parakramabahu the Great says thus -
"Truly in such a country not even a little water that comes from the rain must flow into the ocean without being made useful to man...For a life of enjoyment of what one possesses, without having cared for the welfare of the people, in no wise befits one like myself...What is there in the world that cannot be carried out by People of energy?....By such words the energetic one fired their energy."

In this passage is the pith and substance of "sustainable development" - that the state must harness natural resources in such a way that ensures the best interests of the people and their welfare. This passage has direct relevance to the subject of this oration as well - for in it is the idea of that great king, that we (Sri Lankans) could achieve anything in the world if we had "energy" - a statement that can uplift us in the current crisis that we face. What is this "energy" that the great king speaks of? Is it the energy of determination, of commitment, of discipline, of efficiency and of achievement and growth through a strong work ethic and vision that looks forward - not backward?

How else could our ancestors have erected the great Dagobas and built the great tanks and canals? Yet if we walk in our villages today and ask a farmer sitting under the shade of a tree in the noonday sun "how are you Sir? (Kohomada?", his response is likely to be "I am just waiting!" (Ohey Innawa!)" Lotus eaters" is what we are called and so aptly described by Alfred Lord Tennyson, for that is what we have become. We are really not the children of our great ancestors - we are still creatures of oppression - remnants of the colonial past - perhaps oppressed and demoralised by our own elected post-colonial governments.

Is it not time that we came of our own? Is it time that we began to have confidence in ourselves as a people? Was it not yesterday that we should have "energised" our social fabric and set ourselves a common new vision? Should we not stop looking back and instead look to the future? These and other such vital issues must be raised and discussed so that we may move ahead from where we are to where we wish to go.
Finally let me thank all of you for this patient hearing. As we leave the precincts of this hallowed College of ours, let us carry with us our respect for a great teacher - E. C. Gunasekera - a legend in his lifetime. Let us through that respect develop the discipline that we need in each of our lives to enrich society. Let us teach these values to our children and colleagues. Let us have hope and with faith pursue discipline and kindness.
July 13, 2000 Daily News
__________________________________________________________________________________
EC of Royal: discipline, distinction and devotion were his forte
by Siddiq Ghouse (Hussein Ghouse’s elder bro)

Reference to the Mr. E.C. Gunasekera Inauguration Memorial Oration 2000 delivered by Lalanath de Silva and reproduced in the Daily News under a very appropriate and fitting caption "People of Energy". I wish to echo the sentiments of the speaker and write that he is not alone when he says that "Mr. E.C. Gunasekera occupies a special place in my memory of College".

There are thousands upon thousands who share this view including myself. EC's relationship to us was very much fatherly in nature, strict disciplinarian, feared, highly respected, but loved dearly from the depth of the hearts of all Royalists privileged to be under his "domain".

The clarion call "EC on line" and pin drop silence prevailed and not a fragment of paper was visible in the corridors of the school, although he may have been several blocks away, the silence then only being broken by the clit clatter of his footsteps emanating from the sole of his spit and polished leather shoes. Discipline he did maintain in the school at every level, Distinctions he wanted all Royalists to obtain, and Devotion to the Alma Mater were his trio Prima Forte. Outside the precincts of the College a slightly different EC emerged an enthusiastic personality, friendly, broad smiling bubbling with warmth but still emitting the aura of discipline, distinction and devotion which he was renowned for and wished carried through at all times.
Royalists idolized and admired EC in the same vein within the red bricked walls of the College, or out in the wide open world. To be an authoritarian and still loved by students is difficult to achieve, but that was what EC accomplished through his possession of some strange dynamic magnetism.

As for the mystery that Lalanath de Silva refers to in his commemorative lecture, of the origin of the name "kattaya" coined by students to the late and great "EC" this celebrated teacher, and often used freely by his students but only in whispers, my understanding is as follows. Our late beloved teacher Mr. E. Christie Gunasekera had a habit of talking with his teeth clenched and (once again behind his back) the boys coined the name katay pus translated "earthen soil in the mouth". Through a period of time katay pus evolved into a shortened form ending up with kattaya. I say the above with all the due respect and in humbleness to my respected departed educator, who if alive today would undoubtedly have accepted this 'exposure' by me in the true Royal spirit which he was nurtured and nurtured us all in.
I recall an incident vividly in the early-sixties when Mr. E.C. Gunasekera was conducting our Biology class and I was caught red handed in the mischievous act of opening the gas tap in the lab, a common 'schoolboy prank' used in Royal by many for a "break" when a class reaches the point of boredom. Location of the opened tap among the several found in the lab is a bit of a tedious process and the hustle and bustle serves as a breather when the topic of the subject taught becomes a drag.
The punishment "EC" inflicted on me was that whenever he entered the Biology class, I was to position myself outside the class. I then figured that this was a once and for all discipline and took it in its stride, but when the sentence dragged on four days it prompted in me a fit of unexplained boldness, to complain to the then Vice-Principal Mr. Bogoda Premaratne of my plight, with the grievance that I was being handicapped in my studies by Mr. Gunasekera's enforcement of this continuous punishment. I took this brazen decision, confident that EC was never ever revengeful, and he had a silent admiration for counter-action if it was correctively motivated. The Vice Principal also a renowned and highly respected educationist gave me a note, firmly addressed to Mr. Gunasekera with instructions to take me back immediately to the class, and Mr. Gunasekera obliged with no hostile reaction being shown on his part.

My earlier assessment of EC's noble qualities which gave me confidence to "report" EC to the Deputy Head proved correct, as his subsequent attitude to me was never vent with any anger, nor did he harbour a grudge against me for my audacious act of reporting him to the vice principal.

Tendering an apology to EC for this act which I explained was executed through desperation, and was also to avoid further chastisement if the news of my punishment reached my father, the reaction from EC the great gent he was, was a winsome smile emanating from the corner of his mouth, a nod, his usual sign of a hidden appreciation of my move. He then spelled out with a remark in his own inimitable style, "Ghouse, I admire your resistance and your guts to report me." Knowing Mr. Gunasekera I knew this statement emanated from the bottom of his heart, and did not carry any malice or sarcasm with it.

In those carefree schoolboy days traveling on the footboard of the College schoolbus, a then rejected red double-decker from London Transport was what we reveled in, especially those students who lived in Colombo South. When the bus, usually packed to capacity took a deep angular turn in to Bullers Road from Bambalapitiya Junction on its last stretch to Royal, we merry making students on the footboard, (labeled by others as "Footboard Incorporated") on many an occasion had to directly confront EC as the bus usually executed the bend in close proximity to the spot where he usually positioned himself waiting for his car lift to carry him to school.
He was always there immaculately decked in spotless white clothing, mirror polished shoes, and maroon or blue tie. To avoid exposure to his hawk eyed glances the "Footboarders" used to duck for cover, but being extremely gifted with sharpness of vision he noted from this vantage point, those few who dangerously performed this 'balancing' act on the footboard, and on many an occasion the "culprits" ended up with a detention after school coupled with several thousand lines of written agony, "I will not travel in the footboard in the future".

It so happened once, that the school bus jam-packed as usual took its routine turn into Bullers Road from the Galle Road at Bambalapitiya, while the monsoon rains with all its fury and gusty winds was beating down and poor EC was there at his usual rendezvous waiting for his car lift but getting the worst of it, drenched to his skin in spite of the battle he had carried on with his brolly to protect himself from the inclement weather. Observing this the "Footboard Incorporated" gang got into action and with a symphony of continuous ringing of the 'stop' bell the boys brought the red monster school bus to a halt right opposite EC.

They sympathetically hurriedly invited him to get aboard and due to the extreme nature of the weather and having not left with much room to think but only to act; EC obliged and mounted the footboard much to the thrill of the renowned "footboarders", who welcomed him with love and sympathy and clearly not with the intention of embarrassing him. With hardly breathing space in the bus the boys gave maximum leverage for EC to get into the belly region of the bus, but this exercise EC probably found was causing further embarrassment, and thereby his presence in their midst becoming more conspicuous, he opted to travel on the footboard along with the "footboarders" covering the short distance from Bullers Road intersection to Royal.

The talk of the College that particular day was that EC had traveled on the footboard of the College bus, an act which he usually loathed and student offenders had previously to face the consequences his wrath. But on that wet drenched day EC himself was the "guilty" one, driven by the compelling circumstances. Some of the noted "Footboarders Incorporated" who had been at his receiving end for their earlier actions, quickly took evasive action fearing that EC being 'one for a day' would have made a quick note of the "Footboarders" so they confronted him with a touch of humor saying, "Sir, Is it true you were seen traveling on the footboard today in the College bus"? The true gentleman he was he took it in light vein, and preferred to ignore the questionnaires and not reprimand them, since he too stood now in the "accused box" that day.

Thereafter believing in the saying, "Practice what you preach", EC then never ventured in punishing the members of "Footboard Incorporated" but left that task to other members of the staff. Many of the members of "Footboard Incorporated" have now climbed the higher echelons of society and hold high ranking and lucrative professional positions and postings in Sri Lanka and abroad.

Mr. Gunasekera was a schoolmaster par excellence and a gentleman to his fingertips. His remembrance of names of his past students is amazing and I recollect almost two decades after leaving College I crossed him at once again the Bambalapitiya junction, and with his razor edge memory he addressed me by name and recalled the incident when I "reported" him to the Vice Principal". The meeting of this tremendous but lovable disciplinarian, even as an old boy and after a lapse of period of time, still sent the shivers and shudders and uneasiness in me, a feeling that many a Royalist feels in his presence. He observed my state of feeling and quickly put me at ease with his oft repeated remark he used in College which came out from his teeth clenched mouth as if to reflect the past, "Stop fidgeting about, put yourself together", instantly throwing me back 20 years in time, the episode finally ending in both of us bursting out into amiable laughter and interlocking of hands in warmth embrace.

EC was an "icon", he left behind a legacy at Royal which will be difficult to emulate. We Royalists old and young should dip the Blue and Gold flag in his grateful memory, and then flutter it in the breeze as would always EC's wish be, taking a cue from the College song to "repay the debt we owed, and kept thy fame inviolate".

175 Years of Royal

2010-03-16T12:11:00.001+05:30

ROYAL COLLEGE 175TH ANNIVERSARY DINNER.-
TOAST TO THE SISTER COLLEGES.
PROPOSED BY S. SKANDAKUMAR
(6TH MARCH 2010,CINNAMON GRAND OAK ROOM)

Hon Minister, past and present Principals of our revered institution, our eminent guests of honour, the Principal of Ladies College and Warden of St Thomas College, distinguished fellow Royalists and their equally distinguished spouses,
I consider it a great privilege indeed to have been invited this evening, to propose a toast to two outstanding schools rich in shared and values ,and for whom we Royalists have the greatest respect and admiration .

Warden Sir, I know that you must be aware of the fierceness of the rivalry that exists between our two institutions on the playing fields and on cricket grounds in particular.You will have your first experience of it in the coming week. That rivalry, has over the years, given rise to some of the strongest bonds of friendship between Royalists and Thomians; an excellent reflection on the quality of our mutual education. As for Ladies College, Madam Nirmali, it will be sufficient if I said that successive generations of Royalists have had nothing but love for your wonderful girls. And you too are in that category today.

It would not be inappropriate on an occasion of this nature, for one to reflect briefly on his own school career and I would like to share with you, three incidents for their diverse nature.

The first concerns a Teacher, who took was quick to use the cane, no matter how trivial the mischief may have been. He had a curious way of doing it in that, he would get the student to kiss the wall with his nose while raising both arms to the maximum. His theory was obvious; more taut the body, greater the sting.!
Once his deed was done he would turn calmly to the black board and write the following line. “A life without pain, is like being on a road that’s going nowhere.”
The second was a much loved senior Teacher, who with the passage of time, found it increasingly difficult to stay awake in the first twenty minutes or so in the period immediately following the lunch interval. So on arrival for a class in applied mathematics, he would instruct us to turn to a page of his choice in Humphreys text book on Dynamics, and attend to the sums on it. He would then take off his spotlessly white coat, place it on the back of his chair and rest his weary head between his arms on top of his desk, to surface 20 minutes later. On one particular day, he woke up ahead of time and decided to walk round the class. At the back end he found one of the students to whom math was a never ending mystery, deeply engrossed in a magazine depicting ladies of easy virtue, in their natural splendor. In confiscating the magazine he said to the boy, “Young man, you are rotten, even before you are ripe:” The incident went no further. That was Royal.

The third applied to a form master who was a passionate admirer of that great American President Abraham Lincoln. So intense was his admiration that he was even nicknamed Lincoln!! Two things that he quoted remained etched in my mind for the hope and confidence they inspired in me. They were from Lincoln’s letter to his son’s teacher, when he decided to send the boy to school. ‘Teach him” he wrote, ‘that for every scoundrel, there is a hero……. Teach him also that for every corrupt politician there will be a statesman.’ Fortunately, in the ensuing years, we were also taught the fine art of a waiting game called eternal patience!! Looking at the erosion of values in the world around us, I have in recent times, asked myself questions which would have crossed your minds as well. Why did Wall Street, which supposedly had some of the finest brains emerging from the best Universities and Management colleges of the world, collapse as it did?

Why is it that governments in many parts of the world have the painful task of combating, their own citizens, to resolve internal conflicts? And, why is the United Nations looking as if it is heading for a re-classification as the Divided Nations?
I have tried to look for the answers in the time tested values that our three schools have upheld from inception.

On my first day at school I was made to realize that I was a Ceylonese, as an equal citizen of a beautiful and happy nation called Ceylon. While still knee high to our Teachers, we were taught to distinguish between Right and Wrong. Here I would like to quote an eminent Queens Counsel who hailed from an equally reputed school in the hills , who said ‘In the field of justice and fairplay, right is right, and wrong is wrong. The two can never meet. To compromise the two takes an elastic conscience. Such men should be shunned for they are the bane of society.’ Thereafter we were encouraged to emulate the strong, but reminded to protect the marginalized and the weak. The next was an important lesson on Leadership directed at Class Monitors, School Prefects, Captains of Games, Heads of the Cadet Corps and Literary Associations, Interact Clubs etc. who were made to realize that every right implied a responsibility. We learnt leadership required exemplary conduct and its success was synonymous with a golden word… Accountability. Greater the authority, greater then was the accountability.

Earlier this week, I made a nostalgic visit to our assembly hall, and let the memories of the solemn Friday morning assemblies roll by. My eyes swept the portraits of all our distinguished scholars. You too, Warden Sir, and Madam Principal, have preserved similar halls of fame in your respective schools. Those outstanding men and women are remembered even today, for two reasons; their intellect and their integrity and, through them we learnt another important lesson for life, the priceless value of honesty. Finally, we were taught to be gracious in defeat and humble in victory.

It is not a mere coincidence then, that our first lesson was one of equality and the last on humility. In our temporary stay on earth we have paid our respects to those who have moved on before us, and heard the familiar line at the funeral services, ‘Death humbles us all because in death we are all equal ’’ . I have therefore asked myself the question, Why then don’t we use our God given intelligence, and prepare ourselves better for that eventuality, by practicing equality and humilty in Life, rather than wait for death to impose it upon us? Yes Ladies and gentlemen, The illiterate of the future will not be those who cannot read or write; they will be the educated who simply will not learn.

On the opposite side of humility stands man’s ego. While some degree of it is not only desirable, but even essential, an ego out of control could be as dangerous as the weapons of mass destruction that only the egos of George Bush and Tony Blair were able locate in Iraq . It was the same ego out of control that led Tiger Woods to believe that his right to improve on his handicap over 18 holes extended beyond the boundaries of a golf course! So, if only our time tested values can find universal application, to be discharged with common sense and one’s conscience, humanity may well see a heaven on earth !

Ladies and Gentlemen, May I ask you please to rise and drink a toast to two outstanding institutions with whom we have shared precious values and traditions. May they all be upheld inflexibly in the future as well, so that St Thomas College Mt Lavinia, and Ladies College Colombo can continue to produce for our country, as they have in the past, the men and women who can make the difference. TO ST THOMAS AND LADIES COLLEGE….Thank You ”

Priyanath Dias Moves On

2009-12-26T14:21:00.003+05:30

Priyanath Dias of the '59 Group passed away in his sleep on Dec 25, 2009. He had attended the '59 Group 50 year anniversary celebrations held at the Galadari Meridian Hotel in Colomnbo on Dec 20, 2007, where 80 members with trheir families had gathered.
Funeral will be held on Sunday Dec 27, 2009 at Panadura.
"Dias Villa", Panadura

May He Rest in Peace!

RC OBU AGM Australia 2009

2009-10-03T22:33:00.001+05:30

A Toast to our Teachers by Branu Rahim

Good evening Gentlemen…..I am honoured to stand before you this evening to share with you my reminiscence of my school days of more than half a century ago, and speak of those giants among teachers who instilled in us to, “learn of books, learn of men and learn to play the game.”

If I am to be honest, I am not very sure whether these great gentlemen and sprinkling of lady teachers during my time at Royal College from 1958 to 1966 succeeded in making me “learn of books”, but I am pretty certain some of them did inspire me to “learn to play the game.”

As I look around this evening, it is with a warm and pleasant feeling, knowing that I am among friends, many of whom I have known for quite some time from the days back in Sri Lanka and also some who have become friends more recently when I enjoyed your hospitality in 2002, when the champion Royal rugby team came on tour to Melbourne with me as its manager.

Going down memory lane, the very first picture before my eyes is my first day at Royal College in January 1958. I remember being one of 140 students, marched into the college hall for our induction. Inside, I looked around with awe at all the prize panels adorning the walls and wondered whether someday my name too would be on one!

Even though the prize panels did elude me, I rest quite satisfied in that I did leave behind a lasting impression, having carved my name on the desks in successive classrooms I passed through. I believe, I was one of those fortunate souls who managed to hang in there by the skin of my teeth and came out somewhat unscathed – getting suspended but not sacked.

My master in the first form was Captain M K J Cantlay, a towering figure who stood close to 6 feet in height. His favorite pastime, besides teaching us English was, story telling. Unfortunately his story telling skills did not go down too well with those of us who thought that the path to being a good student was to be seated in the front row.

This was because when Canto narrated his stories, he would get all excited and the intensity of his tone increased with the level of excitement, and the level of excitement would be directly proportional to the spraaay of saliva that he would shower on those in the front row!

A separate room with a globe suspended from the ceiling and various maps on the wall was where we had our geography lessons. The master was Mr. S A A Perera fondly referred to as SAAPEY.

One day, a classmate, Upali de Silva had bought some gram from Kadalay and had it in his pocket when he walked in for the geography lesson. Whenever Saapey turned his back to us to write something on the blackboard, Upali would put a handful of gram in his mouth and keep munching.

But on one such occasion Upali did get caught and Saapey said, “de Silva, come and leave what you are eating on the table”. Upali graciously obeyed and pulled out all the gram from his pocket and put it on the table.

However, in Upali’s young 11-year old mind, he was convinced that Saapey confiscated the gram so that he could eat it later. When the bell rang to end the period, Upali quietly walked upto Saapey and said, “Sir, I bought the gram, shall we go half, half” ……without batting an eyelid, Saapey brought the duster in his hand across Upali’s face and he bolted towards the bathroom with his head covered in chalk dust.

A year rolled by and we moved on to the second form where our class master was Mr. Sabaratnam, better known as half-soda because of his height. This nick-name came about in relation to the half-sized bottle of Elephant House soda being marketed at the time. It was therefore natural that his two sons, who also attended college were referred to as quarter-soda and one-eighth soda!!!

This was also the year when a new master by the name of Mr Justin de Silva made his way into Royal. Although he was designated as our English Literature master, more than half of the 40-minute period would be taken up in discussing the 16th President of the United States of America, Abraham Lincoln, whom he hero-worshipped, earning him the nickname Lincoln.

Although English Lit and I were poles apart, I learnt of clichés such as, “From a Log Cabin to the White House”, and also the concluding part of the famous Gettysberg address which concluded with “government of the people, by the people and for the people shall not perish from this earth”. It would be apt in today’s context, if our politicians are able to grasp the essence of such statements in their quest for good governance.

Another master who was a character unto himself was Mr Rupasinghe whose nickname was Rupperty. He was our science master who conducted his class in the Science lab close to the armoury. On a day I was not at school, having been excused for the Ramazan Festival, the last period had been science.

Rupperty had apparently left the class a little earlier than scheduled and while the boys were marking time till 3.40 pm for the last bell to ring, they decided to open all the gas taps in the lab before leaving.

The following morning the whole class was summoned to the science lab and were given a telling off by Rupperty who went on to say that had he walked into the lab and as was his usual routine lit a cigarette, it could have blown up the whole building!

At this moment, some unidentified voice from the back of the class muttered GROBR which roused Rupperty’s temper and he proceeded to give two thundering slaps to each member of the class.

When it came to my turn, he realized that I had not been there the previous day. “So… you were not here yesterday”. “Yes Sir” I responded whereupon, to my amazement, he went on to give me two resounding kannays as he had done to the others saying “you rascal, if you were in class yesterday, you would also have been part of it!”

An incident that is etched in my mind is when a new master had joined the tutorial staff of Royal. He had joined college on a Monday and on the Friday of that week he came to act for our regular math master who was absent that day. He told us to go through a certain chapter of our text book and went out of the class. As is usual, no one took much notice of his instructions and many of us were busily doing our own thing.

He had tip-toed back to the class and seeing that those in the first row were doing some work, he went to the second row where he observed that they were not carrying out his instructions, with some reading comics, “Lady Chatterley’s Lover” and one even venturing to read a book on SEX. Totally annoyed, he went to each one in this row and said, “You Naaver gat thru your GCE, You Naaver gat thru your GCE.”

Sadly, the following day, he had gone on a hunting expedition and was trampled to death by an elephant. The flip side is that all those to whom he had mentioned “You Naaver gat thru your GCE” N.a.a v.e.r did get through their GCE that year!

Another incident involved two of my classmates presently domiciled here in Melbourne. We were in class one day, when a new math master named Mr. Gulasekeram, who later came to be known as Thosai, came to take our class.

The first thing he did was go round the class asking for each ones name and when he came to my dear friend Dick’s desk, Dick said “P.D. Siebel” and the next student said, “J.D. Ebell”. The master thought that they were trying to play the fool and said “P D Sch.i.ebel, Ja D Ebell. Gat out of the class both of you. Out! Out!”. From that day onwards, whenever Thosai walked into the class he would say, “Schiebel, Ebell out of the class”

Then there were other masters who were legends…. Mr. Ronald “Connor” Rajaratnam where the story goes that once when he was driving in the jungle and was chased by a beast of might, in order to avoid certain death he tricked the animal by signalling left and then turning right! Then there was his hunting story where he was left with just one bullet, and there was a leopard approaching him on the left and an elephant on the right. He stuck his hunting knife into the ground in front of the Rifle Barrel with the blade bisecting the lines of the path of two advancing beasts and fired, deflecting one half of the bullet onto the leopard and the other half onto the elephant! As this story was to illustrate how to bisect an angle, God help if anyone laughed or made any remarks.

There was also M/s E C “Kataya” Gunasekera, C. E. “Bundy” Belleth, “Sheriff of Fractured Jaw” Baldsing, “Mudguard” Sethukavalar, Moses Thambapillai, “Cow Pox” Abeysinghe, Lennie “Lena” de Silva, Bogoda “Vakutu P” Premaratne, “Thalaguli” Jinadasa, Viji “Ducky” Weerasinghe and L “Poltokka” Samaratne, among others, all legends in their time.

An event that drew many “Oouhs” and Aahs” was the advent of the first lady teacher into Royal in 1959. She was Mrs. Samarasekera, a comely lady in her late thirties. Despite having mothered two children, her anatomy was something many of our biology masters ogled at and would have dissected in their minds. In the classroom, all our eyes would be focussed on her firmly shaped breasts.
In hindsight, we associate favourite teachers with our youth – a time when life was vibrant and schedules seemed simpler. Those mentors who gave us understanding and advice after others had sometimes crushed our fragile egos, will always have a special place in our hearts.
The no-nonsense teachers who challenged us and, in the process, taught us the joy of learning, helped shape our careers and our success. By the same token, teachers do get an immense amount of pleasure from their students' successes.
It was they who paved the way for what we are now. A school life full of truancy, wit, humour and the many other hellishly naughty stuff that we did, endowed us with the attributes that has made us successful today.
As William Arthur Ward, the author of Fountains of Faith and one of America’s most quoted writers of inspirational maxims put it, “The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior Teacher demonstrates and The GREAT teacher inspires.” I believe we are a fortunate lot to have been put through our paces by teachers of the calibre of those who inspired. The fact that we have been able to survive through all the adversity of life is a testimony to the dedication of our Teachers.
Gentlemen of Royal…….please rise and join me in a toast to our teachers including our very first tutors who happen to be our dear parents.

TO OUR TEACHERS!

Group of 1949

2009-07-10T23:16:00.001+05:30

Royal College - Group of 49
by D. C. Sivapragasam – DN Thu July 2 2009

All parents clamour to get their children into Royal, but not all of them are lucky enough. Everyone thinks of other public schools as second best. Royal and S. Thomas' (Mt. Lavinia) are the most prestigious, like Eton and Harrow of England.

Royal College, Colombo

Royal was founded in 1835 by the then British Colonial Government, mainly for the education of the sons of the Britishers, under the Principalship of Dr. Barcroft Boake, a product of Oxford University. Though the school was initially called the Colombo Academy, it came to be known later as Royal College. On the panels of the College Hall are the names of those who distinguished themselves in the field of intellect.

Also, in the College Hall hang the portraits of those who rendered yeoman service to our country. Some amongst them are C. A. Lorenz KC, the Acting Queen's Advocate, Sir Ponnambalam Ramanathan Acting Attorney General and his brother Sir Ponnambalam Arunachalam of the Ceylon Civil Service, Dr. C. A. Hewavitharne and his sibling Anagarika Dharmapala. Of the Politicians of recent times were 2 Heads of State - Sir John Kotalawala and President J. R. Jayewardene, while H. Sri Nissanka Q.C., a well known criminal lawyer and one of the founders of the SLFP also adorns the Hall. Royal completes 175 years this year.

Products

Messrs D. S. Senanayake, Dudley Senanayake and S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike were distinguished products of the school known by Royalists as "the other school", namely, S. Thomas'.

About 60 years ago, 96 boys entered Royal College. They came to be called the 49 Group. According to statistics compiled, it is perhaps the best batch that Royal turned out in recent times.

It is said that 32 of them became medical doctors, most of them consultants, while 9 entered the legal profession, 2 of them becoming President's Counsel, 2 others becoming Judges of the Supreme Court, 3 entered the Ceylon Civil Service and 18 became Engineers.

It is estimated that about 60% of this Group became professionals, but while in school, each one of them fought for the last place in class! But when they commenced their respective disciplines, they shone over the products of other schools.
Some surgeons of the 49 Group are, Ranjit de Silva - who captained Royal at cricket, Priya Samarasinghe, Geoff Vanden Driesen, Gamini Goonethilake, S. R. Ratnapala, whilst some of the well known physicians are, Henry Rajaratnam, J. B. Pieris, Gamini Jayakuru, Brendon Gooneratne, the latter distinguishing himself in Australia. His wife, Yasmin Gooneratne, a Professor of English in Australia, has several publications to her credit. Another wife of a member of the 49 Group is Professor Lalitha Mendis, who reached the pinnacle of the medical profession. She was the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, and the Director of the Postgraduate Institute of Medicine. She is the wife of the late Dr. Lalith Mendis.

Professionals

The other physicians are, Danilo de Kretser, Tissa Cooray (WHO), N. T. de Silva (UK), H. S. Karunasekera (UK), Leslie Muthukuda (UK), Dan Perimpanayagam, Yasa Rajapakse (UK), Disampathy Subasinghe (UK), V. Dharmapalan (New Zealand), and the late R. S. B. Wickremasinghe - who was the Director of the MRI.

Of those who took to Law, are 2 well known President's Counsel Jayantha Gunasekera (former Secretary of the Bar Association) and Chula de Silva. Two other lawyers S. W. B. Wadugodapitiya and P. Edussuriya ended up as Judges of the Supreme Court, whilst A. Balachandran worked in the UN. T. K. N. Thilakan (District Judge) and Kumar Ponnambalam both died a few years ago. Alavi Mohamed, a Barrister also died recently, M. N. B. Pieris is a civil lawyer, in Colombo.

Harsha Wickremasinghe, D. G. P. Seneviratne and Dr. B. S. Wijeweera entered the prestigious Ceylon Civil Service.

Entreprenuers

Of the Engineers that come to mind are Professor C. L. V. Jayathilake (a Vice Chancellor of Peradeniya), Dr. Susantha Goonethilake, S. C. Amarasinghe (former GM of the Electricity Board), Dr. Sri Bhavan Sri Skandarajah, H. S. B. Abeysundara (Chemical Engineer), L. H. Meegama, C. Ramachandran and Bandula Yatawara.
Perhaps the cleverest of them all was Chelvanayagam Vaseeharan, a maths prodigy, who was to be appointed Professor of Mathematics.

In this class were 2 leading businessmen, namely the Cambridge educated Upali Wijewardene of the Upali Group, and Lal Jayasundera, Chairman of Hayleys, Ratna Sivaratnam headed another conglomerate - Aitken Spence, whilst K. Manikavasagar was a Director of Glaxo. Arjuna Hullugalle and Upatissa Attygalle are successful businessmen.

V. H. Nanayakkara and P. H. J. S. Ariyapala both Bachelors of Science, joined the Staff of Royal College. There was one member of the 49 Group who distinguished himself as a clever investigator in the Police Force. If he had not jointed the Police, surely he would have been on the side of the Law. That was none other than Rahula Silva. It is reported that he was charged in several cases of violence.
In all these cases he was successfully defended gratis, by his classmate Jayantha Gunasekera, a well known criminal lawyer.

There is the very talented artist/architect Laki Senanayake, a partner of Geoffrey Bawa, whilst A. A. Wijetunga and K. Sivapragasam became senior assessors in the Inland Revenue Dept. K. L. Gooneratne is a talented architect.
Late Bimal Padameperuma functioned as Chairman Engineering Corp and D. C. Wimalasena was Chairman, Petroleum Corporation.

T. D. S. A. Dissanayake, a prolific writer, first served in the UN. Later he was our Ambassador in Indonesia.

Domiciled

There were 2 members of this Group to whom life was a ball. They were Aru Sellamuttu and Ranjit Kiriella. Nimalasiri Fonseka, a bright spark in school, lives the life of a Squire in England.

Lionel Almeida and the late Tyrrel Muttiah took to planting, and were ruggerites. W. K. N. de Silva is a propriety planter. Bobby Perera, was one time Director of Quickshaws. Mahinda Gunasekera who is permanently domiciled in Canada does much for our country by countering false propaganda.

These classmates are a very close knit family, though half of them live overseas... The 49 Group, depleted as it is, gets together, definitely during the Royal-Thomian cricket encounter and the Bradly shield. Sometimes they meet more often, to welcome members coming home from abroad, for some reason or another.

It is at such gatherings that they reminisce about their schooldays, some wild and some even wilder. Only the pleasantest memories remain, and old yarns are told and retold, with salt and pepper added too.

Brotherly love

Masters then came to teach in full suit (coat and tie, mind you) and some driving their own cars. They instilled into this impressionable Group of youngsters all that Royal stood for; so much so that even today, they instinctively take the acceptable course of action in any matter. The feeling of brotherly love is strong in the 49 Group. A few years ago, with great emotion and bonhomie the 50th anniversary of the Group was celebrated for 3 days in a luxury hotel in the South. Almost all the members (from here and abroad) attended this occasion. On the last night of this grand get together, the College Song was sung lustily, with a tear in the eye. Apart from being top achievers in their respective disciplines, they had "Learnt of books and Learnt of men and learnt to play the Game."

Here's hoping that the 49 Group will meet for many more years, to reminisce and rejoice over a meal that cheers.

Island Thu July 2 2009

Rodney Clement Austen Vandergert

2009-07-10T22:56:00.002+05:30

Rodney Clement Austen Vandergert

Rodney, the ‘silent knight’ of the Sri Lanka Foreign Service has departed quietly into the sunset. He departed, the way he lived, with quiet dignity, without fanfare, fuss or bother…… in his own inimitable style. Rodney’s unexpected departure has left his family and friends engulfed in deep sorrow.

The sad news of Rodney’s demise reached me in the early hours of a cold morning in Geneva when my wife called me from hospital within minutes of his passing away. The initial shock and sense of disbelief gradually gave way to a flood of thoughts of Rodney and the happy times we spent together – a friendship spanning over 30 years. I was grappling with a range of emotions until the sun, I thought somewhat reluctantly, finally broke through the dark clouds hanging over Geneva valley. My mind went back to 1979; I had a few years before ventured out to start a career as an international lawyer in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Rodney returned that year to the Ministry after his tour of duty in New York, having worked under the late Shirley Amerasinghe, when Sri Lanka was basking in that “one brief shining moment of our own Camelot”.

We were the Chairman of the Law of the Sea Conference, the Non Aligned Movement and held the Presidency of the UN General Assembly. New York was the epicentre of Sri Lanka’s diplomatic initiatives. Rodney returned to Colombo with this rich experience behind him. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs too was undergoing radical change; a Ministry that had functioned directly under the Prime Minister since the dawn of Independence was now de-linked and was vested with a separate identity under a Foreign Minister. A new government had assumed office with an overwhelming mandate and a Ministry that had hitherto been insulated from domestic political forces was beginning to feel the impact of such forces. The economic environment was beginning to undergo radical change; a centrally-planned economy was giving way to a liberalized economy. These changes made it imperative that in the implementation of Sri Lanka’s foreign policy, the necessary changes were effected, transforming the traditional political diplomacy to an economic diplomacy. In a sense it was ‘the best of times’ and perhaps the ‘worst of times’. Certainly these were uncertain times.

A young officer embarking on a career in the Foreign Ministry needed the sure and steadying hand of an experienced mentor and a dependable colleague to guide him through this uncertain terrain. Rodney assumed duties as Legal Adviser and offered his hand of friendship and I clasped it firmly. It was the beginning of a close friendship which was to make a deep impact on my career. I shall always treasure pleasant memories of working together with Rodney in the Legal Division attending to the multitude of tasks then being assigned to us.

He was the true professional, looking into minute detail, be it a complex treaty issue on which advice was sought or a routine Diplomatic Note that was being drafted. (We always prepared thoroughly before attending any meeting!) I particularly remember accompanying Rodney to attend meetings of a Presidential Committee appointed to finalize Investment Promotion and Protection Agreements, a virgin territory then, in the immediate flush of economic liberalization. Rodney explained at length the complexities involved, which may not always have been to the liking of some who thought that the only guiding principle in attracting foreign investment should be the maxim ‘let the robber barons come,’ but they all listened to his point of view which was always well articulated and respected his views.

Rodney’s sense of professionalism, the ability to be a team player and work together with colleagues, both within the Ministry and outside, and to be above the fray of narrow turf battles, left a deep and lasting impression on me, and I am sure to others closely associated with him. I also enjoyed Rodney’s warm hospitality and company, on his postings abroad as Ambassador.

His first appointment was as High Commissioner to Ottawa. Rodney had arrived in Ottawa without the family initially, and was attending to all the work involved in presenting credentials. He looked into every detail, which was nothing unusual. I was on a UN scholarship in Montreal at the time and used to commute to Ottawa to spend the weekends with Rodney. Not leaving anything to chance, Rodney wanted to rehearse the credentials presentation ceremony the evening before and I stood in for the Governor General of Canada.

The next morning standing on the steps of the Ottawa Residence with Sri Lankan friends, we watched Rodney being driven to the Governor’s residence in horse carriage to begin another chapter in hislong career. Rodney’s next posting was to Moscow, at the time the capital of the Soviet Union. In the winter of 1989, I had the opportunity of visiting this great city about which I had heard so much and enjoying the hospitality of Rodney and Cheryl .What I did not know then, was that these were the last days of the mighty Soviet Union and that consequent to the Gorbachev policy of Perestroika and Glasnost, cracks were beginning to appear on this mighty edifice, which once looked so solid. Rodney took me through the usual landmarks, including the Kremlin Palace. He was particularly keen to walk me through the streets of Moscow to show me something extremely unusual then, perhaps taken for granted now. This was to get a sense of the spirit of re-awakening that was rapidly spreading among the people of Russia. I vividly recall the speech-makers, the soapbox orators in the street corners of Arabat, enjoying their new found sense of freedom, a phenomenon unthinkable in the pre-Gorbachev era. Rodney had been a keen observer of the sea change that was sweeping through Russian society and gave me a vivid description of the current political changes in Moscow. But whether Rodney or I could ever have anticipated the grand finale that was soon to follow – the collapse of the Soviet Union – is entirely another matter.

Rodney was also a godfather to the Sri Lankan student community in Moscow, always willing to give his ear and lend a helping hand to them. To these young people far away from their homes, in an alien environment, Rodney and his family was a great source of comfort.

Rodney’s final posting as Ambassador was to China in Beijing. My commitments at the time did not permit me to visit Rodney in this magnificent city, much to my regret. As Secretary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Rodney presided over, [with complete acceptance to the political leadership of the day,] the transition from the 17-year United National Party Administration to the People s Alliance Administration in 1994.

During this period, he forged a constructive working relationship with Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar, which greatly contributed to the efficient functioning of the Ministry. I recall vividly the late Lakshman Kadirgamar’s first visit to the Foreign Ministry, when I accompanied Rodney and Additional Secretary Jayantha Dhanapala to brief the new Foreign Minister. Rodney together with Jayantha gave a detailed briefing to the Minister on the many issues pending from the previous administration in order to identify priorities of the new administration. For me this was a classic expose of an orderly transition between governments and particularly in maintaining a bi-partisan foreign policy. Perhaps a lesser known fact is Rodney’s academic background.

In the mid 1950’s he obtained his Degree of Bachelor of Laws from the University of Ceylon having read for the degree as one of nine undergraduates of the Law Faculty of the University of Ceylon, which was at that time housed in Peradeniya. He joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1960. He completed his Advocates finals in the early 1970s and was admitted to the Bar.

Although he did not go into active practice, his abiding interest in the law, saw him completing his Masters in Law degree at NYU. While in Sri Lanka, Rodney responded to the call of the Law Faculty to serve as a visiting lecturer in International Law. He discharged this responsibility with the same degree of meticulousness that he displayed in the Foreign Ministry. It was in this capacity that he was appointed Supervisor of my doctoral thesis.

It is with a deep sense of gratitude that I recall the time he devoted to this task amidst his manifold duties in the Ministry. Rodney was the happiest when I was elected to serve on the International Law Commission in 2006 and he gave me every encouragement as I ventured down a new path on the eve of my retirement from the Public Service. During my career spanning 32 years in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I was fortunate to serve under several outstanding public servants. Among them, late W. T. Jayasinghe and Rodney Vandergert have left a deep impression on my career, with their dedication to duty, sense of integrity and high degree of professionalism. They both moved on within a short space of a month or more of each other and the personal sense of loss is immense. However the sense of values and commitment to principle they both inculcated in us, during their sojourn, gives me much comfort and courage.

Many who had the opportunity of bidding Rodney a final farewell speak of Rodney’s mortal remains with his usual smile, dressed in the navy blue suit, which had fate not intervened, he would have worn for daughter Niloufer’s wedding next month. I prefer to remember Rodney the way he was and the warm goodbye he bid me at his home, a few days before I left for Geneva, only a few weeks before he left us. We had enjoyed a good dinner and talked into the night, of men and matters, as we always did. These are the memories that will linger on……… (The

Sunday Time - 21/06/2009)
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RCA VANDERGERT

With the passing away of RCA Vandergert, another oak in the Foreign Service has fallen; and we are the poorer by it. Mr. Vandergert could be well described as a pioneer in this country’s diplomatic service having joined what was then a still fledgling Ceylon Overseas Service, in 1960.

To those of us like me who followed him in to the profession nearly 3 decades or so later, he exemplified old world charm, much of which had vanished by the time we arrived on the scene. Very generous to a fault, he insisted on us young cadets on the need to apply oneself with diligence and seriousness to work. He did not exhort by mere words alone but led by practice. Happily caught in the coils of work, he like many others of that generation considered working half a day on Saturday more as a norm than an exception. Spelling mistakes or even a missing comma were particularly revolting and none missed his eagle eye, they being marked three times over and circled for good measure! When a report did not embody all what was expected, it would be sent back pronto with a concisely written minute flowing off an extremely neat fist, listing how best it could be improved. But when one was good he never attempted to gild the lily and complimented the compiler – "Vandergert here" he would promptly say into the extension line "I say that brief on …… was excellent".

Once, so many years ago, in the course of drafting a speech, he sent off a young recruit to the British Council just to check on a particular comma in the "Rubaiyat" which was missing in his copy - devoured by silver fish. "Now, please ensure that you check it on Fitzgerald’s translation and no one else’s", he insisted upon the young man whose academic brilliance lay in a field far removed from literature. With such punctiliousness in the days before the arrival of the now ubiquitous personal computer, compiling reports and week-end briefs or even a letter became a challenge, specially for the hapless stenographer, with sometimes more than two drafts having to be typed all over again until the desired excellence was achieved! But the value of it all had to be experienced to be believed. Almost naturally, the striving for similar excellence by those who were fortunate to come under his tutelage was evident in their own work as they climbed the professional ladder in later years.

The gentleman was blessed with a fine mind and an innate capacity for grasping the subtleties of a complex situation. Perhaps this had its roots in a more than passing interest in the law - he did have an Ll.M, though he was never one to wear it on his sleeve. Rancour and envy he had none. By the late 80s and early 90s, Rodney Vandergert, John Gooneratne, Manel Abeysekera, Jayantha Dhanapala, Nihal Rodrigo, Alfred David, among others of that vintage, were in their prime, having completed a quarter century and more in the Foreign Service. The likes of Bernard Goonetilleke and Daneshan Casie Chitty were to reach that milestone shortly thereafter. Many of them had imbibed the "Peradeniya tradition", post Ludowyke, and all had drunk deeply into the Queen’s language, and often new recruits were treated to a colorful nugget here or a Shakesperian quote there. In such company, Rodney Vandergert would be in his element, whether at cracking a joke filled with pun or, in a serious mode, explaining the finer points of a political development unfolding in some part of the world. Listening to him and the others was an edifying experience, not merely for the points conveyed but for the particular idiosyncrasies with which they were expressed.

For a diplomat, Mr. Vandergert was rather uniquely attired – he cared less for the frills of a crisply ironed and creased shirt and trousers, but for all the simplicity, he was well turned out at all times. The only thing of any material value on him was an old stainless steel watch, the white dial of which had been browned by time. When told of Carl Muller’s description of "the elf-faced Vandergert" in a novel, he laughingly shot back "at least my schoolmate got a better description of me than even a photographer could".Frugality with government funds was a professional ideal and a personal passion, and even as Secretary Foreign Affairs he took time to fine comb any expenditure, ever questioning the need for something he thought could be avoided. At times he would take such exactitude to Gilbertian heights! But that was Rodney Vandergert.

Uniquely approachable and helpful for an official of his seniority, Mr. Vandergert was Mr. Simple at all times. He would deflate any pompous cadet’s ego by relating a story of how whilst on a posting to Islamabad as a young diplomat, he had to personally carry and even a feed a rare parakeet which was a gift from the government of Sri Lanka his High Commissioner was to handover to a Pakistani Zoo.

Then he would regale us with the story of how he had to sometimes take the weekly incoming diplomatic bag to the racecourse where he and his High Commissioner, a keen turfite, would discuss its contents as the boss lowered his gaze in between races! Rodney Vandergert served Sri Lanka with distinction in many overseas posts, capping off a remarkable career as High Commissioner to Canada, Ambassador to the Soviet Union and finally as Head of Mission in China. Endowed with excellent analytical skills, his usually long and cascading reports were a pleasure to read not only for their originality and depth but for their remarkable syntax and idiomatic expression.

His lifelong passion was books. We would often see him reading one while at lunch; usually a sandwich which he used to draw rather neatly from a little tiffin box. I distinctly remember him pouring over "Pride and Prejudice", with the intensity of a first timer. "I am still discovering it, even on reading it for a fourth time", he exclaimed. The best portion of a good man’s life are his little unremembered acts of kindness, and Mr. Vandergert had many. As the evening sun on May 5 dipped its rays over the Borella Cemetery and those present at the last goodbye slowly withdrew homeward into the enveloping darkness, surely one thought would have preoccupied them all: we had just laid to rest an honorable and simple man. Rodney Clement Austen Vandergert was indeed more than the sum of his parts.Farewell, Sir, and thank you for the memories.

(The Island - 07/06/2009)
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R.C.A. Vandergert - a tribute

Rodney Clement Austen Vandergert passed away on 4th May 2009. The lawyer, diplomat joined the Sri Lanka Foreign Service in 1961. During his formative days he functioned as Assistant Secretary, Deputy Director in various divisions of the Ministry of Defence & External Affairs and also in various capacities in Sri Lanka Missions abroad.

I came into contact with him towards the latter part of the seventies when he was the legal advisor to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It had been a pleasure to work under him as he had been a very humane person and a gentleman par excellence.

He left us in 1980 when he was appointed the High Commissioner to Canada and upon his return after a successful tour of duty; he held high positions in the Foreign Ministry such as Director United Nations & Multi Lateral Affairs Division, Director-General Political Affairs etc. He was elevated to the highest position in 1994 as Secretary to Ministry of Foreign Affairs which post he held in high esteem. He was only the second career diplomat who became the Permanent Secretary to the Foreign Affairs Ministry.

He always looked placid and relaxed even in tough problematic situations and his inspiring friendliness coupled with courtesy and patience won the hearts of all who worked with him. I never saw him in anger and never heard him speaking in an aggressive tone. I also can never forget his face which was always lit with smiles.

He was a devout Catholic who preached what he practised, discharged his duties without fear or favour, harbouring ill-will to none. The honesty and integrity of character, the devotion to duty, the simplicity in no small measure, earned the respect of all who came in contact with him.

May he rest in peace!

Rugby Greats of 1948

2009-07-05T20:42:00.000+05:30

The team that made history for Royal

by T. Varagunam (Chancellor, Eastern University), Daya Perera (Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner in Canada) Tony Anghie (Retired Army Officer), Daya Samarasinghe (Retired Physician), Ashy Cader (Retired Executive), Geoff Weinman (Retired Executive), Desmond van Twest (Retired Physician), Trevor Anghie (Retired Physician)

It was in the year 1948 when Royal had a general feeling of despair caused by the fact that for the four previous years it had lost to Trinity and was yet to win the Bradby Shield; the shield awarded in the name of its own principal. This four year drought combined with the fact that since the year 1920, it had won only three matches compared to Trinity’s 19 had sent Royal to the doldrums.

The prevailing gloom was compounded by the fact that in 1948 only one second year player was left in the team from the previous year - Ashroff Cader.

Royal faced the formidable task of having to train and pick another 14 new players for its forthcoming matches against Trinity. Moreover, Royal’s coach - C. O. Foenander, a past captain of the Royal team, was unwilling to continue. A new coach had to be found. This task fell on M. T. Thambapillai, the Master in Charge of Rugby, and our Principal J. C. A. Corea.

The new coach had to be an outstanding player; a man who not only knew the game and would teach it well to youngsters, but also provide that extra zest which was so vital for playing the game well by a team, whose predecessors had such a dismal record. They picked Sydney de Zoysa – a rigorous and disciplined coach with masterly tactics and strategies acquired from his experience in the Police Force.

At first practice, we gathered round the old tamarind tree in the school’s rugby grounds. Thambapillai, the most understanding of masters, rather than attempting a coaching session suggested we play a ‘chuckers’ match until our newly appointed coach arrived. Rugby boots were at that time a commodity in great demand. So, those with boots became forwards and those without hung around behind as backs who relieved themselves of the ball immediately they received it, purely as a measure of self preservation. After coach Sydney de Zoysa arrived there was no such laissez faire. It was blood and sweat. He constantly kept reminding us, in his loud stentorian voice, that rugby is a game of guts and he transferred the theme of our school motto- "Learn or Depart," to our training – "If you can’t get it right, B….. off." And there was Thambapillai encouraging us in his mellifluous monotonous voice with, "don’t worry boys, with more practice you will soon get it right." Though mild in his manners Thambapillai’s capacity to motivate the players was the key factor in building our team.

Compared to the scientific training methods of today, with video analyses and constructive feedback, our training tilted towards the brutal. Jumping individually to grab the ball in the lineouts (the practice of towering was non-existent in those years), pushing and turning in scrums, dribbling, falling on the ball, passing the ball in all its forms, including the dummies, place and drop kicking, tackling, running with the ball, catching the high ball and ’marking’; were all drilled to points of exhaustion. This rigorous training went on for about six months and it first paid off when we beat St. Peter’s under the glowering and threatening eyes of our coach and later drew with Zahira; these two being the other Colombo schools which played serious rugby at that time.

More intensive practice followed and a few days before the dreaded day of playing Trinity, Sydney de Zoysa announced the squad (see photograph) which was going to make history for Royal. After making the announcement, he mellowed down and promised us a "show and dinner" if we won the Bradby Shield.

Props:(1) A. E. Bartholomeuz* and (2) Bala Seevaratnam*
Hooker (3) T. Varagunam
Second Row: (4) Eustace Fonseka* and (5) G. Perinpanayagam*
Flankers (6) Geoff Weinman and (7) Daya Samarasinghe
No 8: (8) Ashroff Cader (Captain)
Scrum half (9) Daya Perera
Fly half (10) S. D. N. Hapugalle*
Centres (11) Tony Anghie and (12) D. Raymond*
Wingers (13) Desmond van Twest and (14) A. Gunawardene*
Full Back (15) Trevor Anghie *-unfortunately no longer with us; and also M. T.Thambapillai, Sidney de Zoysa and J. C. A. Corea.

We are writing this 60 years after these matches were played. We have tried faithfully to recollect the significant events. But as everyone knows, the passage of time does influence one’s perceptions. Hence, what we have written may not accurately depict the reality that had prevailed. However, we managed to dig out, from Tony Anghie’s archives, an article written by Thambapillai in a local newspaper in June 1993 and have used it as a reference. In it, he refers to the 1948 season as a "milestone in the history of Royal Rugger."

The first match was played at the Police grounds on Havelock Road with an old Trinitian - Harold van Royen of the Police refereeing. Our school mates, envisaging yet another defeat turned up in fewer numbers than in previous years. A handful of staunch old boys and some past players, a few parents, together with some interested members of the public with some press reporters, constituted a total of about 300 spectators. There were no cheer leaders; the majority consisting of ageing old boys who were a poor substitute for the perky young things that populate the matches of today.

The Trinity team, truly magnificent in their tri-coloured jerseys and led by Ajward Mohammed strutted confidently into the field under the watchful eyes of their coach Philip Buultjens.

Their confidence was so overwhelming that, had they been given the chance, they might have done the ‘Haka’ Maori war dance of the All Blacks team. We jogged into the field led by Ashroff Cader, cowed under the burden of previous defeats.

The match itself must have been one of the hardest fought schoolboy games played in Colombo that year and according to Thambpillai it was a "ding dong battle." Some aspects of the battle are etched in our minds.

In the first half of the game, the teams were evenly matched, play occurring equally in both halves of the grounds. Ashy Cader’s jumping prowess got the ball out for us from the line outs nine times out of 10. Desmond van Twest, our winger, who often ‘threw in’ the ball in the line outs has this to say of him; "Ashy was an all time line out forward par excellence and at a pinch, could even be relied to pot the ball between the uprights from all parts of the field." But somehow, in spite of Ashy’s performance, the ball rarely progressed beyond the mid three quarters.

The same was true with the scrums. We got the ball out many times more frequently than Trinity did. The aggregate weights of the forwards were roughly equal on both teams, but Daya Perera put in the ball at just the right shoving time and Varagunam, supported by Bala Seevaratnam and Arthur Bartholomeuz hooked the ball to our advantage much to the amazement of the Trinity team.

The few times Trinity got the ball out from the scrums, our wingers - the non stop tackling machine Daya Samarasinghe and the attacking/harassing and spoiling Geoff Weinman saw to it that it never got to the Trinity three quarter line. And if it did, our mid three quarter, David Raymond’s venomous tackling stopped it from reaching the wingers. We were close to Trinity’s five yard line on many occasions. On one such occasions, Geoff Weinman tried a drop kick and failed. On another, Daya Samarasinge coming out of the scrum, elegantly poached a ball being passed between Trinitythree quarters but was brought down by a heavy Trinity forward.

A few minutes before the half time whistle, and close to the corner flag, we had a scrum down for some minor infringement of the rules. When the ball came out on our side a desperate Trinity flanker in his earnestness fell foul of the rules and we were given a penalty. There was Philip Buultjens on the line cursing away probably at the referee but a glimmer of a smile must have appeared on his face when he noticed that the angle was impossibly close to the touch line. In the pin drop silence, Trevor Anghie with his tree trunk thighs and with a concentration never seen before, accurately sent the ball between the posts, clearing the cross bar by more than six feet. This was the turning moment in our morale which the 14 fresher’s and their captain needed so badly.

Our successes at pushing and keeping the ball in the scrum and waiting for the correct time to get it out was fantastic team work with Eustace Fonseka and Gnani Perinpanayagam giving the necessary shove from the second row bound by Ashy Cader functioning as lock. As play continued, Daya Perera did a splendid job, as only he could, of rallying and harnessing our forwards. He at the same time, undermined the confidence of the opposition pack in a good humored way by talking down their efforts and thus deflating their spirits. In the second half we continued to maintain our superior play.

In an attempt to overcome this situation, Mike Schokman from Trinity started his booming kicks to the touch line and Philip Buultjens from the touch lines kept shouting "Schockman for god’s sake keep the ball in play." Fortunately for Trinity, Mike did not hear him or ignored him and continued this practice, until close of play. Towards the end of the game, at a five yard scrum from our touchline, Tinity’s scrum half Senanayake managed to sneak through and score a try which they failed to convert. Trevor Anghie converted another penalty almost in front of the posts, but from almost the half line. The match ended to our advantage with scores at 6-3.

A fortnight later, we set out for Kandy to play the second leg in an old decrepit bus. On route, some of the team were planning to throw the rugger ball out of the bus at Pasyala to make a stop in the vicinity of the ‘cadju girls’. With a horrified expression on his face Thambapillai foiled the effort. On arrival in Kandy, we were first taken to the Bogambara grounds which to us looked like a mini lake with little islands of earth protruding at intervals.

To our horror, we were told, that was where the match was to be played. We were then taken to one of the Trinity College hostels and after a brief period of rest, were instructed to get into our rugby kits and walk down as a group to Bogambara.

The intensity of the support for Trinity was apparent all over the town, most amongst the shop keepers and vendors. On route, down the streets we sensed a mixture of emotions directed at us who were considered ‘foreigners’ to Kandy. We noted some awe in the public at seeing the team that had broken the invincible Trinitians in the first match. A few passersby added remarks of ridicule and added a haughty demeanour in an effort to belittle us in the hope that we would be disheartened. David Raymond, who had been a boarder the previous year at Trinity, when asked whether he had come up to watch the match confessed that he was in the Royal team and they broke down with raucous laughter. We walked down almost in silence and probably watched over by some seniors and Thambapillai. If they were not there, some of us may have given a few choice repartees to the uncalled for remarks from the ogling public on the streets.

The second match to us was like wallowing in a mud field. But according to Thambapillai "it was a memorable match. One of the finest games in the series," and he goes on to say "the slight rarity of the atmosphere in Kandy and being their home grounds, Trinity had a slight edge over Royal. They came down on the Royalists like Assyrians on the fold."

The wetness made the ball difficult to handle and play mainly depended on the scrums and mauls combined with dribbling and kicking. A few ‘knock ons’ tended to be ignored by the referee. Having noted our superiority in the scrums during the first leg, Trinity had developed its own strategies. They had changed their pack to a heavier one and had equipped their hooker with leather shin guards.

The apparently unintended kicks during the scrums fell painfully on the Royal forward’s bare shins. Retaliation was fruitless. During the first half of the game, emboldened by their home ground they did all the attacking; their hefty three quarters drawing their men and passing out to their sturdy wingers, but to no avail, because of Tony Anghie and David Raymond who according to Thambapillai "tackled their hearts out." One of these encounters happened at our five yard line. Tony Anghie, with two Trinitians in pursuit, fell on Trevor Anghie, who was trying to clear the ball. In the melee that followed, the ball rolled into the Royal goal with the two Trinitians and the Anghie brothers practically on top of it.

To Thambapillai, who was watching from the pavilion, "Tony Anghie appeared to have touched the ball a split second earlier than the Trinitian." However, this was not the perception of the referee, who was none other than our coach Sydney de Zoysa, and he gave the try to Trinity.

Although the conversion of the try failed, Trinity’s courage surged and they continued their attacking game to the thrill of the Kandy spectators. Just before the half time whistle, one of their sturdy wingers, practically transporting our light weight winger Desmond van Twest on his shoulders, went over the line; but that try was also not converted.

The second half started with Trinity leading 6-0 and a vision of the shining Bradby Shield continuing to remain in their Principal’s Office. We kicked off with Sydney de Zoysa’s ‘do or die’ exhortation, burning a hole in our minds. Oh boy, we went hell-bent in our tactics as we had never done before. We will let Thambapillai describe what happened; "Royal seemed to get their second wind and Trinity seemed a spent force. Royal won the line outs, thanks to Cader and the scrums and mauls due to Varagunam’s slick hooking. In one of the movements, Dennis Hapugalle, the fly half, receiving a neat snappy pass from scrum half Daya Perera and taking the ball on the run, sold a peach of dummy to vis-a-vis Schokman, drew the first inside and sent the ball to Raymond who passed it to Tony Anghie. Tony, drawing the opposing winger passed to Desmond van Twest who touched down." Desmond van Twest’s perception of this try is that just before the ball was passed to him he had received a bone crunching, muscle crippling tackle from a Trinity forward and was gingerly climbing on to his feet when he saw the ball flying towards him. In his words he suddenly "got a boost of adrenalin and the pain in his body miraculously vanished."

He managed to evade and outsprint Trinity’s would be tacklers and scampered clear down the right wing to the touch line. A huge sigh, not a cheer, arose from the Kandy supporters in the crowd. Trevor Anghie had his first missed conversion and we were behind 6-3 but equal on the grand total. However, tension arose and there was still a possibility of Trinity hanging on to the shield. Then we dealt the coup de grace starting in a scrum within Trinity’s 25 yard line. We, as usual, got the ball and worked our three quarter line with the ball reaching right winger Ana Gunawardena. Trevor Anghie suddenly appeared from his full back position and backed him and received a tricky pass which he carried over the line along with two Trinitians hanging on his back. A cheer rose up from the few Royalist supporters and some of the more mature Trinitians.

Trevor Anghie converted and we led 8-6 comfortably in line for the Bradby Shield. The few minutes, that was left of play, were taken up by Daya Perera, having decided he had had enough and much to the relief of the rest of the team, kept kicking to touch the ball that was constantly coming out to our advantage from the scrums and line outs.

During the post mortem of the match, Sydney de Zoysa had a confession to make about that controversial try by Trinity. He said; "I know chaps the first try I awarded to Trinity should have been a five yard scrum. My heart was breaking, but I had to award Trinity that try." We who had sweated our hearts out on that mud field were not too impressed. But Thambapillai, the thorough gentleman that he was, reacted with; "it was characteristic of Sydney and the Royalists of his generation."

We cannot recall the post match celebrations nor the award of the Bradby Shield that was accepted by our captain Ashy Cader, but what we remember was that Sydney de Zoysa, on return to Colombo, did honour his debt to us with a magnificent dinner. He picked us up in a Police truck, cutting a roundabout or two on the way home just to add a frill and possibly a thrill to our victory.

We apologise for having written this account in a self-congratulatory tone. However, we maintain that our team was unique in several aspects. We were the first team to win the Bradby Shield for Royal. We were the first and possibly the only team to win the Bradby with 14 ‘first season fledglings’. A member of our team - Geoff Weinman, was the first and possibly the only schoolboy who played for All Ceylon while still in school. And ending on a lighter note, if you look at our group photo, you will notice that we are in blazers embellished with our College Colours emblem. Our previous teams and probably all of our subsequent teams were all photographed in their rugby jerseys!

Ajitha Wijesundera

2009-07-05T20:31:00.001+05:30

Professor Suri Ratnapala, LLB; LLM; PhD
Professor of Public Law and Director,
Centre for Public, International and Comparative Law
T C Beirne School of Law
University of Queensland
CRICOS Provider No: 00025B

Thu, Dec 18, 2008

Prasanna, - prasman@bigpond.com

Thank you very much for sending me this nice piece of info. I have known Ajith from the Royal Primary days. He was Daya Weerasekare's Cousin, and one batch our junior. The School Van which I travelled, also used to pick him up from his residence close to Borella to come to RPS for sometime. Ajith was a very pleasant, unassuming guy with an innocent smile on his face. He is an extremely nice guy. I would endorse and appreciate all what has been mentioned about him and above all, he is a very down to earth, humble guy. I am so happy to hear about his professional achievements.

Regards

Mancha
mancha@bigpond.net.au

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Hi all

Got this about our Dr Ajitha Wijesundare. Congratulations and best wishes to Ajitha

Regards

Thillai
thillaim@hotmail.com

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A great inning studded with humane considerations….Congratulations..Ajitha..god bless..

Skanda
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Great performance, he is a regular at the SSC pool Dew Drop club !
Charitha
charitha@ratwatte.net
---

I'm quite thrilled by the accolades Ajitha is receiving because I grew up with him at Gregory's Avenue between 1956 and 1962-3. The two of us were the backbone of the local tennis ball cricket fraternity. He accommodated my cricket craving.

Those were the days when balls flew into hearses (six and out) and we waved at passing cars with school flags on their way to the oval during Royal Thomian time. Other members were the Thambimuttus (St. Peters), Siva (STC) and SP Sellayah (Royal under XIV cricket captain). Although Ajitha was a scholar he never turned down an offer of a game where my back garden (adjacent to Bullers Road) was the main venue. The rest of the soft ball cricketers were too old for us and not as enthusiastic as us. Besides, I didn't like the two bump cricket promoted by Dr. Laddie Fernando's sons. Without Ajitha I would never been able to indulge in cricket prior to joining the ranks of house cricket in 1962.

Who knows, I may even have lost interest in playing the game. About 1961-2 Ajitha made a poignant remark to me which I will never forget - "What man Eardley! I have never come across a keener cricketer than you. Yet, you haven't even made the house team. What a shame!!". I felt embarrassed at letting him down. Thanks to him mainly, I have fond memories of back yard cricket. I recall a moment in 1961 when we were playing cricket at Ajitha's back yard. Siva came up to us and said that Australia had set England a target of 250 odd at Manchester. I was disappointed that the target wasn't higher when Siva added, if not for a 98 last wicket stand between Davidson and McKenzie the target would have been much smaller. Ajitha was never a nerd: he liked his sport as much as his study. And he nurtured an ambition in me

Eardley Lieversz
elievers@bigpond.net.au
---

An epitome of a gentleman I knew during Hockey playing days at college and at university. He has completed a long phase of great service to the nation. I am sure he will be up there in the medical profession
for many more years.
Sube
mh.subasinghe@gmail.com
---

Long and illustrious career in public service for the greater good of people and above all a great human being.
Congratulations Ajitha.

Jiggs
eds48_3@hotmail.com
---

The 130th Battle

2009-07-05T20:26:00.000+05:30

Sunday March 8th 2009.

There was unusually heavy traffic at 7.45 am on this Sunday morning down the quiet road leading to the Royal Sports Complex. Cars, Taxis and even 3 wheelers were plying down this road stopping near the 2 tourist buses parked beside the RSC. Getting down from these vehicles were men in their mid sixties, some with their spouses, others single. Looking at these men one was reminded of the Panopepton advertisement that used to air on Radio Ceylon in the mid 50s and 60s. Each one had that “aali maali dubala gathiya” worn out look on their faces. (Tired and listless feeling).

Stepping into that bus was like entering a time capsule; a time capsule not going Back to the Future starring Michael Fox, this capsule was going Back to the Past, Back to Royal
Happy land , happy land starring the Class of 56.

The middle aged men in their mid sixties were now transformed to teens of the Nineteen
Sixties. Each ones face was beaming with the exuberance of youth, naughty, impish and mischievous. Not due to Panopepton, but thanks to the Spirit of Royal, the spirit of the Class of 56.

As soon as the bus was on its way to Bentota Beach Hotel, the organizer “Par Excellence” Ana Joy de Silva , began distributing brown paper bags of “ Tiffin ”, patties, sandwiches , rolls, cutlets. ( Again my mind wonders back to the early 50s and 60s, when the visitors tent was served with these similar bags of Tiffin at lunch time ). With great enthusiasm he served chilled bottles of his pride and joy , the Joy Fruit drinks, from the cooler beside me. Although the label that read “Best Before” was altered to read “Best After” the drinks were tasty and refreshing. One wonders if this is a marketing strategy of the new Marketing director, Lal Saranapala.

Beside me in the last row sat one of the Abeya twins. No not the Abhaya twins, this set is completely different , they are the brown eyed Tissa and Du Abeya Singhe, or Du the Lion. They were not satisfied with Ana’s chilled pride and joy, they were thirsting for the cup that cheers. On my right sat the Tissa twin and on the left separating me from the lion twin was the Joy cooler. O! those pathetic looks on their faces, like infants with pouting lips when they grasp for the nipple and are refused. Finally after a little persuasion, the Bottle was opened around 8.30 am and before we reached Bentota the bottle was sucked dry.

Thursday, March 12th 2009, dawns to the sound of the beat of drums accompanied by the blaring of trumpets, sometimes off key, drowning the crackling sound of gun fire and the blast of grenades in the North. The battle in the North is temporarily forgotten, giving pride of place to the annual battle for the 130th year, due to start shortly. Oh! that rhythmic beat is like cancer, it eats into your body and without ones knowledge the feet are tapping to the beat. It eats into your veins, your blood stream and there you are on your feet dancing like a voodoo dancer in a trance.

I had the privilege of accompanying the very reverend Lionel James Peiris and Gamini
“Kalu Albert” Edirisinghe, born not with a silver spoon in his mouth but with verbal diarrhea, for the 3 days to the SSC grounds. This guy could not keep his mouth closed for 1 second. When the armed personnel were doing a body search before entering the grounds, he had his arms and legs outstretched and tells the officer frisking him “ ata deka gedera thiyala aawa, athana monowath ne allanna” ( left my nuts at home , there is nothing there for you to hold), the officer was so embarrassed he let him go.

First day of the match went Royals way and many were the predictions of an early victory. First 2 hours of play on the 2nd day left them saying “ I told you so”. Kito Dias was walking up and down the Mustangs tent, looking up at heaven and signaling to the Royalists that there would be a down pour. ( I am sure he was hoping for a Kariyawasam miracle like in 1970, when rain came down at the crucial moment saving him from his second defeat). A prominent member of the class of ‘56 walks into the tent carrying his bottles of refreshment pretty upset that the other side was all out for 99. His theory was that at all cost the match should go on for 3 days, displays the bottles in his hand and says what are we to do with all this stuff, if the match finishes today. And so a spell was cast on the Royal side and before long indeed there was a down pour. Kito’s prediction was correct , the Royal team could not hold down the runs pouring down from the Thomian bats, they were flooding the SSC grounds with boundaries, twos and singles. This torrent did not cease till the late hours of the final day when the Thomians decided to declare.

Thus ended the 130th battle with the Thomians stealing the honors.

ROYAL VALUES

2009-03-15T17:57:00.000+05:30

The year was 1958….. It was my cricketing debut, and I was preparing to open the innings for Royal Primary School, when our master in charge of cricket,
Mr William drew our attention to a Board erected outside the boundary line. It had the following all familiar inscription on it.

“When the one great scorer comes to write against your name, he writes not that you won or lost, but how you played the game.”

Fifty one years later, on the 4th of January 2009, I stood alongside my classmates of Royal’s Group of ‘59 at the Navarangahala Hall, at a memorial service, in solemn remembrance of fifteen departed colleagues, and realized the extent to which that priceless inscription had influenced the lives of my fellow Royalists and me.

True to our watchword “DISCE AUT DISCEDE”, we learnt of books and of men, and most importantly we learnt to play the challenging games of life, keeping our cherished values intact.

We learnt when we were barely knee high to our Teachers, to differentiate between right and wrong …….. and that the two could never meet.

We learnt to emulate the strong, but didn’t forget to protect the weak.

We learnt that every right implied a responsibility and that effective leadership required exemplary conduct.

We learnt that success in governance, in any field, was synonymous with accountability.

We learnt that not all men are just……… not all men are true….. but we also learnt that for every scoundrel, there was a hero.

We learnt that a life with dignity, required integrity.

We learnt when we stumbled, to ascertain why we fell, and not look at where we fell.
We learnt to be gracious in defeat and humble in victory.
We learnt that next to life, God’s most precious gift to us was our conscience.

We learnt that there was no greater peace of mind, as the contentment reposed in a clear conscience.

As we approach that prestigious and phenomenal landmark of 175 years in 2010, we Royalists past and present can all rise as one, and say proudly to our fathers, “YES SIRS,……… WE KEPT THY FAME INVIOLATE”

May that one great scorer continue his writing………

S SKANDAKUMAR

Cricket Fever

2009-03-14T12:46:00.000+05:30

That shattering crack of willow on leather,
crowds roaring hither and thither,
the boys in blue, gold, and black
sprinting far ahead of the pack.

The batsmen walk and take their stance
the bowlers pounding in a trance.
Colts screaming, Mustangs roar,
Lovely ladies, fashions galore.

Another great moment is at hand,
Old boys arriving from far-off lands.
In shorts and caps and hats ablaze,
Flags and rattles, it’s the weekend craze.

And the ball doth fly across the grass,
Fielders scrambling, one big morass.
Umpires waving, fingers and hands
Its cricket fever, bring out the band.

Battle of the Blues 130 Years On

2009-03-14T12:26:00.002+05:30

DN Fri Mar 13, 2009

The Royal-Thomian - 130 years on:
The Battle of the Blues Steeped in tradition
Gayathra MANAMENDRA

The most looked forward to sporting and social event in the calendar of both past and present Royalists and Thomians, the Royal vs. S. Thomas' big cricket match will be played for the 130th time on the March 12, 13 and 14 at the SSC at Maitland Crescent in Colombo.
S. Thomas' College Mount Lavinia, a private Anglican School has about 2,400 students on its roll while Royal College Colombo, a Government run non-denominational school has approximately 8,000 students.

Origins of Ceylon Cricket
History records S. Thomas' College Colombo (first in Mutwal and later in Mount Lavinia) as the first school to play cricket in Ceylon (as Sri Lanka was then known). In 1864, S. Thomas' has played the first match against the small Pass Cricket Club in Colombo. The result is recorded as an 8-run victory for the College. More importantly this 1864 match has gone down in history as the first recorded Ceylonese Cricket match played in the country. From 1864 to 1877, S. Thomas' has continued to play matches against the clubs - including the elitist European dominated Colombo Cricket Club - as there was no other school played cricket during that time in Ceylon.

The Royal-Thomian Big match celebrations
The sub-warden of the College Reverend Felton Falkner, a Cambridge 'Blue' has rendered Yeoman service to develop cricket at S. Thomas' during those initial years. A pioneer of cricket in Ceylon, Rev. Falkner has coached the boys and was the Thomian Cricket Captain for several years.

Mr. Ashley Walker also a Cambridge 'Blue' arrived in Ceylon in January 1877 to take up duties at the Colombo Academy in the Pettah (later renamed Royal College and shifted to Ried Avenue). Mr. Walker started coaching the Academy boys and organized the first Academy cricket team in 1878. The very first 'College vs. Academy' cricket match (as the Royal-Thomian was then called) was played in 1878. Incidentally this is the first cricket match played by the Colombo Academy, thus becoming the second school to play cricket in Ceylon.

Although the scores are not given, the result is recorded as a win for the College team by an innings and 3 runs. The second match in 1879 has ended in a win for the Academy team by 56 runs. But both these matches are not taken into account as masters played in both teams.
The first schoolboys only 'College vs. Academy' match was in 1880. J. W. de Silva captained the Academy and F. W. McDonnell led S. Thomas'. The result was a 62 runs win for the Academy.
World class cricketers

Since the 1880s, the hallowed match, which is the oldest uninterrupted and unbroken cricket series in the world, has churned out world class cricketers. Royal's Dr. C. H. Gunesekera, Sargo Jayewickrema, Col. F. C. de Saram, Sathi Coomaraswamy, C.I. Gunesekera, Gamini Goonesena, Ranjan Madugalle and Thomians A. C. Amath, D. L. de Saram, S. Saravanamuttu, Vernon Prins, Michael Tissera, Dr. B. G. Reid, Anura Tennekoon and Duleep Mendis, have captained the country at different levels against foreign teams.

Leaders as Cricketers
Even Sri Lanka's national leaders have played in the prestigious 'Battle of the Blues'. President J.R. Jayewardene played for Royal in 1925. The 'father of the nation' D.S. Senanayake played for S. Thomas' in 1901 and 1902, and Sir Francis Molamure played also for S. Thomas' from 1898 to 1903. Sir John Kotelawala has played for Royal in 1914 and 1915 and Dudley Senanayake played for S. Thomas' from 1927 to 1929. National hero Edward Pedris has turned out for S. Thomas' in 1907, while the only Ceylonese to be awarded the Victoria Cross for valour Basil Hosfall was a bit unfortunate to be named the 12th man in the Thomian team.

Great benefactors
Some of the great benefactors of Ceylon Cricket have also come from these two schools. Royalist Dr. John Rockwood was the founder President of the Ceylon Cricket Association. Thomian P. Saravanamuttu was the first President of the Board of Control for Cricket, and President of the Ceylon Cricket Association as well. Thomian Robert Senanayake was the longest serving president of the Board of Control for Cricket-20 yrs. He was also the President of the Ceylon Cricket Association. The Thomian Captain of 1899, F. L. Goonewardene of Kandy was another prominent benefactor.

Cricket Legends
Over the years, these two Colleges have produced many cricketing legends who went on to bring glory and honour to Sri Lanka. The first All-Ceylon Cricket Captain Douglas Lee de Saram (1922) who's also the first Ceylonese to get his name in the cricketers 'Bible' the Wisden (1912) played for S. Thomas' from 1989 to 1902. William Greswell, the top English County Cricketer who played in Ceylon during that time, has said in an interview: "If the Ceylon players are understudying their popular idol D. L. de Saram, they should continue to do so. No better model cricketer or sportsman ever donned flannels in Ceylon".

Famous sports writer S. P. Foenander has said: D. L. de Saram is the finest all-round cricketer and the most popular in the history of the game in Ceylon. For sheer stroke production and power he has never been surpassed and his presence in the cricket field has made him a cricket personality second to none in the history of the game in the island.

"Royalist Ranjan Madugalle is the Chief Match Referee of the International Cricket Council. Thomian Alfred Holsinger became Ceylon's first Cricket Professional (in England) in 1902. Thomian Dr. James Arthur Scharenguval is the first Ceylonese to play for a foreign country and also the first to play against a Test Country. He played for All-Scotland vs. South Africa in 1902 and vs. Australia in 1905. Thomian Michael Tissera captained All-Ceylon to its first ever unofficial Test victory over a Test Country in 1964 (Pakistan). He also led All-Ceylon to victory over India in India in 1965. Thomian Anura Tennekoon's innings of 169 not out against India ('74/'75) is rated as the finest technically correct innings played by a Ceylonese in the unofficial Test era. Thomian Duleep Mendis captained Sri Lanka to its first ever official test win in 1985 (India) and the first Asia Cup win in 1986 (Pakistan).

Royal-Thomian series records
Royalist Sumithra 'Charlie' Warnakulasuriya's marathon 197 scored in four and a half match sessions and spread over two days in 1980 is the highest individual score for the 3-day match. Thomian Duleep Mendis's champagne innings of 184 runs in 1972 remains at the top for the 2-day match. Thomian Bathiya Karunaratne's 100 runs in 101 balls (he scored 116 in 1997 is the fastest century. Thomian Fred Thomasz's 8 for 3 runs in 1884 in a single innings and Thomian Leonard Arndt's match bag of 14 for 55 are the best bowling feats. Another Thomian Ernest Wanduragala has also taken 14 for 76 in 1906. The wicket keeping record goes to Thomian Carl Cooke. He has had 9 dismissals - 2 st, 6 ct and 1 run-out - in the 1923 match.

Not many know that the time honoured match is played for the most coveted D.S. Senanayake Challenge Shield.

Arch-rivals
So after 129 'Battles' the score according to Royal records, stands at Royal College won 33 matches while S. Thomas' has won 34 matches. But according to S Thomas' College statistics the tally is: Royal College won 33 and S. Thomas' - 35 won! The difference is obviously due to the controversial 9-run match played in 1885. The Royalists say the match was drawn, but the Thomians record it as a win! Since then the fierce tussle for supremacy between the arch-rivals has brought out the very best in 'Royal Courage' and the fame 'Thomian grit' on the field and off it as well.

When asked to comment on the relationship between the two schools, former Royal College principal Bogoda Premaratne has had this to say: "There is no Royal without S. Thomas' and no S. Thomas' without Royal!"

(The writer is a Life member - Royal College Union and the Group of '76)

Darrel Lieversz

2009-03-07T18:59:00.003+05:30

Darrel Lieversz

Darrell Lieversz at the Colts nets, at the end of the 1962 school cricket season, in preparation for the final round of the Sara Trophy in which the Colts were edged out by a mere .01 of a point.

RC 1st XI Cricket Team 1962

2009-03-07T18:54:00.003+05:30

RC 1st XI Cricket Team 1962

Standing, left to right: S. Mendis, V. Gowrishankaran, J.D. Wilson, R.C. D. de Silva, T.R. Jansen, S. Rajaratnam, V.P. Malalasekere and S.D. Jayaratne
Seated, left to right: S.S. Kumar, M. Rodrigo (Coach), D.W.L. Lieversz (Cpt.), D.K.G. de Silva (Principal), S. Thiagarajah (V.Cpt.), E.C. Gunasekera (Master-in-Charge) and P. Withane

Of the persons in the above picture, Darrell Lieversz, Jansen, Wilson, Gowrishankaran and Withane are in Australia. Wilson is a teacher, while Gowrishankaran and Withane are accountants. Jayaratne and Thiagarajah are in America, the former an academic and the latter a doctor. R.C. de Silva is a successful businessmen and entrepreneur, and the current president of the Nondescript Sports Club. His business involvements are more diverse and buoyant than his overarm deliveries ever were.

Malalasekere and Mendis are in Sri Lanka. The former is the director of Ceylon Tobacco’s legal division, while the latter is the Chairman of Hayleys. Rajaratnam recently returned to Sri Lanka after working overseas as an engineer.

Mahes Rodrigo celebrated his 70th birthday in 1998 and these days plays with a very straight bat after surviving a close appeal. S.S. Kumar was not so fortune, being shot dead by a gunman in 1998 whilst playing golf. Dudley de Silva passed away in the seventies while E.C. Gunasekera succumbed to cancer on 10 June 1994.

Darrell Lieversz turns out for his old school in the annual Royal-Thomian match played at Melbourne. These days he is better known for his paintings than his late in-swingers. He mows the lawn, washes three cars, rides go-carts, watches his grandson grow, dabbles in genealogical software and fields frequent questions from the writer, in his spare time.

Darrell frequently ponders what might have been if E.C. Gunasekera hadn’t changed the batting order in Royal’s second innings, without him knowing, which saw Jansen go ahead of Rajaratnam, thereby insuring Royal against loss but depriving her of any chance of victory. E.C. Gunasekera (EC) resigned as master-in-charge mid-way through the 1967 season.

In the mid-sixties, R.N. Mudalige, under XVI captain of 1962, out of contention after crashing the GCE ‘O’ level barrier, held forth at the entrance to Royal College that led pass the cycle sheds, expounding his theory that Royal would never win the “big match” as long as EC was in charge. This was as much an attempt to find a scapegoat for Royal’s lack of success, as much a reflection of the mixed feelings school going Royalists had for him. However, although the writer most certainly would not have obtained cricket colours if EC hadn’t abdicated, like every other old boy, on leaving school he came to admire, and identify with, the very characteristics of EC that he once despised. Even those old boys who were at the receiving end of his martinetism felt a deep sense of personal loss at his passing.

A Childhood Romance

2009-03-07T18:45:00.003+05:30

Reflections on Royal Cricket and the Royal/Thomian

This article is inspired by the article by my former captain Ranjith Gunasekera titled “Demi-Gods and Little Boys”, that appeared in the 1995 Royal souvenir, and Sarath Samarasinghe’s 1998 article. Ranjith hit the nail on the head by remarking that the quasi-mystical status of the Royal-Thomian had dissipated by the time of our own playing days. Sarath was obviously one of those demi-Gods and his description of his contemporaries brought back poignant memories and triggered a bout of nostalgia.

Rampant Heroes & Alter Egos

The Royal-Thomians of 1955 and 1956 are a blur, and all I recall are the outlines of batsmen, distinguished only by their caps, returning to the pavilion at the Oval tennis court end. The names Jothilingam, Nirmalingam and Perimpanayagam were imprinted in my mind by my father, and I saw them as the equivalent of the three Ws of the West Indies, gallantly taking the fight to the enemy. Later I discovered that Jothilingam scored a century in the 1956 big-match while Perimpanayagam scored three consecutive centuries in the same season.

The first innings I remember was Michael Wille’s 121 in 1957, which I observed from under the sight screen at the tennis court end, keeping company with a Thomian friend who, lacking a ticket, had to be sneaked in by my father. I distinctly remember Wille’s habit of strolling to leg between deliveries, not unlike Ted Dexter. Although I was never able to establish the truth of it, I am still moved by my father’s remark that, before scoring his century, Wille slept on his late father’s bed.

However, for the most part, only the names and their glorious associations matter. Sarath Samarasinghe seemed to play forever, and after a while, his whimsical persona, reflected in his crouched stance, and the cartoonist’s caricature of his cheeky guardianship of the space behind the stumps, came to embody the quintessential characteristics of my Royal heroes – chirpy, humorous, competitive, courageous and affable.

Lorenz Pereira was another player I came to identify with, thanks to the media (souvenirs) which portrayed him as larger than life. I admired him from the dead horizontal tree trunk that used to lie at the entrance to Royal primary, as he walked past after practice with a Gun & Moore bat in his hand. This was about the closest I came to my idols.

I always made excuses for Royal, as I later did for Australia. If my heroes didn’t come up to scratch it was always because of poor luck, not because St. Thomas’ (or England) played better. After all, Royal’s cricketers had far more exotic names, the hallmark of champs. We outgunned St. Thomas’ in multi-syllabic surnames. More importantly, they came in pairs, namely, Samarasinghe and Senanayake. And no name had the etymological intrigue of Kodituwakku. Perairawar held fascination on account of its exotic aura and the difficulties in pronunciation, while N.J.S. de Mel lingered because it seemed so stately and dignified in comparison.

From 1958 to 1960, the composition of the team hardly changed and, in addition to the names mentioned above, the names Sahabandu, Samerajeewa and Vidanage conjured up images of spells weaved from the mists of Aryan antiquity. That one of them had the very English personal name of Dooland, only added to the intrigue. And the name “Minah” Wijesinghe had acquired near mythical status after his four wickets in 4 balls at Campbell Place, the only event I vividly recall apart from Wille’s century.

With few notable exceptions, the names had more relevance than faces. For instance, whenever I impersonated Royal cricketers in softball games or while throwing the ball against a wall, I did not have a visual template to guide me. I had a better idea of what test cricketers looked like (thanks to the Times of Ceylon sports pages) and played like (thanks to the plethora of literature, match descriptions and coaching manuals). ). However, this only served to enhance the mystique of Royal cricketers, the mere mention of whose names conjured up rich images untarnished by any empirical yardstick.

The Royal-Thomian of the fifties was quite predictable. St. Thomas’ would bat first, post a large score and Royal would spend a good part of the second day averting the follow on, which she inevitably did. Although one didn’t fear a Royal loss, losing the toss was frustrating because it meant that victory was out of the question. (My peers and I feared the Thomians less than older Royal students who were constantly on the prowl for opportunities to “flick” rosettes, flags, rattles and other spoils from unsuspecting juniors.) However, despite my anxieties and disappointments, no festival in the world could compete with the sensuousness of the Royal-Thomian, as exemplified by the sparkling caps our heroes wore, their exotic names, the flags we waved, the pulsating Portuguese derived rhythms we pranced to, and my Aunt Tim’s corned beef sandwiches. A victory for Royal would have been a bonus.

Truly, the lead up to the Royal-Thomian was at times more interesting than the game itself. The endless speculation as to who would fill the last spot, the cycle parades, the crawl to Wanathamulla, the awesome sight of figures scaling the radio towers (a feat performed by me in 1970) and the gradual emergence of the players from the shadow of the pavilion to have a hit, created a wonderful ambience. It was all part of the riveting ritual and rich pageant.

During the fifties my fierce loyalty to Royal was sustained by the constant teasing I received from Mahes Rodrigo. Whenever I accompanied my father to the CR&FC clubhouse, Mahes never failed to needle me by making derogatory remarks about Royal. “What man, Royal parippu, no?” was his favourite taunt, to which my inevitable response was one of predictable outrage. I wished Royal could beat St. Thomas’ just to teach him a lesson. I hadn’t the faintest idea at the time that he was a Royal stalwart. (He was to coach Royal in that memorable 1962 season.)

In 1960, my first year in Royal College, we won the toss for the first time in memory and controlled the game thanks to a good double by Lalith Senanayake. This was in stark contrast to our perilous position of 1959, 5 ducks, and a near funeral, if E.L. Pereira hadn’t come to the rescue. Watching Ferdinands bowl to the diminutive Kodituwakku in 1959 made me feel distinctively vulnerable. I asked myself why we got the best Burgher bats, but not the Burgher fast men, who, like Ferdinands, played for St. Thomas’?

In 1961, after a poor start we ended the game with a flourish. By throwing caution to the winds, S.S. Kumar and S.D. Jayaratne effected a profound psychological shift. Although falling short of 64 runs of our target, their whirlwind unbeaten third wicket partnership of 70 runs made us feel that we had resources in reserve that none of us were aware of, and completely erased the ignominy of our first innings total of 67. On the way out, Professor E.O.E. Pereira rued our missed opportunity and speculated on what might have been.

King Cricket
Despite the uneventful nature of the Royal-Thomian, the period 1956-1961 was full of romance and fond childhood memories. Elvis came into my world and I constantly withdrew into an imagined world of American culture. On the cricket field, Richie Benaud’s Australians defeated England by 4-0 nil in 1958-9 and in new recruit O’Neill I had a cricketing idol who increased my emotional involvement with Anglo-Australian cricket. In January 1961, almost the whole school was glued to the radio following the progress of the West Indians in Australia, who had captured our imagination and hearts. Although, I failed to make the Boake House under XIV team, it didn’t matter. Boake won anyway, the West Indians and Australians touched down long enough to saturate my mind with rich and evocative images of cricket’s unique aesthetic, and Benaud’s Australians had a great series highlighted by that amazing win at Manchester, when all seemed lost.

Cricket was truly king at Royal. An indication of the grip the game had on our psyche is that preliminary trials to pick any one of four under XIV teams, attracted well over 100 hopefuls. As for me, it was cricket, lovely cricket. And the 1962 Royal season continued the magic.

Bowling Blitzkrieg

Of all the Royal cricket seasons I have been involved in as a player or spectator, nothing comes close to 1962. For one, my cousin Darrell was captain, which lifted my status amongst my peers. My uncle would convey information to my father who then passed it on to me. I could pretend that I had privy to the captain’s thoughts. Above all, Darrell was in devastating form, and along with his partner, R.C. de Silva, struck fear into all our opponents. How did we feel? Like Germans at the beginning of WWII. How did the Thomians feel? Like England in 1939, alone and expecting a German invasion any moment. Victory in the Royal Thomian was not a forlorn hope; it was a real possibility. We had our best chance in years.

The circle had come round full circle. In three years, we, not St. Thomas’ had the fast bowlers. Darrell was as muscular as Ferdinands was, and far more menacing. We were going to give the Thomians a hiding. The vulnerability I felt in 1959 was behind me.

The lethality of our attack first became evident in the second innings of the Ananda game when our opponents, set a simple target, collapsed in a heap. The following week, St. Benedicts were 6-11 at one stage in their first innings. Yet, we all wondered when the bubble would burst? Surely, this couldn’t last? I personally felt that our good run would come to a crashing halt against St. Peters, particular since their captain had reached triple figures in the preceding week. Royal’s modest first innings total was little cause for optimism. No one, least of all Royal, were ready for the batting holocaust that followed. St. Peters collapsed to be 8-12, a score rare even in junior cricket.

Richard Heyn, the Peterite captain, almost played on before a few balls later his bails took flight not unlike the flutter of doves outside the book depository when Oswald fired three shots at JFK. His dig in the second innings was no less brief and humiliating. St. Peters were routed and an aura of invincibility surrounded the cricket team, which rubbed off on the entire school.

From a personal point of view, Darrell, the good Burgher had prevailed over Richard Heyn, the enemy Burgher. Richard had arrived whistling, supremely confident. He left with his tail between his legs. Imagine my disappointment, when the headlines following the Wesley game, read, “Darrell the hero, and the Darrell who failed”. On the Campbell Park mat, Darrell Maye of Wesley had come good and Royal had met her Stalingrad. My moral order was disturbed. I wanted to believe that good Burghers, like my cousin, had God on their side. I felt much worse when Keith La’Brooy, an enemy Burgher, rather than Darrell, was ascendant in the 1962 Royal-Thomian. (La’Brooy captured 9 wickets to Darrell’s 8 and had Royal in a spin in her first innings.)

Reflected Glory

One had to be a 12 year old attending Royal to understand why I am so elegiac and nostalgic about the 1962 season. Of course, it helped that my cousin was captain and in such deadly form. Just as much as my father took credit for his nephew’s achievements (being constantly corrected by friends on this issue) I too took vicarious credit for the achievements of my namesake. (If Royal had truimphed at the Oval there is no doubt that I would have walked with my head held up high.) I also accompanied Darrell on visits to doctors and cricketing experts. Although he barely tolerated me, I was close to the centre of power and thrived on it. More importantly, Royal have rarely produced such a deadly pace duo working in tandem.
Going into the Royal-Thomian Darrell and RC had taken 56 and 42 wickets respectively. Many of these were bowled or LBW, which was very exciting to spectators who either exclaimed, bowled or appealed in unison at such events. Wickets fell at such regular intervals that the success rate of the incantation “Come on Darrell or RC, bowl him out!” was very high.

Whereas RC had a classic fast bowler’s action, using a high trajectory to make the ball lift, Darrell made the ball zip off the wicket. Whereas RC was hostile, Darrell was clinically efficient, varnishing the top of the stumps sufficient to send the bails flying. If RC was mortar fire, Darrell was a cruise missile honing on the target with unerring accuracy. There was always an air of anticipation whenever either of them took the ball.

The camaraderie of the team was palpable, although the team consisted of a fascinating bunch of individuals, whose styles contrasted markedly. The diminutive Jayaratne, who excelled in the back foot cover drive and leg-side stumpings off the pacemen, carried on from where S.C. Samarasinghe left off. And who couldn’t help but be intrigued by RC’s elaborate ritual when taking guard and Gowrishankaran’s St. Vitus dance, popping up and down outside the popping crease, as he awaited each delivery?

I was in awe of my heroes, and followed them all over. When the souvenirs came out I cycled to the homes of some (Jayaratne at Campbell Terrace and Thiyagarajah at Horton Place). Although I could have got their autographs through Darrell, I was keen to obtain personal audiences with them, exploiting my relationship to the captain. My romance with Royal cricket had reached its pinnacle. It was a wonderful time to be a cricket lover and a Royalist.

The End of Certainty

From about 1956 to 1962, the Royal-Thomian held its greatest fascination and romance for me. My loss of faith commenced when Royal, despite its awesome bowling firepower, still conceded 197 on the first day of 1962 Royal-Thomian. (I was not alone in entertaining visions of the Thomians collapsing for under 50. Royal’s campaign, that was widely expected to “Dunkirk” the Thomians, had turned into her Khe Sanh.) Clearly, the Thomians were not the pushovers I assumed them to be. (Analysing why a side so certain of victory was held to a draw, the importance of the toss was driven home to me. We had to bat first if we had any hope of winning the two-day game.)

In the months following, amidst post mortems, I was overcome by disillusionment and fatalism. If Royal couldn’t win with Darrell, we would be hard put to do so any other time.

From 1962 onwards, in the wake of a Thomian resurgence, and my entry into teenhood from adolescence, my idols began to lose their shine. 1963 was a watershed for me. I left a government bungalow at C84 Gregory’s Avenue and softball cricket played barefoot on soft sand, and a house with enough garden and wall space in which to play cricket alone, forever. The Beatles dethroned Elvis (my hero since 1956) and I gained my first exposure to the bitterness of defeat when Boake lost her preliminary under XIV house cricket game under my captaincy.

The first XI cricket seasons immediately following 1962 were an anti-climax for me. Never again would Royal go into the Royal-Thomian with the capacity to rout our opponents with time to spare. Never again would the Thomians arrive for the big match intent purely on survival. Alas, Royal cricket seasons would never hold the same magic and grandeur for me. Only two years after we had an attack that gave our opponents sleepless nights, we were mourning a big match defeat at the Royal Fair held at the former racecourse. (The euphoria of the following year was derived not from victory but from narrowly escaping defeat.) In addition, I was too close to the action, under the critical gaze of others, experiencing the ups and downs (mostly downs) associated with striving for representative honours, for Royal cricket to retain its earlier mystique.

To my mind, 1962 represented Royal’s best chance for a big match victory. In the same year, Colts missed winning the Sara trophy by a mere fraction of a point; coming so close because of Darrell’s bowling genius. It seemed to me that the two Sri Lankan cricket teams I identified with most had allowed once in lifetime opportunities to slip through. Australia was also losing her dominance over England, which she didn’t regain until 1974. Yes, 1962-3 was a watershed in my life as a cricket follower. It was a simple case of innocence lost. The old certainties were fading and my Gods (musical as well as cricketing) were becoming increasingly human.

Eardley Lieversz

Article first appeared in the Royal College Cricket Souvenir of 1999 and subsequently in the Autumn 1999 (vol 6, no. 3) issue of Floreat.

My Most Memorable Game of Cricket 1962

2009-03-02T17:52:00.002+05:30

When the Total stood still

The most memorable game I have played... by Darrell Lieversz

Whenever the 1962 cricket season comes up for discussion, the game against St. Peters is the one most often mentioned. Royalists were not accustomed to such a total domination of ball over bat, especially in a game that they came into as underdogs. I have been told by many Royalists who were present over those two days, that this particular game was one of the most sensational, uplifting and inspiring cricketing moments in their lives and which they feel privileged to have witnessed.

In fact many of them can still recall where they watched the game from. My cousin Eardley, who captained the Royal cricket team of 1969, admits that he never hero worshipped and idolised a Royal cricket team as much as the 1962 side, mainly because of our performance in the Peterite game. He never felt so proud to be a Royalist as he did in the aftermath of this game. In fact, the expectations raised by Royal’s performance made it very hard for Royal’s supporters to subsequently stomach defeat to Wesley on the Campbell Park mat and the failure to prevail over STC.

We had performed fairly well in the games leading to the game against St Peter’s. The first game of the 1962 season ended sensationally when Ananda, who dominated the game from the very beginning, fell 18 runs short of what seemed a relatively modest target of 88 runs. Thanks for the win go to Chanaka "CD" de Silva who took 5 for 16 and vice captain "Thiagu" Thiagarajah’s "break through" spell when he clean bowled D. Jayasinghe and had Sarath Wimalaratne beautifully stumped by Siri Jayaratne, finishing up with 3 for 16.

In the next game, against St. Benedict’s, we only conceded 11 runs in capturing their first six 1st innings wickets. We eventually beat them by 2 wickets in a hard fought game. We then went on to beat St. Anthony’s by 9 wickets and enforced the follow on against St. Joseph’s, who, to their credit, batted with a lot of determination in their second innings and left us with insufficient time to score the runs required for victory.

Royal was back on home soil for the Peterite game. Under normal circumstances St. Peters would have been outright favourites as they had cruised to an innings win over Ananda, the very side against which we had to dig deep in order to win on the Reid Avenue turf.

In that game against Ananda, St. Peter’s batting first scored over 300 runs with captain Richard Heyn scoring a century hitting a formidable attack to all parts of the ground, including a six over cover. A demoralised Ananda side offered very little resistance losing by an innings by as early as 2 pm on the second day.

On the strength of St. Peter’s performance against Ananda and Royal’s injury toll, the press, as indeed many Royalists, tended to play down Royal’s prospects.

Reporting on the first day’s play the Daily Mirror conceded its gross misjudgment in writing off Royal, in the following manner -"Royal playing without Jayaratne, Mendis, Withane and Kumar were expected to succumb to the mighty Peterite batting machine which had only the previous week annihilated the Anandians".

Team selection News that ‘S. S’ Kumar and Sunil Mendis were unable to play due to influenza was a shock to the selectors when choosing the team to play the Peterites. This information was rather depressing because Padde Withana and Siri Jayaratne were already on the injury list carried over from the previous week and were not available for selection. Freshmen Hamsa Macan Markar, "Sokka" Sockanathan as wicket keeper and Mohamed "Ganja" Mahroof (left arm spinner) were brought in to replace the three coloursmen out of action.

Royal struggle for runs

Because the English cricket team was scheduled to play a game against Ceylon on Saturday, this game was played on a Thursday and Friday, commencing at 1.30 pm and 10.00 am respectively. Winning the toss I decided to bat first on a fairly dry, flat wicket. "Shaw" Wilson and V. "Gowri" Gowrishankaran opened the innings against Maurice Decker and left arm seamer Travis Fernando.

After a steady start we lost our first wicket, that of Shaw at 33, when he was caught by Ravinda Fernando off the bowling of Tyrone Le Mercier in his second over. Hamsa Marcan Markar was in next but was also caught by Ravinda Fernando off the bowing of Kevin Ruberu. Vijaya Malalasekera livened the game up with some attacking drives but was out edging the ball to Richard Heyn at slip for a sparkling 17 runs. Finally, opener Gowri’s watchful innings of 20 ended when a throw from Maurice Decker found him short of his crease.

Wickets continued to fall at regular intervals but a characteristically tenacious innings of 32 not out by Roger Jansen took the score from 6 for 75 to 113 all out. Tyrone Le Mercier captured 4 wickets and three dismissals resulted from ‘direct hit’ run outs.

The game had progressed predictably and the Peterite bowling showed the same bite that it had displayed against Ananda. The three run outs were indicative of how competitive St. Peter’s were on the field. Everything pointed to them being equally competitive at the crease. Ominously for Royal, the stage appeared set for Richard Heyn to continue from where he left off the previous week and enable his team to quickly overhaul Royal’s modest total and set themselves up for an innings win. Royal in turn would have hoped to restrict the lead of St. Peters and stay in the game.

The best case scenario from Royal’s perspective would have been to capture early wickets and at best, slow St. Peter’s progress. No one, least of all Royal, could have predicted the mayhem that lay just around the corner. Defending a modest total St. Peters went into bat a little before 5 PM. I had picked the College end from which to open bowling but due to an unexpected change in wind direction, decided to take the other end.

The batsmen were already at the wicket, and the field almost set. Instead of wasting time changing ends, I gave the ball to Chanaka "CD" de Silva to open the bowling. CD bowled a superb first over with the ball swinging beautifully away from the right handed Adithiya de Silva. In the course of the first three overs, the score crawled to 6 and consisted of many ‘play & misses’. In the last ball of my second over, without any addition to the score, Adithiya de Silva did not offer a stroke and was clean bowled by a ball that swung in late. Tyrone Le Mercier was next to go, LBW in the third ball of my fourth over (the eighth over of the innings). With the score at 2 for 10, Richard Heyn the Peterite Captain, brimming with confidence walked to the wicket whistling and twirling his bat.

Eye witness accounts describe a surge of optimism amongst the Peterite supporters watching the game from Reid Avenue. He took his guard, looked around the field and settled into his stance. He attempted to leave a ball from me that appeared to him to be wide outside his off stump. However, much to his surprise it dipped in and knocked back his off stump, clean bowled by the first ball he faced. First to give me pats on the back were my deputy Thiagu and CD followed by the rest of the team. The cheers and applause from spectators all around the ground were pretty exhilarating. Two wickets had fallen with the score at 10 and four more were to follow with no addition to the score.

St Peter’s in total disarray Left hander David Heyn replaced his brother and prevented a hat trick. Heyn and Fernando didn’t score off the next four overs which meant that the overs (12) exceeded the runs scored (10) to that point. In CD’s 7th over Fernando lofted the ball over my head towards the mid off boundary at the College end. Instinctively, I turned around and chased after the ball hoping just to save a boundary. Looking up I found the ball still in the air and falling fast. Keeping my eye on the ball I reached for it desperately twisting my body and right arm. It was freakish luck that the ball stuck in my right hand completing the catch to dismiss Fernando. But the effect was sensational and it seemed like Royal could do no wrong. As Fernando and Heyn had crossed, Heyn, rather than new batsman Tissa Jayaweera, had to face the next ball from CD which was the last ball of his 7th over. He was clean bowled by a beautifully pitched up ball that swung in late hitting his middle stump. The first ball of CD’s next over was played down preventing a hat trick.

Eardley described to me the emotions of the Royalists in attendance at this stage of the game in the following manner. To quote - "Royal’s supporters were equally astounded by the scale of the stranglehold Royal’s bowlers had over the Peterite batsmen. The frequency with which wickets fell, and the ratio of wickets and overs to runs, was an unprecedented cricketing occurrence in the lifetimes of most cricket enthusiasts. Royalists were in turn elated and astonished by a turn of events which was inconceivable and unimaginable at the commencement of the Peterite innings.

To many Royalists there was an air of unreality to what was taking place in the middle". Maurice Decker then joined Jayaweera who was next to go, LBW for a duck in the 2nd ball of my next over. C. Bartlet the new batsman, and Decker immediately appealed against the light but the appeal was not surprisingly disallowed. At a little after 5:30 PM the light seemed to be pretty good and clearly the morale of St Peter’s was in tatters. On the last ball of my same over Bartlet was bowled between bat and pad for another ‘duck’. The score was still 10. In the 4th ball of my next over with the score at 12, Travis Fernando was bowled in a similar manner for yet another ‘duck’. A telling indication of how dramatically the game had swung around was that with 2 wickets remaining St. Peter’s still needed four runs to avert a follow on when an hour earlier Royal expected to have a fight on her hands in order to avoid an innings defeat.

On Thiagu’s suggestion, to forestall another appeal against the light I replaced CD and myself with "Sugi" Rajaratnam and Thiagu. Kevin Ruberu had come in to join Decker and together they took the score to 20 without further loss by close of play on the first day. At this stage, CD had bowling figures of 9 overs, 5 maidens, 12 runs, 2 wickets and I had figures of 8 overs, 7 maidens, 3 runs, 6 wickets.

Talking things over breakfast Early next morning Thiagu and I met Mr. Mahes Rodrigo (our coach) at his home for our usual mid match meeting when his wife Yoges always provided us with a scrumptious breakfast. This was where the previous day’s play was assessed, and tactics to be employed on the second day were discussed. Mahes very rarely visited the team’s dressing room unless there was something very urgent to convey. He encouraged us to make our own decisions and work things out ourselves perhaps preparing us for the tougher innings of life. Although the newspaper reports laid out in front of us highlighted how well Royal was placed after the first days play, Mahes urged us to disregard the press and concentrate on getting the Peterites out twice before the end of the day. He said he was happy with our performance but would have liked us to have got a few more runs when we batted. When I asked him "What would be a good total to declare the second innings", he smiled and said "One step at a time Darrell". The meeting concluded with Mahes reminding us how important it was to maintain the pressure by capturing the two remaining wickets as quickly as possible. He wished us luck and we were away.

Mahes is of legendary status to the 1962 Royal team for being inspirational without being either obtrusive or patronising. Play started on time at 10:00 am on yet another fine day. Kevin Ruberu faced the first over of the day from me and in the fourth ball of the over he played down an in swinger towards Gowri at short leg, who, seeing Ruberu outside his crease, picked up the ball and tried to run him out but missed the wicket. With no one covering up, the ball reached the boundary giving Ruberu four free runs. However, CD soon cleaned up the innings. In the first ball of his second over of the day he had Kevin Ruberu out LBW for 12. The last man R. Abeyasundera played down his first ball from CD but was clean bowled by the next. St. Peter’s were all out for 30 runs. Although the last two partnerships doubled her total, it was a paltry score from a team with a much vaunted batting line up. CD finished the innings with 4 wickets for 14 runs and my final figures were 6 wickets for 7 runs.

Putting the game out of St Peter’s reach With a handy lead of 83 runs, twice St. Peter’s total, Shaw and Gowrie again put on 33 for the first wicket. Shaw was bowled by David Heyn in his first over. Ten runs later Gowrie was out stumped by Ravinda Fernando off the bowling of Travis Fernando. However, cushioned by a handy lead we were never under the same pressure as we were in the first innings. Hamsa and Vijaya took the score to 67 with some positive cricket when Vijaya was bowled by Maurice Decker who seemed to be bowling with increased pace. Sugi joined Hamsa and they batted steadily until Hamsa got an edge and was caught behind by Ravinda Fernando off Decker for 26. CD was in next, mistimed a hook off a short pitched ball from Decker and was caught by Abeyasundera with the score at 93 for 5. Sugi was out next bowled by Travis Fernando after making a useful 16. The next two wickets fell in rapid succession and I declared our second innings closed at 121 for 8 wickets.

Another early collapse Set a target of 205 in a little over 3 hours, the Peterites made another disastrous start when in the second over of the innings Ravinda Fernando hit a swinging full toss from CD to Thiagu’s safe hands at mid on without a run on the board. Tyrone Le Mercier was in next and along with Adithiya de Silva, immediately adopted the usual tactic of batting outside his crease in an attempt to counteract our swing bowling. However it made no difference. In the second ball of my fourth over I clean bowled Adithiya de Silva who was responsible for all four runs of the total up to that point. In walked a nervous looking Richard Heyn. He was clearly feeling the pressure and played down the first ball. He appeared to be shaping to cover drive the next delivery but the ball dipped in late and he was bowled for another duck. Le Mercier was next to go when CD trapped him into giving Vijaya a catch at slip. Losing 4 wickets for 4 runs was a worse start than the first innings and not what St Peter’s had hoped for. David Heyn hit me for a four to the cover boundary but played and missed several balls that were swinging away from him. A straight ball in the same over knocked back his middle stump with the total at 12. CD and I had bowled eight overs each and I thought we should have a break. Sugi, "Ganja" Mahroof and Thiagu shared the next nine overs, five of which were maidens and conceding only nine runs. CD and I then came back on.

Mopping up the tail Tissa Jayaweera and Maurice Decker slowly took the total to 37. Off the first ball of my eleventh over, another overthrow gave Decker a free 5 runs. This brought Jayaweera to face my next ball and he was bowled. The score became 7 for 42 when Bartlett was clean bowled off the first ball he faced giving me my second opportunity for a hat trick in the game. Kevin Ruberu played down the next ball to avert a hat trick, but was out in the last ball of my next over. Three wickets had fallen with the score at 42. The last two wickets fell at 44. A no ball and a single in CD’s eleventh over added to the total but Travis Fernando who had come in at the fall of the 8th wicket was clean bowled in the last ball of the same over.

Decker who was not out in the first innings was the only batsman to provide some resistance but seeing his efforts coming to naught and now joined by the last man he seemed to lose concentration and was well caught by Thiagu off my last ball of the game. We had won the game with an hour to spare. CD finished up the second innings with 3 wickets for 13 runs and my 7 wickets cost 17 runs.

A team effort

They say opening bowlers click in pairs and serve as an inspiration towards each other. I firmly believe that this was the case with CD and me in the years we opened bowling for Royal. I would like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to members of the 1962 cricket team for their unreserved support at all times, on and off the field. Their loyalty is greatly appreciated to this day. I went on to produce bowling efforts which contributed to victories by teams at both club and national level. But no bowling and team effort gave me as much satisfaction as the victory against St Peter’s. As my cousin Eardley often reminds me - "It was not so much that St Peter’s failed to reach 50 in either innings, but that we throttled their batsmen to such an extent that dismissing them seemed an act of mercy".

It was truly my most memorable game of cricket.

Acknowledgements

Anyone who attempts to accurately capture events which took place 46 years ago is hugely indebted to the journalists of the time and their newspaper coverage. I am no exception. I wish to thank Thiagu and Eardley for their editorial assistance and for casting a critical eye over numerous drafts of the article. Eardley was one of the many excited spectators who cheered Royal on over the two days of February 1962 and relished the opportunity to relive that famous game through his involvement in the article.

I wish to thank Shaw, Vjjaya, Gowrie, CD, Thiagu and Tyrone Le Mercier (of St Peter’s domiciled in Melbourne) for filling information gaps and sharing their experiences of the match with me. Most of all, I wish to thank every person who represented Royal during the 1961-2 cricket season without whom it would not have been possible to develop the camaraderie that was so evident in the Peterite game when the game appeared to be slipping from our grasp during the early stages. I feel privileged to have played alongside such a talented and spirited bunch of cricketers.

R * O * Y * A * L - ROYAL!!!

Back to Royal

2009-02-22T12:26:00.000+05:30

Back to Royal…..

The Colombo Oval, 13th & 14th March 1963, Randy Morrell wins the toss and elects to bat. With the score at 254 for 9, the Thomians declare and S.S. Kumar’s boys are in trouble, Cosby is out for 2 and Hamza follows suite, Royal are 17 for 2, Skipper SS scores a single and he’s out for 1, Shaw hangs on batting cautiously with Malale, and then Shaw is caught at 27, Royal are now 42 for 4, Cedric joins Malale and the fireworks start. Those whose heads are heavy, after too much spirits and are in a horizontal state, start to rise like Zombies, staggering yet watch the magic unleashed by Malale.

There aren't many old crocks on the roads after the match, light house too is quiet, everyone is at the Race course, at the Blue and Gold Fair. The popular requests on the public address system, are Elvis Presley’s “Suspicions” and Cliff Richards “The Young Ones”. Yes, we were the young uns at that time.

After 4 hectic days, Thursday to Sunday, our first carnival and the Royal Thomian, Dudley has decreed that the term exams would start on Monday.

Representations and objections, fell on deaf ears and so we decided to take the law into our own hands, Monday morning the entire class [lower VI] met at the Dehiwela zoo, Tapare Jayasekera brought along his guitar. Our first stop was the monkeys cage, where we taught the monkeys to smoke and also other intimate stuff which they learnt so well, that when groups of schoolgirls came, they proudly did what they were taught, which made the girls blush and run away in embarrassment, much to our amusement.

The next stop was the rhinoceros pit, after being chased away from the monkeys, before long we were chased away from here too as we were trying to coax the rhino to jump out of the pit. Next morning, the whole lot were called to the Conference Room with Dudley threatening to suspend anyone without a valid excuse letter. Luckily, all had letters of excuse . We did regret our action of the previous day, as Thayaparan, our botany teacher, an old Royalist himself took our boycott as something personal. However much we tried to explain that it was not his paper that we boycotted, but the first exam he would not listen to us. A few months later he left college, which made us feel guilty. However, he was in for another rude shock, for one Saturday morning he took us to the Negombo Lagoon, on a botany expedition. As we disembarked from the cars, Kaiyyum KKB, got a bright idea of jumping into the lagoon and committing suicide. At first we were all worried, then we realized this was just a hoax, poor Thayaparan was sweating and in a panic and it took him about half an hour to persuade Kaiyyum not to end his life .The moment Kaiyyum agreed to abandon his threat we were all bundled into the cars and back we returned to College, end of the botany expedition.

The following year we coaxed Kos Dias to take us on this trip and he took us to the Bamba beach to study sea plants. The moment he bent down to examine a plant, most of us took off, for the Holy Family back wall was right behind us. We climbed the back wall, and started screaming for the girls to come out. It was a thrill for us to approach the girls from the back door. At that time we were unaware that to our friends in Mt Lavinia, an approach from the rear was a done thing. Kos Diaz, was so mad when he caught us, the trip was abandoned and back we were in college.

Around this time, EC, “Kataya”, was trying to emerge as the disciplinarian of the upper school a self appointed role he was trying to take on supported by a few losers in the staff like Thillainadarasa (aka Sonny Liston) AK Sharma, and a few others. Lower sixth second term exam, Thilla comes to class to supervise and immediately walks up to Lloyd P, who was busy answering his paper lifts him up and gives him an upper cut. Lloyd is dazed and falls back onto the seat, about 5 of us with KKB in the forefront escorted Lloyd out of the class and walked him over to the Cinnamon Gardens police station. While escorting Lloyd to the cop station we could see the whole gang (Kataya and his stooges) looking out from
a classroom noting down the guys accompanying Lloyd. At the cop station, while Lloyd sat dazed we made a statement which was more descriptive than a Muhammed Ali, knock out fight and Lloyd signed the statement. The inquiry by the cops went on for about 6 months till Thilla had to finally apologize to Lloyd, and this brought an abrupt end to Thilla’s boxing career at Royal, but started the fight between Kataya Gunasekera and us.
Unfortunately, Kataya was our Zoo master and just after this incident he was able to get his revenge. While the rest were dissecting the rat, according to the principles laid out in the text book, I cut the scrotal sac and had the testes in my forceps scouting for a suitable person to put it on. There was NR Fernando, trying to emulate his father who was an anesthetist, very busy dissecting, removing his hanky from his pocket every 5 mts to wipe the sweat off his face. So I walked up to NR, and managed to lodge the testes in his hanky, little did I realize that Kataya was watching my every move. A few minutes later
NR took the hanky out and wiped his face unaware that he was rubbing the rats testes all over his face and when he realized that he had the testicles stuck to his face, there was pandemonium. Kataya threw me out from class, for the rest of the year and unfortunately he was the Zoo teacher in the upper VIth, first and second year as well, so I was out of his class from mid ’63 to the end of December ’65.

February 1963, NR & Dr. Kanda are suspended from college, as they were caught by the Principal cutting college. They were standing for a bus right opposite the Principal’s bungalow in Reid Ave. That afternoon NR decides to run away from home and he comes to my place in a Morris Minor taxi, he sits in the backseat refuses to get down and he says “machan, I am running away from home, pay the taxi fare”, which was about 3 bucks, big money in those days. So I went down the lane collecting money and finally
paid the fare. We now go over to Gamini Edirisinghe’s (Kalu Albert), which is a few yards away from my back door. NR relates his story and asks for Albert’s bike to which Gamini responds “you run machan, but leave my bike and run”. In 1984, I go to the UDA head office in Colombo, to meet Dr. NR, he was the legal advisor to the Prime Minister and also Deputy Chairman UDA, over a property in Kandy damaged during the 83 riots.

I was called in immediately and over a phone call to the Kandy branch, the matter was resolved. I thanked him and when I was leaving he says “ado, thank you wont do, what about my fee”. I then reminded him that I paid a retainer 21 years ago, he looked puzzled about my fee, he looked puzzled and when I reminded him that I paid his taxi fare, I was chased out with Fs and Bs.

1964, encouraged by his goons, Kataya without Kos Dias’s permission forcibly puts an additional desk and chair in Kos’s room for himself. Kos was then Head Master Upper School. Kaiyyum and I walk into see Kos, usually we are full of smiles when we go to see Kos, but this day we had glum looks on our face, and when Kos inquired why, we told him we were disappointed with him, that he was scared of Kataya and that before long Kataya would take his seat and throw him out. We dared Kos to throw Kataya’s desk and
chair out of his office and not to tolerate him. Next morning, we noticed the desk and chair were thrown out of the office and we congratulated Kos, that ended Kataya’s pranks for a while.

1962, lower V Kota Silva’s Latin exam. Two and a half rows are copying from Mung Ataya’s paper. I am next to Mung and Kadalay Janz copies from me and it goes down to the rest on Kadalay’s right and from there to the last 2 rows. Mung, suddenly hits his hand on his forehead to attract our attention and inserts a word, we follow suite. The next day Kota slaps the entire 2 1/2 rows for writing filth in the Latin exam. The last two in the last row were Hans Kinch and Rukoniva, the Dutch and Polish Ambassadors sons,
twice the height of Kota, he stands on his toes and slaps them too. Mung inserted “Clitoria”, he Latinized the clitoris and before handing over his answer script scratched it off, while we thought it was a Latin word and paid the price for it. This made me change over to Madam’s English Lit class the next year.

In the 60s, trousers had no zips, but buttons. Kobbe’s trousers had no buttons and he didn't wear any underwear either. He sat right in front of Madam, and when the class was engrossed in Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice, Kobbe’s trio would venture out from the button-less trouser to listen to the antics
of Portia and Bassanio trying to save Antonio’s pound of flesh from Shylock. Then madam notices the 3 who should not be in the class and says ‘Umagiliya sit properly”, Kobbe just slips them in and before long madam repeats the 3 words again, this interruption occurs at least 3 or 4 times in class.

Like in the movie The Great Escape, where the allied POWs discover they have a master forger in their midst, we too discovered one in the college hostel. Unlike the POWs who were forging travel documents, we only needed new report cards. So before the end of term we bribed Dudley’s peon Kulatunge, and he in turn gave us the reports in their recycled brown paper envelopes with the Raja Sevaya Pinisa seal on it
and in addition blank report cards. We met at no: 27 Bagatelle Rd, which was Jega’s residence and our club house and the original reports were read out loud, amidst jeers and cheers at the marks and comments. Then the blank report cards were filled out and every subject was in the 90s, Dudley’s comments “Unsatisfactory” in the original report now read “Excellent” in the forged version and the signature looked more authentic than Dudley’s . These were now replaced in the envelopes and mailed out and the originals were kept safely with the parent or guardian’s signature being signed by the master forger. Everybody was happy, parents were happy with the reports and the teachers with the original reports that were turned in with the “parents signature” at the beginning of the new term. Only, I missed the little fun I had at the expense of a friend who lives in Alfred Place. Before we discovered the master forger, the original reports were mailed home, and I used to visit this guy on the day the reports arrive at
home. He used to get 3 and 4 for chemistry and physics and when I get there in the evenings, his father used to bat to me for about half an hour till our friend finishes his bathroom session. So on the day the report arrives, the topic of discussion is studies and marks. When I am asked for my marks I say 97 and 96 for chemistry and physics, and start batting about how easy these subjects are if one devotes at least 2 to 3 hours each day to study at home. I avoid him the next day at school knowing fully well that he would have got the works at home, and he comes looking for me and I get a work out full of Fs and Bs, for he is gated.

1964, Kalu Albert makes the mistake of announcing that his 18th B’day was the following week. When we asked him for a party, his reply was, you beggars will eat and go and will not bring any presents. We promised to bring presents, still he said no till Lionel Peiris assured him that we would bring gifts. So on that day, about 35 guys were at Gamini’s all with gifts, shirt boxes well wrapped in brown paper, as in the
sixties there was no gift wrapping paper. I had no shirt box and found a box for the “Morning Pride” shaving cream tube. So I filled it with pebbles and put some old cloth on both ends so that it would not rattle if shaken. Wrapped this in brown paper and walked over for the party, 18 year old Gamini was beaming he had received 35 gifts and when he took mine, his first question was “ Is it a wristlet or a mouth organ”, to which I replied it was a surprise. This was the first time that Gamini played such a perfect host forcing us to eat and eat, and we did so knowing that this was the last party at his place. The gifts were stacked in the office room, 35 shirt boxes all wrapped in identical brown paper and one box containing either a wrist watch or mouth organ. When his relations came in they were taken to the office room, a proud B’day boy displaying the generosity of his friends. Finally when it was time to say goodbye, he called me aside and says “machan since you organized the party, take at least 10 shirts I don't need all”. Knowing what was inside the boxes, I refused his generosity and got the hell out of there. A few minutes later I get a call, when I answered, he says “g, gyg the hell out of there”. A few minutes later I get a call, when I answered, he says “bloody bastard” and hangs up. The whole family had got together in the office room and opened gift after gift, each box had old knickers wrapped in newspaper, or old jock straps wrapped in newspapers, finally he had opened the last box thinking at least that had a shirt, unfortunately that too had the same stuff. That was Albert’s last B’day party.

In 1962, NR was unanimously elected chairman of the Buddhist Brotherhood. Later, the election was annulled and fresh elections were held, as there was enough evidence to prove that Kaiyyum had led a group of about 30 members of the Hindu Students Society to vote enbloc for NR. So much for the racial violence in the country today. Maybe the tree climbers in Parliament need to learn a lesson from this.

And finally, this is Atu’s favourite opening stroke, when he comes to the states each year, a trip he wangles annually as head of the AIDS & VD dept. When Atu’s pater passed away, the hostellers went to Ratnapura for the funeral. When it was time for the boys to return, Atu had inquired from each one whether they had enough cash for bus fare. Everyone said “yes machan don't worry”. Carl Thambirajah had 10 cts, Dr Peter Suba 10 cts, Ganga Ismail 5 cts etc. So Atu arranged for them to return with Barney
Raymond who was coming back alone in the hearse. Barney made the mistake in stopping on the way to buy a bottle of arrack, which he offered the boys in the back after taking a few sips. The bottle was never returned to the owner. Finally when they returned to Colombo, he had gone to the hostel to drop them off, however one could not get down, and the boys had pleaded with Barney to drop him off at his brother’s place in Unity Place, behind Ladies back wall, opposite end of Balu Amme’s. So when
Barney reached his destination, he had rung the door bell and opened the hearse back door and slid the stretcher down (where the coffin is placed) and rolled out Dr Peter Suba, who lay on the stretcher comatose. On seeing this Suba’s poor mater has screamed “kadawuley, kadawuley”, thinking the son’s dead body was being brought home.

I am sure if the genie gives us 3 wishes, every Royalist would wish as follows.

1. To go BACK TO ROYAL ( Happy land, Happy land) from the 1st form onwards.
2. To have the same masters.
3. To have the same classmates, as we have become one big family.

BAWA. – LA, USA 2008

2009-01-19T13:59:00.003+05:30

Bailas, verses and boundar line heroes

Sunday Times Mar 9 2008

Oh! Bailas, verses and boundary line heroes(Dedicated to David, Royal’s respected ground boy of yore; Noor, his onetime able assistant, who later took over from him; the legendary ‘Kadalay’,who was eternally flitting about the Royal Boundary Line like a benevolent spirit and the many others ,who have so ungrudgingly served the cause of Royal Cricket from the Boundary Line)

From the boundary we always cheered our heroes. (Pic by Saman Kariyawasam)That joy and glory has been most heart-warming for us, watching cricket, especially Royal cricket, from the boundary line.Apart from pretending to wield the willow and polish the cherry, once in a while, in the dim, distant past, our life, had been well spent, we should say, indulging in that pleasant pastime of watching Royal cricket for well over 50 years-watching not only the Royal-Thomian but the other games as well played by the Royal First eleven.

Indeed, if colours were to be awarded for watching -consistency, then quite a few of us like Devaka Rodrigo, Rohan Hapugalle, Ranjit Jayasekera, Chrysantha Perera, Jeiya Ranasinghe, R.J.(one time known as Rakshana Janashakthi) de Silva, Dr. J.C. Fernando, Nimal Dias Jayasinghe, to name a few, along with yours truly, would surely be deserving contenders!Those days the Royal Primary School (RPS), now known as the Royal Junior, though very much Royal in spirit, was a separate entity ably led by that great Headmaster, A. F. de Saa Bandaranayake. RPS was never given the Friday half-holiday enjoyed by the students of the College proper, whenever matches were played at Reid Avenue.

Both entities were in double session during our time.Consequently, we, at RPS, had to adopt surreptitious means to sneak through the RPS Tuck Shop, situated then adjoining the old, College Hostel, during the afternoon 2.10 interval, highly motivated as we were to get a glimpse of our cricketing heroes. (They were our only heroes then!)- the Van Twest brothers Desmond and Brian, looking crisp-white and elegant; Nirmalalingam , the immaculately stylish opening batsmen, the diminutive Lalith Hewavitarane; ‘Frecko’ Kreltsheim, with his magical wicket-keeping gloves; Ubhaya and Ranjit de Silva, two fine allrounders ;Turnour Wickremasinghe, the left arm spin artist, perhaps so named at birth by his progenitor, sensing a future spinning prospect; the wily Wignarajah, another left arm spinner, quite elastic just before and at the point of delivery; the two Seneviratnes, mysteriously (for us) known as ‘Ata Gemba’ and ‘Gadaya’. ‘Ata Gemba’, in particular, will be well remembered for his peculiar stance at the crease, which both interested the observer and confused the bowler. He gave the impression of a rather tallish soldier, crouching in question mark fashion, marching on the same spot, in this instance the batting crease, waiting to hammer the enemy out of sight! It was a peculiar form of footwork which began even before the bowler commenced his run up. Little as we were, it was not difficult to recognize him not only because of his idiosyncratic stance but also because the enterprising cheering squads announced his arrival with well-orchestrated strains of “‘Ata Gemba’………………. croak, croak!’”

Regular rejoicing Apart from the cricket at the centre, one couldn’t help being moved by the regular rejoicing on the boundary-line ,mostly with innovative ‘Bailas’ (each season churning out a new one ) sung by the many Royalists, senior and junior, who thronged the boundary , push bikes, flags and all, to hail their cricketing heroes, with the juniors proudly joining in chorus (quite unlike the dull mortuary lull one experiences at Reid Avenue these days- hardly a bike, a flag or any cheering –only vacant spaces policed by College prefects in tie!)Among those innovative, enterprising groups were the “Bucaneers”, a rollicking cluster of Royalists, living up to their self-proclaimed label, one of whose gang was one time a prominent and industrious member of the Sri Lankan Cabinet. He may or may not have had a premonition then of things to come, when he lustily joined the rest to sing about – “Lakmavage ekama putha,Kothalawala mahatha....”along with, Summa Amarasinghe (father of the 1983 winning Royal captain and current Royal coach), ‘Honker Nana, Jehan Raheem, Ponnasamy, Jayantha Jayaratne,’Kapoor’, Magha-lingam,’Pibba’ Perera, Abey-singho to name a few, intermittently asking the inviting question,“Oh, what will you give me….if I show…you the….?” or the more serious one ,“How are you Baldsing dear, how are you…….?”or the unmistakable assertion,“We are boys of Royal College, Kollupitiya South,………..followed by an important and rhyming bit of information,Have you heard of Bundi Belleth, fat, short and stout” rather accurately describing one of our dear, respected masters of yore; or the ‘Abeyratne Anthem’, so fondly dedicated to the female cadres of the ‘domestics’ fraternity,“Abeyratne kivvama than kauda nodanne,Visheshayen ilandari soyala balanne…..”None of these bailas was ever written down as such. It was simply the oral tradition –or better still an oral-aural-oral tradition. And it was very much on the job training: standing, listening, imbibing (ever so readily!), singing. We also knew that sooner or later we had to be very much a part of that tradition and contribute our share, which we did more surely no sooner than we hit the Third Form at College. A quick, string hopper, ‘pol sambol’ and beef curry lunch, all for Rs1/25, a la Saranapala, at the Tuck Shop, situated then next to the Old Lab and off we crossed to the happy plains of Reid Avenue. We used to occupy one of the wings of the Old Pavilion – that magnificent edifice of character, sadly no more, demolished by insensitivity and insensibility. We had our place reserved there every Friday and Saturday, whenever Royal played at Reid Avenue-Kalu and the Merry Band – (so the papers of the day reported it), with Anura Rajapakse and self on button accordions, the late Anwer Thassim (‘Thassa’) on bongos, Thosai Para (now known as Dr Waran), Gane Weeravagu, the two Fernandos, ‘Ura’ and ‘MRS’, ‘Chester’ Ratnatunge, ‘Gamit’ Ameresekere, P.B. Madurapperuma, (Madhu), the late ‘Rana Betta’ (B.N. Ranasinghe), Rudolph ‘Rowdy’ Wiiliams, ‘Ombi’ Sivalingam, ‘Mahasona’ de Silva, O.K. (Omar Khayyam) Raheem, to name a few, all joining in unison in between overs and muting their efforts before each delivery, so as not to disturb any batsman of either team. Omar and ‘Rowdy’ in particular were real assets, well -versed in the oral tradition handed down by their elder brothers Jehan and ‘Alfy’ respectively.

It was from them that we really got the yen and feel for the seniors. Omar, in particular, was a real treat. At times he led the way and reproduced in his own inimitable style what he had picked up aurally from his elder brother! So for Omar it was,“Hona iting (for Onna Ithing)Pata…gatha( for Patang gaththa)Bahila selema( for baila sellama!)”or “kusi hama Sehera (for you know what!)Such perennial favourites as ‘Thanakola Peththo’, with the intriguing prologue,“…..Pasyale cadju kalaa,Beire wewe wathura beela,Wheel-barrow eken yanawa vel balanta….” or “..Kalamediriyo –o, mokoda kapothi…” were very much up in our list.We had our own share of innovations as well, such as, “….Aney ‘Navva’ mehata warenko, Mage langing waadi weyanko…” sung to the tune of a famous Hindi favourite of the day ‘Le Mama le Manamali’, ‘Navva’ being a tender reference to a dear class-mate of ours.At that time, watching our cricketing heroes, little did we realize that our own classmates would in turn take on that mantle.

In fact , seven of the RC ‘54 Group went onto play in the Royal-Thomian between 1961 and 1963 and win their cricket colours, to wit, Darrel Lieversz and late S.S. Kumar, who captained in 1962 and 1963 respectively, S. Thyagarajah, Padde Withane,’Kota’ Jayaratne (who still holds the Royal-Thomian wicket-keeping record for most number of dismissals in an innings ), Neil Crozier and ‘Cuckoo’ Rajaratnam, the latter being the progeny of one our respected masters, who himself played for Royal in his time and continued the good work while on the staff by assisting Royal cricket on the field ,and ‘thrashing’ resounding ‘sixers’ off it, as any of his students would readily assert. ’Kota’ and Kumar were almost inseparable on and off the field. When at the wicket the two were an absolute delight to watch: polish and perfect understanding.But there were others in our time, also classmates, who should have played for Royal, if not for unfortunate circumstances.

Of these the late Sarath Kodagoda and Geoffry Assauw were notable certainties. Sarath, that scion of a famous catering clan, who, but for a nasty injury sustained in the revived Royal-Zahira rugby encounter of 1959 (a fearful suicide expedition from Zahira’s perspective) would most certainly have adorned any Royal side. In fact, Sarath was a brilliant cricketer, a batting marvel moulded in the shadow of such cricketing greats as Mahesa Rodrigo (literally and figuratively in the shadow, so to speak, for they were neighbours then). Sarath was cited by a former Royal College master, with cricketing insight, Elmo de Bruin, “as an outstanding example of a complete cricketer.” Sarath lived, thought and loved his cricket.Real treat Watching from the boundary line it was a real treat to listen to Sarath regaling us with a ball by ball ‘Test’ commentary, very much in the manner of a Rex Alston and then giving us a resume of the day’s play with the crisp likeness of a Johnny Moyes. One had only to close ones eyes to be immediately transported to the ‘Test’ atmosphere at Lords or the ‘MCG’. Sarath captained every Royal team at every age group and was well on his way……until that unfortunate injury which put paid to what would surely have been a rewarding career for him and for us. Geoffry Assauw, a brilliant batsman in the classical mould also would have adorned the Royal team if indiscretions had not got the better of him, which placed him at cross purposes with the establishment! Reliable information has it that later on he had been selected to play in a trial for Victoria and thence, perhaps, to achieve greater glory, but for his own carelessness. Geoff never turned up for that trial for Victoria for reasons best known to him!Watching Royal cricket may or may not have made us as fanatical as that electrician, who, when asked what ‘DC’ stands for at an interview for promotion to the position of Foreman, promptly, confidently and loyally responded that ‘DC’ stands for Denis Compton, of course!Joy and pleasureAt least as far as he was concerned he had not got his circuits crossed!

Yet , it was from the Royal boundary line that we derived so much joy and pleasure-the type of pleasure only a series of scintillating centuries and a 99 in the ’56 season from the enchanting willow of wicket-keeper batsman Selvi Perimpanayagam could provide; or the sheer joy only the crafty fingers of an artiste like ‘Mynah’ Wijesinghe could offer. Who could forget that memorable effort, when the artiste grabbed four wickets in four balls, (in rapid succession, of course!) in the Royal-Ananda game of 1957 at Campbell Place, thereby earning for himself a warm niche in our hearts, (which has not lost its warmth to this day) and a cricketing memento from that great scribe S.P. Foenander- a gift of a set of books on cricket presented by Foenander himself at the College General Assembly amidst resounding cheers. Who knows the donor may have intended the young recipient to join his tribe in time to come! Who could forget the instance, also at Campbell Place, in 1959, against Nalanda, when Daya Sahabandu, sent in as the night-watchman ducked, on sweet advice proffered by skipper Sarath Samarasinghe, batting at the other end, that the next ball was going to be a bouncer, only to be hit on his neck and thereabouts by a pretty ordinary delivery, nearly getting himself declared neck b.w! Who could forget ‘Kota’ Jayaratne being carried away, horizontal, with his private parts in total disarray, after being hit by a snorter from Brian Perumal at Reid Avenue in the 1961 Josephian game. This was reminiscent of the Wesley game at Campbell Park in 1954, when A. Rabindran had to be carried off after getting his nose cracked trying to hook a bouncer off Adihetty. Who could forget the many refreshing innings played by Jagath Fernando (the one at Campbell Park in 1969, being particularly so,) culminating in that devastatingly delightful century in the 1971 Royal-Thomian, which broke Ronnie Reid’s series record for the highest score or the polished elegance of Sumithra Warnakulasuriya, who, after many a hundred for Royal, lived up to his promise in the Royal-Thomian of 1980 by scoring the highest in the series -197 runs so immaculately compiled.Decisions based on personal acrimony rather than merit prevented a promising star from representing his country with distinction.From the boundary line one could recall at random other memorable performances by Royalists- performances that spelt character, courage and assertiveness.

For instance, in the 1963 Royal-Thomian, Vijaya Malalasekera sent us literally reeling with joy on the Oval Green with a cracker jack innings of 112 not out, his hundred coming off a power packed drive, so powerful that it deflected off the hand of a writhing Roger D’ Silva to the boundary (As a former sub-continental commentator might have said: the ball went scoo-rr-sching mothe-rrr ea-rrr-th to the rr-a-a-a-ps!). It seems that Malale was seeing the red cherry like a football after lunch. What he did at lunch to improve his vision is anybody’s guess! He literally pulverized that ball and was rumoured to have been admonished by his ascetic father, a respected and avid proponent of ‘ahimsa’, for causing undue harm to both the ball and to ‘outstation’ sensibilities!Indelible mark More recently in the 1992 Royal-Thomian, Gamini Perera made an indelible mark with a remarkably brilliant, match saving hundred. Given the circumstances, it was sweeter and far more rewarding than winning any match. By that innings, not only did Gamini bring honour upon his school, his team and himself, he also prevented an unique bit of history from being made. For, had the Thomians under Suresh Gunasekera, won that year, (which they most surely would have, if not for that century, Harin Samarasekera’s breath-taking half-century and Nalliah Rajan’s dogged innings), it would have been the first time (perhaps the only time ever) in the series, when a father and son would have led either side to victory, Suresh’s father the late Premalal having led the Thomian’s to victory in 1964. The wonder of Gamini’s memorable innings was that the night before, when it was all panic in the Royal Camp, he had promised his coach that he would get a century!Whirlwind partnership What of Jothilingam’s hundred in the 1956 Royal-Thomian under high-fever conditions or Royal skipper Michael Wille’s identical score of 121 in 1957.

What of Skipper Nirmalalingam’s scintillating sixty-nine runs in the 1954 Royal -Thomian, who, but for an unfortunate run out, would surely have got a brilliant hundred. What of the whirlwind partnership of 106 in 40 minutes by tail-enders Vidda (Vidanage) and Harsha (Samarajeewa), better known for their bowling prowess (the latter affectionately identified by a similar sounding nomme de plume then) in the Peterite game of 1960 at Reid Avenue, mostly against the attack of the firey Anton Perera and the wily Le Mercier; or Darrell Lieversz’s and R.C. de Silva’s glorious effort in routing the Peterites, comprising, inter alia, the famous Heyn brothers, Richard and David, at Reid Avenue in 1962.

The two panthers, Darrell and ‘CD’, the one breathing fire and the other smoke, shared between them the twenty wickets,12 and 8 respectively, running through the Peterites by early Saturday, thereby enabling us to make it to the matinee show quite comfortably; or Ajit Devasurendra’s patient hundred against the Peterites also at Reid Avenue in 1980,in a valiant, yet futile , bid to save the game for Royal; or Ranjith De Silva’s mighty six in 1954 over covers at Campbell Park onto the ‘Mara’ tree, which was on a higher elevation on the main road, a truly ‘Mara’ six ,so to speak; or Sarath Samarasinghe, irrepressibly and dangerously slashing outside the off-stump to send the ball sizzling to the boundary; or his acrobatic wicket-keeping accompanied by that resounding ‘howzaaat!’ with or without the ball in hand; or young Chandana Jayakody’s back to the wall innings (thank Heaven that his back was to the wall!!!) with eleven hungry Thomians literally breathing down his neck and legs, to save Royal from certain defeat in the Royal-Thomian of 1984; or Thotuwilage’s two delightful innings (95 and 108) at the Royal-Thomian of 2001, where he missed creating a record of scoring twin hundreds – these were only a part of the salacious menu dished out over the years for us on the boundary line.

Hovering patiently on the Royal Boundary Line all these years has been a very pleasant and rewarding experience, indeed!

R Sritharan

2008-12-16T17:13:00.000+05:30

Remembering a fun classmate and jewel of a friend

R. SRI THARAN

We mourn the loss of a dear person, R. Sri Tharan, fondly called Kaiam or KKB by his friends. Let us celebrate his life, and remember him for his attributes, his way of life and, more important, his loyalty to all those who knew him.

I am here to represent his Class of ’56 and his friends at Royal College. I first met Kaiam 52 years ago.He was quick-witted, always smiling, and ever-ready for a prank. He was a teacher’s nightmare! Cricket was his passion, and he was a sound batsman – on and off the field.Recalling his pranks, a mutual friend, Asoka, told me how Kaiam would stop and drink the milk from the bottles left by the milkman at the doorsteps of his neighbours, when he went on his 5 a.m. jogs with Asoka.

He believed in enjoying and living life to the full, every moment of his life. At the Royal Thomian match, Kaiam was always in peak form, calling the shots.

Under his happy-go-lucky exterior, there was a pearl, or a deity, hidden within him, and this precious something gave light to those immersed in darkness. Kaiam always gave a helping hand to strangers and the needy.

He was a bastion of racial tolerance, and one of the few mortals who could pass a modern morality test.His heart was always with Royal College. In my last chat with him two days before he left us, he asked how he could continue to live here, when our good friends were so many thousands of miles away.

On behalf of the Class of ’56 and all our friends in Sri Lanka, Australia, Britain, Canada, the US and other parts of the world, I bid farewell to our dear friend.

Anantham Harin, New York

Captain Arthur E A Bartholomew

2008-12-15T17:38:00.000+05:30

Captain Arthur E.A. Bartholomew

An Officer and a Gentleman

Arthur Bartholomew passed away of heart failure on Monday November 17, 2008, in Scottsdale, Arizona. He was 79.

Arthur was an alumnus of Royal College, Colombo, where he spent his formative years. Not only was he an excellent student but was also an outstanding rugger player representing the college in the inter school matches in the Bradby Shield tournament and played for the Havelocks Sports Club. He was also an excellent cadet rose to the rank of RSM in the Cadet Corp.He applied to join the newly formed Ceylon Army and was selected as an Office Cadet to attend The Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst in the UK for training. He graduated from there and was commissioned into the Sri Lanka Artillery. It was during this phase of his life that he met Anne in London. However before returning to his Regiment in Sri Lanka he went for training to the School of Artillery in Larkhill, UK. On completion of that training he returned to Sri Lanka and joined his Regiment which at that time was stationed in picturesque Trincomalee bordering the Eastern Coast of Sri Lanka.Anne flew out to Sri Lanka where they got married and I had the honour of being his best man. Their two sons, Ean and Stuart and daughter, Tessa, were born in Ceylon.At different times he was assigned to different duties that required him to serve in different parts of the island including the army training centre in the hills of Diyatalawa, where he trained many officers who subsequently became senior officers in the present Army.One such assignment took him to the jungles of Amparai which to him was the quintessence of his army career. In 1959, he decided to say goodbye to the land that he loved and immigrated to the USA with his family. The family settled in Florida where daughter Tara was born on Arthur’s birthday. Arthur was an executive in the citrus industry in both Florida and California. He loved travel, photography and most of all his grandkids.It was with great sadness that we heard the news of Arthur’s demise on 17th November. He had many friends all over the world who have expressed their sorrow.Extracts from the Guest Book - Arthur was my friend from prep school days, through Royal, Sandhurst and the Regiment. Though our ways parted to different parts of the globe, we kept in touch. I have fond memories of him. He was an Officer and a Gentleman. My sympathies extended to his family. May he rest in peace!
Capt. Tony Anghie

I knew Arthur since my Trinco days in the late 1950’s! What a glorious time we had at Floris Court where we lived in two opposite flats! We could not have had better neigbours! He was a gentleman of pleasant personality, a congenial friend and a respected superior to those who worked with him! May he rest in Peace! Brigadier George Fernando Captain Arthur-We loved you in life and even more in death We will always cherish and remember your heart warming conversations that seemed to ignite us with fire. “Once a Gunner always a Gunner”. All who knew you and served with you in the Sri Lanka Artillery will surely miss you. Till we meet again in the shores of Heaven our fond remembrances.
Captain Callistus and Megal Corera, Michigan, USA.

Arthur is preceded in death by his Dear Wife Anne and their Daughter Tessa. Arthur is survived by his two sons, Ean and Stuart; his daughter Tara ; his brother and sister-in-law Vernon and Katie (Australia).A memorial service was held at Holy Cross Episcopal Church Winter Haven on Monday November 24, 2008. Arthur’s ashes were interred with those of his late wife Anne and daughter Tessa in Tallahassee. Peace be with him!
Capt. Don Weerasinghe (Retd).

Lollo's Stag Say

2008-10-07T11:51:00.000+05:30

OLD ROYALIST (MELBOURNE) STAG DINNER SPEECH - Sep 2008

by E LORENSZ PEREIRA

I AM DELIGHTED THAT BRIAN (LIEVERSZ) IS SPEAKING TONIGHT.
I HEARD HIM RECENTLY SPEAK AT THE ROYAL RUGBY STAG DINNER IN COLOMBO IN JUNE THIS YEAR.

IT WAS TERRIFIC AND HIGHLY ACLAIMED AND WIDELY ACKNOWLEDGED AS ONE OF THE BEST TOASTS GIVEN AT THE STAG DINNER.

SO, WHY DO YOU HAVE TO LISTEN TO ANOTHER SPEAKER TONIGHT?
DAMN GOOD QUESTION.

LET ME TELL YOU OF THE SAGA OF HOW I GOT HERE.

IT IS TOTALLY ATTRIBUTED TO THE EXCEPTIONAL SALES SKILLS OF ONE OF YOU GUYS.

HE HAS TO BE THE SUPREMO OF ALL SALESMEN, THE CHAP WHO SELLS ICE TO THE ESKIMOS.

FOR NEARLY SIX MONTHS THIS CHAP CONTINUOUSLY PESTERED, PERSUADED, HARRSSED AND TORMENTED ME TO SPEAK AT THIS DINNER TONIGHT.

FOR NEARLY SIX MONTHS I KEPT GIVING HIM AN EMPHATIC REFUSAL.
YET, HERE AM I SPEAKING TO YOU TONIGHT. I MUST BE WEAK AS PISS.

HIS NAME IS SURAJ JAYAWICKRAMA, ONE OF OUR RECENT PRESIDENTS.

FOR THE LAST SIX MONTHS, HE WAS OMNI PRESENT.

UNFORTUNATELY FOR ME, WE CAUGHT THE TRAIN TO WORK FROM THE SAME STATION.

I TRIED EVERY PLOY TO AVOID MEETING THIS GUY EACH MORNING.
CAUGHT DIFFERENT TRAINS, CHANGED COMPARTMENTS, BUT THERE HE WAS WHENEVER I LOOKED UP, WITH NO WORDS EXCHANGED, BUT THE SWEETEST OF GRINS, A SORT OF SMILING ASSASIN, CONVEYING A MEAN MESSAGE OF WHAT WAS REQUIRED OF ME.

INDEED A RIGHT ROYAL STALKER.
PROVES PERSEVERANCE PAYS.

INSPITE OF ALL THESE GOINGS ON, I MUST ADMIT THAT I CONSIDER MYSELF EXTREMELY PRIVILEDGED AND HONOURED TO STAND BEFORE YOU TONIGHT TO SAY A FEW WORDS AT THIS OLD ROYALISTS STAG DINNER, WHICH SORT OF SAW ITS BEGINNINGS IN A CONVERSATION BETWEEN GEORGE FERNANDO AND MYSELF ON A TRAIN JOURNEY FROM WORK, SOME 25 YEARS AGO.

SO TONIGHT HAS SOME SPECIAL APPEAL TO ME.

IN RESPECT TO A TOPIC FOR TONIGHT, I DID REPEATEDLY CONFESS TO SURAJ, THAT I HAD EXHAUSTED MY INSPIRATION AND THAT 1 WAS TRULY UNABLE TO FIND A TOPIC THAT I COULD SPEAK PASSIONATELY ABOUT AND DO JUSTICE TO THIS OCCASION.

"SPEAK ON ANYTHING", HE SAID.

THAT GAVE ME SOME ENCOURAGEMENT, AS I HAVE THIS REPUTATION FOR TALKING A LOT OF BULL.

HOWEVER, TO GET EVEN WITH THIS GUY, BUT REGRETABLY AT YOUR EXPENSE, AND I DO SINCERELY APOLOGISE FOR THAT, I HAVE DECIDED TO SPEAK ON SOMETHING VERY DULL, BORING AND SOMEWHAT EGOISTICAL.

SORRY GUYS, BLAME IT ON SURAJ.

I AM GOING TO SPEAK ABOUT MYSELF.

2008 HAS BEEN AN EXCEPTIONALLY SIGNIFICANT AND NOSTALGIC SPORTING YEAR FOR ME.

FIFTY YEARS AGO, IN 1958, TWO MAJOR SPORTING CONTESTS AT ROYAL, DRAMATICALLY INFLUENCED MY LIFE.

FIRSTLY, IN 1958, I CAPTAINED ROYAL AGAINST ST. THOMAS, CAPTAINED BY MY VERY DEAR FRIEND MIKE TISSERA.

IN MY OPINION, MIKE IS PROBABLY THE FINEST ALLROUND CRICKETER, BOTH ON AND OFF THE FIELD, - AS A PLAYER, CAPTAIN AND ADMINISTRATOR, PRODUCED BY SRI LANKA.

TO MARK THE OCCASION, A JOINT CELEBRATORY DINNER WAS HELD AT THE COLOMBO GOLF CLUB, JUST PRIOR TO THE BIG MATCH.
MIKE'S AND MY TEAM MEMBERS FROM ALL PARTS OF THE GLOBE TURNED UP.

IT WAS A SENSATIONAL CELEBRATION OF WHAT TRUE SPORTSMANSHIP SHOULD BE ALL ABOUT.

CRICKETERS WHO WERE BITTER FOES AND RIVALS ON FIELD ONE DAY, BECOMING BOSUM AND INTIMATE LIFE LONG FRIENDS OFF FIELD THE NEXT.

SUCH A CIVILISED SPORTING PHENOMENON COULD ONLY HAVE OCCURRED BETWEEN ROYAL AND ST THOMAS OF COURSE, THERE ARE OBVIOUS CULTURAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE TWO SCHOOLS.
FOR INSTANCE, OBSERVING THE THOMIANS WALKING INTO DINNER THAT NIGHT, I NOTED A DISTINCT AIR OF CONFIDENCE IN THEIR MANNERISMS AND A SUBTLE TOUCH OF ARISTOCRATIC SUPERIORITY - AS IF THEY OWNED THE PLACE.

ON THE OTHER HAND, I LOOKED AT MY TEAM MEMBERS, AT BANDU, PERA, THE TWO SARATHS, RK AND OTHERS AND THEY SEEMED TO BE GOING ABOUT THEIR BUSINESS NOT CARING A DAMN AS TO WHO THE BLOODY HELL OWNED THE PLACE.

I THINK YOU GENTLEMEN CAN RELATE TO THAT. WE, ROYALISTS, SEEM TO HAVE THIS SORT OF YAKKO, DARE DEVIL SPIRIT IN US, - A MOST PRAGMATIC PHILOSOPHICAL ATTITUDE TO LIFE.

HOWEVER, THERE HAVE BEEN SOME COMMON INFLUENCES LIKE WHEN THE WARDEN OF ST THOMAS'S, CANNON DE SARAM, INVITED MY FATHER, A STAUNCH ROYALIST, TO BECOME A MEMBER OF THE BOARD OF ST THOMAS'S.

WARDEN DE SARAM'S INVITE STATED, "I WANT TO IMPORT SOME ROYAL CULTURE INTO ST THOMAS'S" - INDEED A VERY VISIONARY WARDEN.

MIKE TISSERA AND I ARE THE CLOSEST OF FRIENDS, BUT IN OUR YOUTH WE WERE FIERCE OPPONENTS, BOTH ON AND OFF THE FIELD.

WE WERE CHASING THE SAME GIRL. LETS CALL HER BRIDGET, BECAUSE SHE WAS AS BEAUTIFUL AND SEXY AS THE REAL BRIDGET BARDOT. SHE WAS JUST OOZING WITH SEX APPEAL.

I HAVE NEVER COME ACROSS A FEMALE SINCE THEN WITH THE SAME DYNAMIC EROTICISCM AND SENSUALLY APPETISING LIPS.
I CALLED IT, "THE COME AND F@#$ ME LOOK".
JUST PICTURE THIS SETTING.

BRIDGET, MIKE AND I ARE AT SINHALESE TUITION FOR OUR SSC EXAM.
THE TUTOR IS MIKE'S UNCLE, UNCLE RUFUS, - A TRULY LOVELY MILD MANNERED GENTLEMAN.

HOWEVER, UNCLE RUFUS SUFFERS BADLY FROM VERBAL DIARRHOEA. HE JUST RATTLES ALONG FOR THE HOUR, IN HIS LITTLE WORLD, QUITE OBLIVIOUS THAT THE THREE OF US ARE THERE, PACKED LIKE SARDINES IN HIS LITTLE STUDY.

IN OUR WORLD, BRIDGET IS EXPLOITING HER SENSUALITY, RUBBING HER EXPOSED HOT THIGHS AGAINST MIKE'S AND MINE, AROUSING OUR PASSIONS, AND DRIVING MIKE AND I TO DESPAIR.

SHE WAS THE MOTHER OF ALL PRICK TEASERS.

I GET AN ERECTION.

BRIDGET KNOWS IT AND KEEPS ROTATING THOSE SENSUAL LIPS AS IF SHE IS GOBBLING IT WITH UTMOST DELIGHT.

ABSOLUTELY AGONISING.

I AM TRYING DESPERATELY NOT TO HAVE A REMOTELY INDUCED ORGASM.

NOT SURE WHAT MIKE IS GOING THROUGH, ALTHOUGH HIS LEGS ARE CROSSED.

SSC RESULTS ARRIVE AND BETWEEN THE THREE OF US, WE CANT MUSTER FIFTY MARKS.

BRIDGET IS UNABLE TO CHOOSE BETWEEN MIKE AND ME. NOT SURPRISING AS MIKE AND I WERE THE CREME DE LA CREME OF COLOMBO SPORTING YOUTH, AT THE TIME, AND DAMN HANDSOME AS WELL.

WE ARE SOON PICKED UP ELSEWHERE.

WHAT WAS MY SINGLE MOST SATISFYING ACHIEVEMENT AS A CRICKETER AND A CAPTAIN?

UNDOUBTEDLY IT WAS MY EFFORTS AT GETTING SAHABANDU TO OPEN BOWLING FOR ROYAL AGAINST ST. THOMAS'S.
WHEN BANDU CAME TO US IN 1958, HE WAS A PATHETIC LOOKING SPECMEN OF A HUMAN BEING.

THIN AND LIFELESS AS A SAGGING REED, BLOWN BY THE SLIGHTEST OF BREEZES, A NIGHTMARE TO ANY FIELDING CAPTAIN.

I USED TO SET HIM AT WIDE THIRD MAN AT THE START OF AN OVER, ONLY TO FIND HIM AIMLESSLY LOITERING IN HIS OWN LITTLE WORLD, AT THE END OF THE OVER, AT FINE LEG.

HOWEVER, AS A LEFT ARM BOWLER HE COULD SWING THE BALL EITHER WAY, QUITE APPRECIABLY.

BUT, HE WAS LITERALLY A SPASTIC AFTER TWO OVERS. SOMETHING DRASTIC HAD TO BE DONE.

BANDU LIVED DOWN CHARLEMONT ROAD, NEAR THE KINROSS CLUB/ WADIYA RESTAURANT BEACH.

I DECIDED TO TAKE HIM AT THE CRACK 0F DAWN, MOST MORNINGS, FOR SOME BEACH THERAPY.

CERTAINLY NOT FOR A JOG, NOR EVEN A BRISK WALK FOR I WOULD HAVE HAD TO CARRY BACK A CORPSE.

IT WAS MORE AKIN TO A LOVER'S MOONLIGHT STROLL. OFTEN, I HAD TO HOLD HIS HAND AND PULL HIM ALONG.

ONLOOKERS WOULD NOT HAVE HESITATED TO THINK THAT
WE WERE A PAIR OF BLOODY PUFTERS.

TO MAKE MATTERS WORSE, BANDU WAS A VEGETARIAN, SURVIVING ON A DIET OF POL SAMBOL, MALLUM AND PARIPPU.

TOTALLY INADEQUATE FOR TWO DAYS OF CRICKET AND BEING AN OPENING BOWLER.

SO, I ARRANGED WITH MY PAL, NADE, WHO OWNED THIS KOPI KADE AT THE TOP OF HIGH STREET AND GALLE ROAD, WELLAWATTE TO PREPARE AN "EGG FLIP", - COFFEE WITH RAW EGGS, FOR BANDU AFTER OUR PUFTER'S STROLL.

THE FIRST TIME HE TOOK A MOUTHFUL, HE IMMEDIATELY SPAT IT OUT AND ON TO THIS WEIGHT LIFTER/WRESTLER LOOKING GUY PEAEFULLY ENJOYING HIS MORNING BREAKFAST OF DOSAI, DRESSED IN A CLEAN WHITE SHIRT, ON HIS WAY TO WORK.

WHAT A HORRIBLY DISGUSTING MESS IT WAS WITH ALL THESE PIECES OF RAW EGG SCATTERED OVER THIS GUYS HEAD AND WHITE SHIRT.
A BLOODY DISASTER WAS AVERTED BY THE TIMELY INTERVENTION OF NADE, A BIG GUY HIMSELF.

IN DESPERATION I PLEADED WITH BANDU THAT THIS WAS THE MOST EXPENSIVE COFFEE IN THE WORLD, IMPORTED FROM PERU.
THE INCA MEN WHO LIVED ON IT WERE THE MOST VIRILE EVER.
THEY POSSESSED A PERMANENT STIFF.

WHATS A STIFF, LORENSZ?

BANDU, A BLOODY ERECTION.

BANDU BECAME A FREQUENT VISITOR TO THE KOPI KADE.

HE WENT ON TO OPEN BOWLING FOR ROYAL AGAINST ST THOMAS'S THAT YEAR AND BAGGED FIVE WICKETS.

MORE IMPORTANTLY, HE WENT ON TO PLAY FOR SRI LANKA IN SIX UNOFFICIAL TESTS.

FIFTY YEARS AGO ROYAL WON BACK THE BRADBY AFTER A LAPSE OF 7 YEARS.

WE HAD A CELEBRATION DINNER, AGAIN, AT THE COLOMBO GOLF CLUB IN JUNE THIS YEAR TO MARK THAT MEMORABLE WIN.

I WAS A MEMBER OF THAT FAMOUS TEAM THAT INCLUDED KEN BALENDRA AND ROTI SIVARATNAM WHO WENT ON TO BECOME CHAIRMEN OF JOHN KEELS AND AITKEN SPENCE, RESPECTIVELY.

THE '58 BRADBY IS ALSO FAMOUS FOR A UNIQUE TRY THAT WAS SCORED BY ROYAL.

BEST DESCRIBED BY OUR FAMOUS RUGBY MASTER, MR THAMBAPILLAI, IN THE SCHOOL MAGAZINE, AS FOLLOWS:

THE INCIDENT TOOK PLACE JUST INSIDE THE TRINITY HALF, NEAR THE RIGHT TOUCH LINE. I SAW THE BALL GOING DOWN THE LINE. IT WAS A LIGHTENING MOVEMENT WITH EACH PLAYER DRAWING HIS OPPOSITE NUMBER.

IT WAS ONE OF THOSE FLASHES OF GENIUS IN THE TWINKLING OF AN EYE. NEVER HAVE I IN ALL MY LIFE SEEN SUCH A TRY SCORED IN A MATCH IN CEYLON OR ANY PART OF THE WORLD; THE RIGHT WING THREE QUARTER THROWING THE BALL IN A LINE OUT AND FLASHING ACROSS TO JOIN THE MOVEMENT AND SCORE A TRY.

IT WAS A CLASSIC CASE OF BEING AT THE WRONG PLACE, - BUT AT THE RIGHT TIME.

I WOULD NOW LIKE TO TAKE A MOMENT TO PAY MY RESPECTS AND TRIBUTE TO MY VERY DEAR LIFE LONG FRIEND, BROTHER –IN- LAW AND RUGBY CAPTAIN, ROTI – INDEED A MOST NOBLE ROYALIST.
ROTI PASSED AWAY A FEW WEEKS BACK.

I SHALL READ TO YOU A BRIEF EXTRACT OF AN EXCELLENT APPRECIATION BY HIS VERY DEAR FRIEND AND BUSINESS OPPONENT, KEN BALENDRA:

HIS CAREER AT AITKEN SPENCE IS LEGENDARY. HIS STINT AS CHAIRMAN AND CEO OF THE BLUE CHIP IS WIDELY RECOGNISED AS ONE OF THE MAJOR CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE SUCCESS OF THE FIRM.
ROTI WAS HUMBLE, CHARMING, GENEROUS AND A GREAT FRIEND TO MANY. HE WAS HONEST TO A FAULT AND WAS RESPECTED FOR THIS. HIS COMMITMENT, EFFICIENCY AND LEADERSHIP QUALITIES WERE UNQUESTIONABLE. HIS SUPPORT FOR HIS FRIENDS WAS HARD TO MATCH.

I ONCE ASKED HIM AS TO HOW HE CAME TO BE NICKNAMED "ROTI".
AT JUNIOR SCHOOL, HIS CLASS MASTER ASKED EACH STUDENT WHAT EACH HAD HAD FOR BREAKFAST THAT MORNING.

THE GENERAL ANSWERS WERE "BACON AND EGGS" AND OTHER WESTERN MENUS, BUT WHEN IT CAME TO RATNA, HE UNHESITATINGLY SAID "ROTI" AND THE NICKNAME "ROTI" STUCK WITH HIM EVER SINCE.

ROTI AND I HEADED TWO OF THE LARGEST COMPANIES IN TOURISM IN LANKA. WE WERE COMPETITORS WITH NO QUARTER ASKED AND NONE GIVEN. NEVERTHELESS, WE WERE THE CLOSEST OF FRIENDS AND THIS WAS AN ENIGMA TO OUR RESPECTIVE ASSISTANTS – BUT THAT WAS ROTI. COMPETE: YES – BUT NOT AT THE COST OF A LONG AND CLOSE FRIENDSHIP.

THOSE MAGNIFICIENT WORDS FROM KEN, GLORIFIES TO ME WHAT IT IS TO BE A ROYALIST.

PLEASE DO GIVE THESE WORDS YOUR UTMOST CONSIDERATION.

I REMEMBER SO VIVIDLY HOW ROTI LITERALLY KIDNAPPED ME, ON HIS BIKE, FROM THE TENNIS COURTS AT COLLEGE ONE EVENING, AND THRUST ME INTO THE BOAKE HOUSE RUGBY TEAM THAT WAS DESPERATELY short of numbers for a house finals.

Roti was captain of boake and royal that year.

AT THE TIME, I HAD NEVER SEEN A RUGBY GAME NOR KNEW ANYTHING ABOUT RUGBY.

ROTI'S COMFORTING WORDS WERE, THAT ALL I HAD TO DO WAS TO MERELY THROW THE BALL IN.

THAT TOOK MY FANCY, AS I BOASTED A GOOD THROW FROM COVER POINT AND CONSIDERED THAT PLAYING RUGBY COULD NOT BE THAT DIFFICULT AT ALL.

However, what petrified me was the ride on the bar of Roti's bike at the time, i was a much FANCIED cabbage, so sexy that my father pet named me "lollo" after the gorgeous sexy italian actress of the time, Gina Lolobrigida.

My old friends still call me "lollo", although, SADLY, the association with sex appeal has somewhat diminished.

On the other hand, Roti had this ALLEGED, i strongly stress alleged, reputation for liking boys.

Whilst doubling, he seemed to get closer and closer, with his thighs pressing ever tighter against mine and his arms attempting to cuddle me as if I WAS A NEW BORN BABY.

ALL SORTS OF WEIRD AND FEARFUL THOUGHTS WENT THROUGH MY MIND.

I THOUGHT THAT THE BASTARD WAS GOING TO TAKE ME ROUND THE CORNER AND RAPE ME.

I SCORED 2 TRIES THAT EVENING AND, IMPORTANTLY, WAS NOT MOLESTED. ROTI AND I WENT ON TO MARRY TWO SISTERS.

THAT RIDE ON ROTI'S BIKE, SOME 50 YEARS AGO CHANGED MY LIFE FOREVER BEING INTRODUCED TO THE GAME OF THE GODS, RUGBY, WHICH OPENED SO MANY NEW AND EXCITING FRONTIERS FOR ME.

FINALLY, WHAT WAS THE SINGLE MOST SIGNIFICANT LESSON THAT SPORT TAUGHT ME.

UNDOUDETDLY, TIMING.

BEING AT the RIGHT PLACE, OR FOR THAT MATTER EVEN AT THE WRONG PLACE, - BUT AT THE RIGHT TIME.

FOR ME, MOST IMPORTANTLY, BEING AT ROYAL, - AT THAT TIME.
JUST A WORD OF WARNING TO ALL YOU MARRIED GUYS; - WHO MAY HAPPEN TO BE AT THE WRONG PLACE, AT THE WRONG TIME.

That's WHEN YOUR WIFE CATCHES YOU DOING SOME SPLENDID PLEASURABLE PUSH UPS, - ON SOMEONE ELSE'S BED.
SO IN CLOSING I SAY:

CHOOSE YOUR TIMING, - CEASE THE OPPORTUNITY.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE.

Letter from Mr Elmo de Bruin

2008-07-29T11:24:00.000+05:30

http://www.island.lk/2008/06/15/features10.html

Royal’s legendary teacher’s wish for Sri Lanka

My dear Clarence,

Please forgive me for having taken so long to write a reply to your card of greetings to me for Christmas and the New Year. As I write now, a full third of the year has already gone by, and I can only hope that it has been a time of happiness and good health for you and your family.
My problem is, of course, that I now have two sets of old students to deal with and the Cornwallians outnumber the Royalists – for although I did a little more than 16 years teaching at Royal, I did almost 38 years here at Cornwall, taking advantage of the fact that the Ministry of Education in Jamaica allowed teachers who reached the retiring age of 65 (as I did in 1988) to go on teaching full-time even while receiving pension. That permission was withdrawn at the end of the school-year 1998-99, at which here I was "forcibly" retired. Maybe it was high time that I left the classroom, for my eyesight and hearing are both causing problems, and there is no way I could go out on to a games field for any kind of coaching.

I remember you well as a keen athlete, and partly also because of your initials, for the Civil Service was supposed to be part of my ambition according to members of our family. While it is true that I held my own while a student at Royal, winning prizes and scholarships, the three years I subsequently spent at University were a dismal failure. I did not find enough interest in the three-year Mathematics Honours Course that I went through, and ended up with an Ordinary Pass – which meant that the CCS was out of the question. I had to find immediate employment, and the easiest job to find was in teaching. I did a few months at Zahira, teaching ‘boys’ in the Commercial Class who were older than I was, and came to Royal in January, 1945.
My old teachers at Royal, like Mr. Anglie and Mr. T. M. Weerasinghe, urged me to get out of teaching as soon as possible, but I got more and more involved with the various activities of the school so that the years went by quickly and happily. In a way it seemed that all my experience at Royal, meeting with a great cricketer like Learie Constantine, great athletes like Bob Mathias and Bob Richards, served to prepare me for Cornwall – where I seemed to pick up where I had left off at Royal. The curious coincidence that Cornwall had the same motto ‘Disce Aut Discede’ as Royal was partly responsible for my staying on at Cornwall when so many other expatriate teachers from the UK and Canada finished their contracts and went back where they had come from. And at the end of it all the government gave me a National Honour (the Order of Destruction) for what was described as "exceptional services in the field of education." There have been difficulties but there has been a great deal of happiness for me, with a host of memories that I recall with pleasure. Many of my pupils have become leading figures in Sri Lanka, in Jamaica and elsewhere around the world, and it is good to know that I played a part in their upbringing. Some of them have come to Jamaica, on business or on holiday, and have taken the trouble to come to look for me. And there is a problem there, for some of them have grown completely out of recognition.

I have been kept well-informed on what has been happening in Sri Lanka over the years, and at Royal. Besides the various letters from my relatives still in Sri Lanka and from past students, I have been sent a copy of each of his publications by ‘Jungle’ Dissanayaka, who has been writing a series of books on the politics of Sri Lanka and on the so-called ‘ethnic struggle,’ I was extremely heartened by his last book "The Quest for Peace" which affirmed the permanent cease-fire and the end of hostilities and the dreadful suicide-bombing. The progress of the peace plan, monitored by the Norwegian Government, seems to have been acceptable so far to both parties and the process of reconciliation and re-building can now get under way. It will doubtless take time and will take much money as well, but it seems that the Sinhalese and the Tamils can now live in peace as once they did. A recent letter from Tissa Atapattu claimed that things are really looking up in Sri Lanka again and the future seems bright. I pray that this is so.
Jamaica’s population is estimated to be about 2 ½ million, with about the same number of Jamaicans living abroad, mostly in the USA, Canada and the UK. Jamaicans working abroad and earning wages and salaries they could not dream of making in Jamaica are said to send remittances to their families here which make up quite a sizeable contribution to the Jamaican economy.
In spite of the small numbers, Jamaicans have excelled in sports, with big names like George Headley in cricket, also Courtney Walsh who holds the record for most Test wickets (519). Athletics has seen the legendary Arthur Wint and Herb Mckenley, more recently Donald Quarrie and Marline Ottey. Lenox Lewis was born in Jamaica but boxes out of England. Every year our top high-school athletes, both male and female, win scholarships to US universities, where some of them go on to successful professional careers but others have to settle for less.

At the moment it seems that Jamaica has discovered a potential world-beater in a 16-year-old schoolboy, Usain Bolt by name, taking his O-levels next months at William Knibb HS not 50 miles away from here. He hit the headlines last year at the World Youth Games held here in Kingston in July. Not quite 16 then he ran only in the 200 m. event against athletes 2 and 3 years older than he was, and won in a time of 20.5 seconds. The boy is 6’5" in height, and his parents have said he "eats like a horse." The track on which he ran had just been completely relaid at the National Stadium, and I wondered whether this might has been a factor in his performance. In March this year, taking part in the 200 m. and 400 m. in the Jamaican equivalent of the Public Schools’ Meet he lowered the 200 m. record from 20.79 to 20.25 and the 400 m. from 46.22 to 45.35. Most recently he led the Jamaican team to the Carifta Games and came back with 4 gold medals – with records in the 200 m and 400m and running the anchor leg in the 4x100m. and 4x400 m. both in new times. He was named most promising junior male athlete for 2002 by the IAAF – and the world should hear more about him.
With my thanks again and with my regards and good wishes to you and your family God Bless you all.

Elmo de Bruin.

Darrel & Shantha in Colombo

2008-07-13T16:55:00.002+05:30

Orient Club July 9 2008

Seated left to right.

Gamini Wickremesinghe.
Rajan Sellamuthu.
Engnr: Mervyn Fernando.
Prof: Sanath Lamabadsuriya.
U.L.Kaluaratchi.

Standing left to right.

K. Thillairajah.
Darell Lieversz.
Chitty Jayawardene.
Daya de Silva.
Farid Abdelcader.
Engnr: Gamini Amarasinghe.
Jayalath Pedris.
Engnr: Ajith Mendis.

'59 Group in London

2008-06-29T13:40:00.000+05:30

59 Group Reunion at residence of Ando in London. June 21, 08

Left to Right

Senaka Jayasinghe (Ibba), Nihal Kumarage, Tissa Jayaweera, Suren Goonewardene, M S Fernando (Goiya), Sarath Gooneratne (SC).

On Chair Ajith Dias (Ando), Ranjan Dandeniya (Ganja)

Rgds

Tissa

Moosa

2008-06-01T11:18:00.001+05:30

Sunday Times 20 Apr 2008

Talking of MR. RUGBY

Moosa or Moos as some were used to call him is no longer with us. He passed away on the 13th of April having suffered a heart attack. It was sudden and unexpected to all. Moosa was up to the last hour of his death looking after his brother. Abdul who was sick

Moosa or Mohammed as Dr Maiya Gunasekera calls him was involved in rugby from his young days while schooling at Royal College. Unlike many who watched played and or just enjoyed the game, Maya recalls that Mohammed always had an interest of learning the laws of the game? It was indeed a rare achievement as even many adults who are rugby enthusiasts did not show an interest in the Laws of the game. He took up to refereeing as a school boy and did referee for a long time.

Moos the keen student followed the changes and always imparted his knowledge on the basics of the laws and how to referee. This happened for almost eight weeks every Sunday where he would meet the new referees at the CR and FC pavilion. Around 1991, the group that met included: Nizam Jamaldeen, Aruna Jayasekera, Asela de Silva, Sanjiva Saranapla, D. Nimal, Lasantha Jayawardena, and T. Chang. This lot has since then refereed at the higher level while some are still on the field. . It were the basics that he taught to this group as well as others that stood with them as they climbed the ladder of refereeing or in other paths that they chose to take to in the game.

Moosa with his other SLRFU colleagues along with president Priyantha Ekanayake.
He maintained his involvement in rugby, particularly through the Sri Lanka Society of Rugby Football Referees where for more than 30 years he was both trainer and mentor for generations of referees. He was still attending meetings and assisting with the training and coaching of referees up to and close to the time of his death.

He was always calm and well in control of his answers even when questions were directed at him at times during matches. It was not of him to be critical of a referee and or give opinion to substantiate what others wanted to be confirmed. He was an ardent lover and follower of rugby and was well known personality among rugby enthusiasts in Sri Lanka, and more at Royal College and the CR and FC. People would invariably talk to him when they wanted an interpretation of what referee was doing and why. He always carried a cool head and through his answers gave a balanced opinion. At times he would not answer those asking questions when the criticism was hard and thus avoid getting into a controversial discussion .However much he knew he would not openly discuss the aspects of refereeing but would do so on a one to one situation with the referee or at meetings of referees.

What started as an interest in school he chartered a career in rugby having been a Referee, a Secretary and the President of the Referees Society. He was also a past President of the Asian Rugby Football Union Referees Society Moosa was appointed as a referee reviewer/selector for the Hong Kong Sevens and the Singer Sri Lankan Sevens during the initial years while also being a reviewer selector at the Asian Games in Korea.

The contribution to rugby by Moosa was not only in Sri Lanka as simply confirmed by the message sent by the Hon. Secretary General of the Asian Rugby Football Union and copied to all the Member Unions. The familiar bearded figure donning a hat seen on the rugby fields will be missed but what he has contributed to the game will remain forever.

M.R .Moosa gave a lot to the game of rugby specially to the community of referees as he redirected their sporting qualities – passion, dedication, and camaraderie to taking up the whistle while most would stop at being critical.

Vimal Perera is a former Rugby Referee, coach and Accredited Referees Evaluator IRB

Sockanathan – A Brother's Appreciation

2008-04-27T13:39:00.000+05:30

Subject: Sockanathan - A Brother's Appreciation

My dear Daughters, Sister, Brothers, Cousins and Friends,
I copy below a feeble attempt at an 'appreciation' of my elder brother. It is hard to disentangle emotions from memories of innocent and honest splendour.
But I have given it a try.

Please feel free to pass it on to other cousins, friends and whoever you think might want to remember Sockananthan with fondness and gentleness.
Affectionately,

Vela

Sockanathan – A Brother's Appreciation

It was the great Rabindranath Tagore who wrote:
'Peace, my heart, let the time for the parting be sweet.
Let it not be a death but completeness.'
These are lines that I have had to remember very often in recent years, as friends, contemporaries and relations have begun to bid sad farewell.

I had grown very fond of Sockanathan in recent years and we had developed, without intentions on either side, a pleasurable routine of ringing each other almost every Sunday, wherever I was. He was as always - and as far as my remembrances go, back on time's treacherous arrow - cheerful, light-hearted in touch, generous and humorous, none of the attributes I was ever able to cultivate. He seemed to have been endowed with these noble qualities, almost from birth.

In childhood, we had a different Sunday routine; after Sunday morning classes at the Ramakrishna Mission, we were given permission to walk on to my Paternal Aunt's home, down Ratnakara Place, for a sumptuous lunch. Rasathi Mami – my Aunt - would prepare a wonderful chicken curry - using that inherited talent from Paatti, my Grandmother - and shower us with food and sweets and love and kindness. Even though we were young boys, always wanting to be on the street down Madangahawatte Lane, playing cricket, we would never miss those enticing Sunday Lunches at Ratnakara Place. It came to an end in April, 1956, when we - alas - moved from 17 Madangahawatte Lane.

It may well be apposite to mention here that the unfortunate 1964 Royal College cricket team that lost to the Thomians contained four players who were born and lived, as neighbours, down Madangahawatte Lane, in the early 1950s: Sockanathan, Cedric Fernando, Lakshman Thalayasingham and Asoka Samarajeeva! I still recall, with pure pleasure, the cricket we played in the small Thalayasingham garden, in those halcyon days.

He was also, always, immensely more talented than I was, or even than any of my other siblings; anything he touched, in childhood, turned into success. I recall the grinding paths I had to carve for myself, for any meagre success I ever achieved when growing up. Large doses of luck and hard work were necessary ingredients in my path in life, and even then success was always tempered by failures. His talents, gifts and light-heartedness seemed almost to have been the 'winner's curse' - since he did not have to try too hard, he - perhaps - did not have to cultivate the disciplines one needs for survival in a world that is infested with the Red Queen syndrome.
When Sockanathan was a student at Madras Christian College, I think he once told me that he played and opened batting for the South Zone Universities the same year that Sunil Gavaskar opened for the West Zone Universities and they played against each other. This was, I think, in 1967. I visited Madras to see him, on my way from Kyoto to Colombo. I had booked a large room at the old Woodlands Hotel; Sockanathan, Rajan Namasivayam and Ramanan, Mr Ratnathickam, our shcool history teacher's nephew, came to meet me at Meenambakkam airport. We shared that one room I had booked and enjoyed three days of pure splendour - eating every night at the Madras Buhari Hotel.

My father once wrote me: 'Sockanathan is like an elephant; he does not know his own strengths'. I still have that letter Appa wrote me, in 1973.

It was wholly characteristic of him and wonderfully amusing when I last met him, at my Sister's daughter's wedding, to look hard at me, with unblinking eyes - in response to my embraced greeting - and ask me: 'And who are you?'. I nearly dropped with laughter, thinking he was, as usual, being that little bit mischievous!

I shared many moments of splendour with him, some even enchantingly comic.

When he first arrived in Sweden, he sat next to Shivantha Tambiyaiya, on the plane journey. During that journey he had shown his disfigured passport to Shivantha - disfigured by an unnecessary stamp by the British High Commission in Colombo; Shivantha, being slightly irresponsible, had taken it and scratched over the British High Commission stamp and told Sockanathan that 'they - the British High Commission - had no business stamping with seals that were not requested'!!!!

So, he arrived in Sweden, and with admirable and princely unconcern, showed me Shivantha's silly handiwork.

I was aghast and had to devise a most devious and totally improper way of dealing with it so that he could get his visa to go on to England. It was a method a Swiss Pastor in Chur in Switzerland had taught me, having practised it during his years as a Partisan in Ticino, near the Italian border, to help Italian Jews to escape across the border near Porlezza.

But Sockanathan was completely unfazed - either by Shivantha's totally callous act or by my own trepidations!!

That was typical of him.

Whenever we spoke, on our regular Sunday conversations, it was invariably also about cricket and whatever match was then going on. He kept himself fully informed of the current cricket scene.

Since about his last birthday I had begun sending him some of my older cricket books - by Cardus, Arlott, Ray Robinson and so on; they gave him great and undiluted pleasure, to read and reminisce. He remembered more than I could, about the times of Hassett and Morris, Laker and Lock, Lindwall and Miller, Ramadhin and Valentine. It was with tremendous enthusiasm that he would, time and time again, recite that great calypso about 'cricket lovely cricket ... with those two little friends of mine, Ramadhin and Valentine', celebrating that famous Lords victory by a West Indian side blessed with the legendary 3 Ws and Ramadhin and Valentine.

Like my Father, Sockanathan never had a cruel or unkind word or opinion of anyone or anything. He was wholly devoid of envy and completely innocent of greed.

We had been brought up in a relatively enlightened Hindu home, observing – as most Tamil Hindus of old Ceylon did – the usual rituals and ceremonies. However, at some point in the mid-1970s, Sockanathan, I think, felt the need for a more individually satisfying faith and embraced, wholeheartedly, the Christian faith. I rarely spoke to him about his commitment to his new found faith, nor the kind of sustenance the new beliefs gave him – partly because my own experiences of being a student at Kyoto, Lund and Cambridge during the turbulent late 1960s and early 1970s had radicalised my views and visions of Church and State. But I know, from his silences and serenities, that he was at peace with himself, in spite of personal difficulties during the last decade of his life.

My fond memories of childhood holidays, shared with Sockanathan and my elder Thiruchittampalam cousins – Rohini, Chandran and Sarojini - in innocence and honesty that only children can muster, are still a source of great happiness. We spent happy times in Chavakachcheri, Kankesanthurai, Kalkudah, Kalmunai, Bandarawela, Nuwara Eliya and Kurunegala. The memories of unadulterated enjoyments at Paasi Kudah are unforgettable. Another holiday, together with intimate class mates – Rajan Namasivayam, Ravi Somasundaram and Rabindran Namasivayam (our cousin), at an 'uncountry' Tea Plantation that was being managed by Rajan's maternal uncle (for S.J.V. Chelvanayagam) was one of our most cherished shared memory.

Now, alas, Sarojini, Sockanathan and Rabindran are not among us.

In Chavakachcheri, it was he who introduced me to the wonderful sands and taught me to appreciate the 'Manal Pitti', off the Jaffna Lagoon – these are, in fact my own earliest memories, going back to 1951 and 1952. Often, during the 'December holidays' spent in Chavakachcheri, we would be taken to Keerimalai, to bath in the holy waters and, then, after a wonderful breakfast of hot thosai or puttu, to the Kandasamy Temple in Nallur. Occasionally, after that, a visit to Sangili Thoopu, in Nallur, my Paternal Uncle's home, situated where – allegedly – Sangilian had his courtyard during his reign.

Sockanathan's own earliest personal sadness was experienced when he lost his close and much loved friend, Ronnie Fernando, who died under tragic circumstances. For years he kept a framed photograph of Ronnie in his room at home.

But I think – and feel – that he had come to terms with 'loss as a way of life', in a graceful and serene way. Perhaps it was his commitment to the faith he had embraced that gave him some inner strength to sustain and overcome grief and loss and tackle these imposters with a judicious combination of disdain and reluctant respect.

I would do him no justice if I did not mention the last few years at Royal College and the evenings and weekends spent playing cricket at 'Uncle's Paradise'! The emotions and the enjoyments are impossible to describe in words – only those of us who were part of the 'Uncle's Paradise' community will know and understand what that camaraderie meant. The dusks, as the sun set, and as the last overs were being bowled, one began to savour the taste of the thosai or the rotti one was going to eat at Saraswathi Lodge or Buhari's or wherever one went, on any particular day, after a wonderful evening of cricket and friendship among friends. Often, the evening came to an end with more talk and gossip at the home of Norbert and Lloyd Perera, which was always open and welcomed all and sundry with immense kindness and generosity.
I will miss him and our routinised Sunday conversations - and for the inspiring light-heartedness that was infested with joy. But he has left me – and many others – with shared memories that enriched us in his lifetime and will enliven us in his absence, till we also reach him, and relive the past.

I can only recall Emily Dickinson's poignant words of Farewell, as dusk comes, yet again:
'Good-by to the life I used to live,And the world I used to know;And kiss the hills for me, just once;Now I am ready to go!'

Farewell to thee, my beloved and gentle Brother.

Vela

Mohamed Rafeeq Moosa

2008-04-27T10:39:00.000+05:30

Mohamed Rafeeq Moosa

“Life is finite and accruals matter not a whit unless they are of the philosophical kind! We harvest, then we gather and we gather yet once more, and we capriciously yearn for yet another harvest of riches only to find Death as the farmer, which is when we cower in fear at the sight of our mortality in all of its dismal glory!”

This is an extract of the note I received from my brother when I informed him of my shock, sadness and grief at the sudden demise of Moos (as he was affectionately called by his friends).

Moos actually accrued nothing material during his lifetime and this is a fact; his was a life only full of memories, experiences and righteousness. Moos had always told me he wished his departure would be like a bolt of lightening and that was just how it was. He never wanted to be a burden on anybody. His family suffered a double tragedy when his only brother Abdul passed away in the same house, no sooner Moos’s mortal remains were carried away. His wonderful mother whom Moos cared for and doted on, is left floundering in unimaginable grief.

Moos belonged to the lively “friends for ever” 1962 batch of Royalists and networked faithfully with them all the way. He never missed a class reunion. Although a keen Ruggerite, he excelled as a cadet and as Platoon Sergeant won the coveted Herman Loos Trophy for Royal beating over 100 schools at Diyatalawa. He was also chosen to take the salute in front of Indian Premier Indira Gandhi during their Republic Day Celebrations in New Delhi. He was a live wire at Royal and later in the RCU, supporting every sport and activity with gusto. He was appointed a Prefect which was at that time a very prestigious achievement because only 12 made it. His attachment to Royal is unique in that he remembered minute details of specific matches that were played over the years, and never missed a Bradby or a Royal-Thomian. Passa’s bus and The Stallions will surely miss his “sobering” presence!

His memory and ability to recall specific incidents and relate spicy anecdotes involving masters, minor staff and class mates at Royal is indeed legendary and has been fortunately recorded by his 62 group. To celebrate 50 years since joining Royal he visited the primary school with his childhood buddy RH, and took photos outside his first class room, and then one riding a swing(!) and another with “ducky” at the RCU. Such was his attachment to his school and the memories he cherished.

Moos was an outstanding A division rugby referee and went on to become the President of the Referee’s Association later on. He was also called upon many a time to take up duties as an Assessor of Referees during International matches and was also a die-hard member of the CR&FC. He coached the Royal Junior teams with great enthusiasm and there is many a player who went on to represent the first XV and play club rugby who remember him with love and gratitude.

Although Moos was about 5 years my senior at Royal we always recognised and acknowledged each other, whenever our paths would briefly cross. By a very happy circumstance he commenced working for my Company in 1995, where he remained until his demise. Moos was truly a remarkable human being, and as the years went by, my respect and love for him grew. He was an exemplary employee and his Punctuality, Loyalty and Integrity was absolutely unquestionable. It was so easy with Moos to implement our code of business ethics because it was exactly what he believed in. He was loved and respected by all his colleagues because he never hesitated to reach out with kindness to assist, advise, inspire, motivate and empower anybody who needed it.

In his 13 years of dedicated service to the Company I can’t remember him taking even a single day of leave! He was a whiz at working cryptic crosswords, word games and mind games and never started the day without unscrambling “Jumble”. There wasn’t a day when Moos would not stroll into my room, sit down, cross his legs and shoot the breeze. The topics we discussed were diverse, ranging from, politics, hospitals and pharmaceuticals, to the origin of life, UFO’s, corporate social responsibility, farming, sport, where the youngsters of today were heading and, how our generation existed and enjoyed life with almost nothing in our pockets.

Moos loved his family and supported them unconditionally. He gave of his time (at any time) to his mother and until the end went shopping by foot for her groceries. He took her to Mecca to perform Hajj, shielded her during the fire and stampede amongst thousands of sandals left behind, and brought her home, safe and free. Although a devout Muslim, he never allowed his beliefs to come between himself and his friends or, anything for that matter.

He was cosmopolitan in the true sense.Above all, Mohamed Rafeeq Moosa was a simple man and lived a simple life. He took nothing from life excepting some happy memories. There was a certain sadness about him, which I could not take away. I wish I could have.

Jomo Uduman