Sports

Appeals are not entertained by PSC

Derwin Perera's false start !

By Lal Gunesekera

Laws of the land have been flouted to accommodate former Deputy Director of Sports Derwin Perera to return to the Ministry of Sports and Public Recreation after being proven guilty of all 20 charges of corruption and fraud of state funds by the Presidential Investigative Unit (PIU) and the Ministry of Public Administration.

The Public Service Commission ordered the Sports Ministry to send Derwin Perera, who is also a well known athletic coach, on compulsory retirement.

However, Perera, says that he has made an appeal to the PSC, but The Sunday Leader learns that there is no question of any appeals with the PSC, and that an order issued by the PSC, is final. The PSC has also not recommended or even approved Perera's extension of service. He is now 59 years old.

Director General of the Sports Development Department of the Sports Ministry, B.D. Dahanayake, confirmed that Derwin Perera resumed duties on a directive from "higher authorities" pending his appeal to the PSC.

A PSC ruling is final, and Derwin Perera, who is now "warming" a chair at the Sports Ministry, could only make an appeal to the Administrative Appeal Tribunal under Justice Nimal Senanayake. Although the term of the PSC under Justice Priyanka Perera has ended, the decisions taken by them (PSC) stands according to law.

The Sunday Leader learns that if Derwin Perera is paid a salary, the Secretary to the Ministry of Sports and Public Recreation, S. Liyanagama, will be compelled to give surcharges from his (Liyanagama's) private funds.

The Sunday Leader also learns that a group of attorneys-at-law is to bring these matters to the notice of the Permanent Commission on Bribery and Corruption and also the Auditor General.

Derwin Perera was the former coach of Olympic Medallist, Susanthika Jayasinghe who was cleared of drug charges on a scientific point by many professionals, including former Government Dr. A.R.L.Wijesekera.

Two of Perera's other products (Jani Chaturangani and Priyadarshini) were found guilty of taking a banned substance, and were suspended.

Over to you Minister of Sports, Gamini Lokuge.

Interesting times ahead

Its interesting times for cricket enthusiasts. The world twenty 20 tournament is round the corner. Many purists still love and stand by the traditional form of Test cricket to the newer abbreviated versions. Twenty 20 cricket has come to stay and we will witness a resurgence of packed stands and new heroes adorning the sports pages. This version of the game will bring in exciting new players who may have not got the opportunity to show their skills due to requirements in the longer versions.˜

Recall the advent of the fifty over version andÿreaders will be reminded of the initial objectionsÿof the diehard traditionalists. It was called the pyjama game and bang cricket. Where would Sri Lankan cricket be if we didn't take to this version? The 1996 world cup victory in this version was our spring board to compete at the top with distinction. Our players started believing in themselves and learnt a "can do " spirit. Now I feel the same with the twenty 20 form of the game. Mre spectators will find time to witness a full game and there will be plenty of thrills and excitement to boot. Television too will not require a full days coverage as in the fifty overs game and stations can yet run other popular programmes too as the twenty 20 game will last onlyÿfour hours. The earnings from TV rights will be bigger and players too naturally earn more. Good all round. This is not to say that the other versions should be neglected. But, younger teams in the games history could also be a force to be reckoned with in this form and therefore will draw them to play more cricket in addition to staying with the game.

Remember when Sri lanka introduced Sanath and kalu to open batting in the fifty over version? The practiced style was turned on its head and Sri lanka most often posted over 80 runs in the opening ten overs giving us a huge advantage. The mere sight of Sanath and Kalu walking into bat sent a buzz around the stadium. Asanka came in one drop and I followed him making us a formidable first four. It is in this backdrop that I findÿour twenty 20 squad for the world cup has omitted some players who could be of use. But the most glaring omission of all is that of Chamara Kapugedera.

ÿNow this is an exciting young player and in my book should have been an automatic choice within the first six nominees. His technique is good and is a great innovator. He has the purist's style but can play unorthodox shots to make quick runs which is the requirement in this form of the game. Equipped with a good temperament young Kapugedera is no rabbit on the field too.

ÿIt maybe not too late to induct him to the squad even at this stage to correct the imbalance in the batting. Twenty 20 cricket requires good bowlers and yes the fielding is as important. Yet, a team has to score around nine to ten runs in an over to be comfortable in a game. In this respect Chamara Kapugedera becomes an obvious choice up in the batting order.

ÿThe coaching and talent search is progressing well with Stan and I working hard with Coca Cola International supporting us. Let me sign off this week by wishing the Sri Lankan twenty 20 squad well and I hope that Chamara Kapugedera is in the bus when our team leaves the hotel to the stadium.

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It won't be the last of sad Sundays unless.

Eruptions of violence on the rugby field, to be sure, isn't a new thing, but the flare-up that forced a premature end to the match at Nittawela last Sunday, is unusual. And unwelcome.

Not that violence, on or off the playing field is ever welcome, but when it happens in the opening week of a new season, it is graver than being merely an inauspicious beginning: it is downright bad advertisement for a game at a time when it is beset increasingly by disputes of all sorts, from player- protests to dwindling coffers.

Frankly, that the new season got off the ground at all is a tad surprising. The interim committee, after all, confirmed the 2009 fixtures only about a fortnight before the first kick-off, so ending speculation over a belated beginning- if not a possible cancellation of the season, given that 16 players had issued a notice of litigation should threats to ban them (for withdrawing from the national squad for last April's Asian Nations tournament) were pursued.

Spoil the season

 The threats of a ban, however, receded as did the possibility of a court order prohibiting the conduct of the 2009 tournaments pending judgement. Competing clubs, so, ought to have considered it fortunate that they have a season to play in. Such providence should be respected, and sponsors and administrators surely would've expected teams to eschew any sort of behaviour that might spoil the season and, more importantly, besmirch the reputation of a game already in tatters. Obviously, on Sad Sunday, one or both teams, Kandy SC and the Navy  didn't give a damn to the larger responsibilities they owe the game, as they pursued other dubious ambitions.

Any reason for violence on the field is not to be condoned. But players' losing control of their emotions in the heat of a closely-fought battle is understandable. The encounter at Nittawela last Sunday, however, was anything but touch-and-go. Nor was it ever expected to be that. After all, the host team is the champion side, supremacy they've preserved for nearly a decade and half, while the visitors hadn't even touched a rugby ball in the last three seasons owing to battlefield duties.

Navy's 'A' division admission this season was at the expense of Old Zahirians, a side that had been routinely thrashed by 50-point margins. To the sailors' credit, they showed they are made of sterner stuff, and ought to have been satisfied with their performance; if they can hold-down the champion club to 36/5, prospects of wins over mid-level teams have to be cheery.

Solitary try

But the sailors overcoming the champion side clearly is far-fetched at this point of time. Throughout Sunday, the Navy trailed the champions, and posted their solitary try only after the hosts had scored the fifth of their six tries. It wasn't long after the home team had scored their final try when, reportedly, fisticuffs among the players broke out and sparked off an invasion allegedly by a section of Navy supporters.

It is left to the disciplinary committee to reveal the reasons that precipitated the fighting, which caused the game to be abandoned by the referee some 15 minutes before time. But what is clear is that, given the one-sided nature of the contest, there was little cause for an outbreak of violence on the field. This wasn't a cliff-hanger of the type that might've breached the thin red line, between lawful and unlawful, by players obsessed with victory. Kandy SC's win was assured; the Navy showed admirable pluck, but that alone isn't enough to defeat a champion team that no opposing side had managed to overcome since CR did four seasons ago. Clearly, Sad Sunday wasn't a product of a close contest, which it wasn't.  

 Robust and physical

 So, what could've caused the mayhem which left four home side players bruised, bloodied or concussed?  Before answers are ventured, it has to be said Navy's rugby has always been robust and physical, intended to neutralise the sophisticated skills of their opponents, skills that they lack. In other words, intimidation is a part of their armoury, which, it must be said, is fair, acceptable and not forbidden. There haven't been any cries of 'foul' either by their opponents ever since the Navy entered the 'A' division fray in the early 70s. So Navy's bang-and-go style had long been an accepted as a no-offence-meant thing by rival teams.   

There's no historical evidence of an old rivalry between the two that might've reignited on Sunday, either. Their past relationship didn't have an iota of bitterness of the sort that exists, say, between Kandy SC and CR /or between the Havelocks and CR/ or the rivalry between Services teams.

But there's reason to believe that the relationship between the men from the hills and the seas was given a sharp edge this season by the crossover of three Kandy players to the Navy. The Kandy supporters are passionately partial - to the point that they would consider as downright betrayal the crossover of any of their players to another club. So, if the most vociferous boos and names-calling were reserved for the ex-Kandy trio that was to be expected.

Three players crossover

That one of the crossover players is the brother of the recently-retired Kandy SC legend, Nalaka Weerakoddy, was hardly balm for the fans' disappointment. "Nalaka was such an outstanding star that he was regarded virtually the face of the champion side for close on to a decade. The fans' expectation was for younger brother, Eranda, to fill his retired brother's boots - so, when he goes and joins the Navy this season, to Kandy's fans it was an act of 'treason', 'betrayal', 'ingratitude' . the worst crime,'' said a club official.    

 All of which meant the Kandy trio were not going to get the warmest of receptions by their one-time fans. Provocative it might be, but then you can't legislate against crowd behaviour - which, after all, is the spontaneous reaction of the outside to things that happen in the inside. So, with the players' tempers on a short fuse and the resultant outbreak of fisticuffs in-field, beyond the touchlines, flame and fuel were never a safe distance apart of each other.

Most reports speak of naval personnel invading the field and setting upon home team players. Kandy officials claim they have a recorded video of this and will furnish to the union as proof.

Field violence not new

As aforementioned, eruptions of on-field violence are not new; previous cases too have been investigated by disciplinary committees and punishments handed out. But as the repeats in violence suggest, investigations and punishment are no more than cosmetic solutions - because there's more reasons than players' over-heated emotions and flying fists for on-field violence. The only plausible reason for Sad Sunday was the apparent bad blood created by the crossover of three Kandy SC players to the Navy. But, given the professional times we live in, changing of clubs is a fact of life which rugby has to live with.

Sadly, that fact is something successive SLRFU administrations haven't adjusted to. Had it, then a player transfer system (PTS) would've been in place, there would have been no place for back-door recruitment of one club's players by another. What happened to one club last week might be joke, but for its seriousness: a player who was at the final practice Thursday and chosen to play in the Saturday match, unbeknown to the club, attends practice of another club on Friday - and represents it on Sunday. Such abrupt crossovers only go to deepen the bitterness and enmity between clubs.

Introduce a PTS

There were some welcome moves by the last administration to introduce a PTS, whereby a change of club by a player would have to be a deal done by the two clubs for a fee and under union supervision. In other words, clubs can't transact with individual players, as happens now much to the detriment of the nobler values of rugby.

As a stepping stone to a PTS, the three premier Colombo clubs early this year came to a gentlemen's agreement: not to recruit the others' players. The intention was to get other Western Province clubs too to adhere to the gentlemen's agreement - before making a case to the Council for the inclusion of a PTS into the tournament laws. But then the Sport Ministry goes and foists a two-member Interim Committee, which, given its unfettered powers, might've had the license to hasten the PTS into law books.

The IC, however, thinks all of rugby troubles will be resolved by re-writing the constitution. But pray tell me if a new constitution can prevent back-door recruitments and the bad blood it creates? Sad Sunday provides the answer.

Hamilton talks up Monaco chances

World champion Lewis Hamilton is hopeful the unique challenge of the Monaco circuit could help him have his best race of the season on Sunday.

McLaren have been off the pace in 2009 but the street track could play to its strengths and minimise its weaknesses.

"I do struggle in the high-speed corners - I'm probably losing 0.2-0.3 seconds overall," he said.

"In other areas I'm able to do a little bit better than other drivers. It gives us a fighting chance to do better."

The 24-year-old was third and second fastest in Thursday's two practice sessions and while these are  notoriously poor indicators of race form, Hamilton looked genuinely more competitive than so far this season.

The McLaren car is slow in the high-speed corners - Massenet, Tabac, and the first Swimming Pool chicane - because it lacks aerodynamic downforce compared with the front-running cars of Brawn and Red Bull.

But the McLaren is reasonably strong in the sort of slower corners that abound elsewhere on the track.

The track's nature also makes it one of the few where a good driver can make up for some of the deficiencies in his car, and Hamilton's driving style is particularly well suited to the circuit.

He won here last year, and felt he was robbed of a debut win in 2007 when McLaren forced him into an earlier-than-planned pit stop while he was chasing team-mate Fernando Alonso.

Eser Marketing  by 102 runs 

Coming into bat first, Eser Marketing scored 199 for the loss of 9 wickets in 30 overs in the `F' group first round match of the Mercantile Limited over cricket tournament, against Loadstar played at the BRC grounds.

Ishara Chathuranga and Dimuth Hettiarachchi top scored with 45 and 41 respectively, followed by Sameera Fernando with 28.

For Loadstar S.A.S.J.Pathinayaka and T.A.R.Pradeep bagged 2 wickets a piece for 26 and 14 respectively.

In reply Loadstar managed to put only 97 on the scoreboard with S.K.Dissanayake and N.R.Rajapakse scoring 21 and 17.

Sameera Fernando, Ishara Chathuranga and Dinusha Madhushanka bagged 2 wickets a piece for 18, 19 and 24 runs respectively, giving Eser Marketing a brilliant 102 run victory.

Kiran responds to Dilroy

The Secretary cum Treasurer of the interim Committee (IC) for the SLRFU, Kiran Atapattu, responding to Dilroy Fernando's denial of knowledge about the February 1999 amendment to the SLRFU constitution, says "that it was a very funny and peculiar answer".

"The amendments consisted of only two pages, and Fernando has been sitting in the SLRFU Council in January 2009 because of Section Vlll Clause 4 (e) regarding office - bearers and Council - This is defined on page 1, and he has not looked at page 2 which has Section Xlll clause 3 (d) on Administration and Accounts" said Atapattu.

He also said that the explanation called from the SLRFU Accounts Assistant for concealing the AG's audit query for two days and this person's confidential reply addressed to Atapattu has been faxed by Senaka Colombage to the fax machine of the CR & FC, even before he received the reply. It was also detected that the password for Colombage's official computer at the SLRFU, was "ilosenara".

Thomians in rousing win over Joes

S. Thomas' College powered their way to a rousing 38 points to 13 points victory over St. Joseph's College in their annual inter school under 20 'A' division league rugby encounter worked off at Mount Lavinia on Friday.

The Thomians collected their points from four goals and two tries after having led 19-3 at half time. St. Joseph's College responded with two unconverted tries and put over one penalty.

S. Thomas' College also avenged their last year's shock defeat against the same opponents and went on to regain the Lady Jayatilleke Shield.

CH cruise to 56-6 victory

CH and FC cruised to their second successive victory as they produced a fine performance to beat Havelocks Sports Club by a massive 56 points to six points in their Caltex inter club 'A' division league rugby tournament match worked off at Maitland Crescent on Friday.

CH and FC who led 13-6 at half time went on the rampage in the second half and collected their points from four goals, five tries and one penalty with Havelocks SC responding with just two penalties.

Mithun Perera for Malaysian Amateur

Visa is the snag to play in England

By Lal Gunesekera

Twenty- two - year- old reigning Sri Lanka Amateur Golf  champion, Mithun Perera, who won the Nepal Amateur title couple of weeks back in Kathmandu, is now set to have a crack at the Malaysian Amateur title at the end of this month (May) with Tissa Chandradasa, another leading amateur.

Following in the footsteps of his illustrious father, Nandasena Perera, young Mithun won at the Gokarna Forest Resort with a 10 - under-par 278 by 15 strokes over a Bangladeshi, and from over 100 golfers from six countries, including Australia.

He was also runner-up in the Surya Nepal Masters which was conducted concurrently with professionals, which was won by another Sri Lankan, Anura Rohana, with a 12-under-par 276-two strokes ahead of perera.

Mithun Perera has been in good form so far this year (2009) by emerging champion at the Asian Pacific Open Amateur Tournament at the Mission Hills Golf Club in Shenzel, China in a "sudden death" play-off in January, over 95 other players from China, Japan, Australia, France, England and Scotland. This Triumph saw him being invited by APGC to compete at the Australian Open in December.

Speaking to The Sunday Leader, the unassuming Mithun Perera, said that he also hopes to compete at the British Amateur Championship from June 15 to 20, but a big question mark hangs in obtaining his visa, although he has found a sponsor for his return air ticket and accommodation said: "I am hopeful that a visa will be issued by the British High Commission in Colombo".

Asia cup in China

Mithun Perera also disclosed that he will play in the Singapore Open Amateur Championship in September, Asia Cup in China in October (where if he does win will qualify for the England Masters next year), Hong Kong Open Amateur in November before departing for the Australian Open in December.

He was also runner-up to Anura Rohana in the Sri Lanka Open at the Ridgeways in January this year (2009) and third at the 24th Bangladesh Open Amateur Championship in February (he was fourth in 2008).

Last year (2008), he was runner-up at the Pakistan Amateur in Islamabad in April and seventh at the Malaysian Amateur in May.

2007, was a memorable year for Mithun when he won the individual title at the South Asian Association (SAARC) Championship in Nepal when he helped Sri Lanka to win the Team event too for the first time, with Tissa Chandradasa and Prabagaran. He also won the East-India title in Kolkotta in December. He was seventh at the Sri Lanka Open Amateur at the Ridgeways and also played in nine tournaments on the Indian Circuit in Delhi, Bangalore, Coimbatore, Kolkotta etc.

Started in 2002

Mithun started competitive golf in 2002 in Club events coached by his legendary father and won many monthly medals, RCGC Championships on three occasions (2004, 2006, 2008) besides finishing second at the Hong Kong Amateur in 2005 and second at the Pakistan Open Amateur at Islamabad in 2006.

He has won the Sri Lanka Open Amateur in 2006 for the first time and again last year (2008), at the Ridgeways and Victoria Golf Resort in Kandy respectively.

An old boy of President's College, Kotte, Mithun, is employed at the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) since February this year (2009) and is grateful to its Chairman, P.B. Wickrama, for all assistance for his practices and tournaments.

Alexander: From retirement to national team

Sri Lanka's two-man team at last March's eight-nation A K Misra Memorial meet in New Delhi was debutantes - and both were beaten in their first fight.

If past attempts at infusing fresh blood into the national team are any indication, then, we would've seen the last of the two debutantes. Because over the past few years, emerging champions exposed to international competition were mostly on one night stands. Beaten on debut, the new faces were swiftly disposed of and the established seniors rushed back to the national team.

Not this time around, though. One of last March's debutantes, feather weight Saman de Silva, is included in the four-man team for the June 7-13 Asian Elite Championship, in Zhuhai in south China. The other March debutante, fly weight Damith Wijeratne isn't included because he was defeated in selection trials by 23-year-old R M T Dhakshilatha, who will be one of two debuting in Zhuhai, the other is 30-year-old bantam D M Samarasekera.

The fourth boxer, however, provides the most interesting story. Light-fly K C N Alexander, 28, is a veteran who won his first national title back in 2000, while yet a schoolboy of Seevali MMV, Ratnapura. Considered a bright international prospect, he figured in quite a few overseas meets, including the 2002 Commonwealth Championships in Manchester and the 2002 Asian Championships in Malaysia. His only medal of significance, however, was the SAF bronze in 1999.  Alexander's achievements, clearly, fell far short of his promise. His standing as national champion too wasn't on firm ground: after winning the national title in 2000 and 01, he had to wait until 2006 to regain it. Prospects of national representation had dwindled, and so he decided to quit in 2008. But the retirement of Olympian Rathnayake last year and the launch of an ABA campaign to re-blood the national team have, apparently, lured him back to bleeding business.

He showed excellent form in last month's selection trials to out-point both his opponents. "Alexander fought impressively and given his past international experience, I think the selectors felt he is a prospect worth reinvesting in,'' said Lt. Col. (Retd.) Hemantha Weerasinghe. "The policy of the ABA is to usher in new faces, but Alexander was made an exception because he seems determined to make up for past lost opportunities.''

Does the absence of familiar names like Manju Wanniarachchi and Kamal Sameera mean the ABA has pensioned them off? "Too much investment has been made in Manju and Sameera to discard them just yet. For all the valuable experience they've gained (including participation in two World Championships) there's good reason to think they have a realistic chance of qualifying for the 2012 London Olympics,'' says Dian Gomes, past ABA President and boss of champion club, Slimline BC.

"There's little they can gain from training and boxing in Sri Lanka. So we are working on having Manju based in England and Sameera, in Moscow, training and representing professionally-run clubs there.''

Neshantha soars to the top

Neshantha Jayamaha was awarded Sri Lanka school Basket Ball colours  by the Ministry of Education in March.  He was also awarded. Junior Basket Ball colours in the  year 2003/2004. A student of the Colombo International School, Neshantha is  boy with a natural talent for Basket Ball which surfaced at the tender age of 8. He is a  member of the Under 13, 15, 17, and  19, teams which has  become All Island  Champions in the past.

He has also been a member of the Under 13, 15, 17,and 19 teams when CIS become champions at the International School Basket Ball tournaments.

He was selected to the Sri Lanka School Basket Ball team who become 2nd runners up at the Senior National in 2008. Neshantha Jayamaha has also been selected best defensive player, best offensive player, most valuable player and was awarded Rev Bro Granville Perera challenge trophy of the Best player Colombo North zonal tournament and all Island 'A' Division tournament and International School Competitions.