Archive | April, 2018

Inter-Schools Rugby: Ugly scene mars Peterite victory

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Inter-Schools Rugby: Ugly scene mars Peterite victory

Posted on 08 April 2018 by admin

 

By M. Shamil Amit – Courtesy: The Sunday Times of April 8, 2018.

The Peterites were clinical against Isipathana – Pic by Amila Gamage

An ugly scene marred the Under 19 inter-school rugby encounter after St. Peter’s came out victorious by 20 points to 14 against Isipathana when some spectators manhandled a touch judge and in the melee empty bottles were thrown bringing the game to disrepute. The match was played at Havelock Park last evening.

However, the Peterites were the better team and they deserved to win having dominated the first session of proceedings to take the lead at the lemons 15-9. They accumulated their points through a goal, two tries and a penalty to a try and three penalties scored by Isipathana.

It was Isipathana who drew first blood by a penalty booted over by skipper and centre Sulakshana Ruberu in the third minute and eight minutes later Peterites leveled the score with a penalty booted by Shehan Liyanapathirana. Ruberu then helped Isipathana take over the lead when he booted over another penalty.

St. Peter’s undeterred got their act together and had their opponents under tremendous pressure and they were rewarded for their efforts with flanker Bilal Hilmy off a five metre scrum going over for an unconverted try. Five minutes before the short whistle they increased the lead off a try by hooker Julian Charles and with Liyanapathirana adding the extra points saw them lead 15-6.

From there on the two sides’ shared the honours and the Isipathanians being offered a penalty in the dying stages of the first half opted to take a kick at goal and succeeded as skipper Ruberu made no mistake helping the Pathanas to reduce the deficit as the sides changed with the Petes leading 15-9.

On resumption the weather hampered proceedings as the game slowed down due to slippery ground and also making ball handling for the two teams a bit difficult.

Isipathana again made the first scoring with winger Ramith Himash intercepting a pass in St. Peter’s territory sprinted over 60 metres to score down the left corner flag and with the conversion fluffed but the Isipathanians managed to reduce the Peterites lead to one point 14-15.

The Peterites struck back four minutes away from the finish through an unconverted try by Shehan Liyanapathirana who kicked the ball ahead and followed it up to go over for a try. Even though the conversion went stray, the Peterites had almost sealed the game before the long whistle was blown with the score 20-14 in favour of St. Peter’s who continued to maintain their unbeaten record with their fourth successive win.

Referee – Pradeep Weranga

 

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Peterite Rugby Legacy - Proud Profile

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Peterite Rugby Legacy – Proud Profile

Posted on 04 April 2018 by admin

Peterite Rugby 1984

 

 

 

 

 

 

Peterite Rugby lineage is rich with talent together with the true spirit of the game and it is with no doubt the Blue, White and Gold Brigade have made up their name as consistent performers of the game throughout the history of eighty-two years.

History of the Game at St. Peter`s College.

Having the privilege of being the fourth institution to introduce the oval shaped ball game to the island, Enthusiastic young Rugby hopefuls of St. Peter’s College donned the now glorious College Colours of Blue, White and Gold for the first time, in 1932 under the Rectorship of Rev. Fr. D.J Nicholas Perera. The brilliant Rugby player and sportsman, Mr. Herbert Wittahatchy took over the fortunes of Peterite Rugby in the same year, as Prefect of Games. No one dreamed that a glorious history was about to be created.

Brilliantly moulding a team of fresher’s together with Lim Billimoria, the first Peterite Rugby captain: St. Peter’s entered the then Ceylon Schools Rugby arena with its inaugural 1st XV in the same year -1932.  St. Peter`s College became the fourth school in history of Sri Lankan Rugby to play at competitive level.

St. Peter’s College has produced many brilliant rugby players in her 82 year old Rugby history feeding National teams with high quality players both with skills and discipline coming out of its system in every decade. Peterite rugby players have found favor with many leading Rugby Clubs and are always in great demand due to this since even pre- independence days during which British expatriates dominated the game.

Many Peterites have featured prominently in All Ceylon, Ceylonese or Sri Lankan XV’s or even at 7’s. They’ve brought much honour and glory to St. Peter’s College, its rugby and its fervent followers when ever they’ve donned the Blue White and Gold jersey or the national jersey against visiting teams or playing on foreign soil.

In the last decade, players like Dilanka Wijesekera who was the youngest school boy player to represent both national 7s and 15s side, Dilan Abeygoonawardena, Poornaka Delpachithra, Mohamed Sheriff, Rajiv Perera, Ishan Noor, Keith Gurusinghe, Suhiru Anthony, Sandun Hearth, Dhanushka Ranjan, Shenal Dias have proved that St. Peter`s Rugby has always understood it`s National duty and have performed it well.

Last Season

In 2013, the Peterite Brigade was led by the Fly-Half Shan Weerakody. Werakkody as the skipper led the side in to a glorious position during the last season. Emerging as the champions of the School Rugby Seven`s tournament helped them to start of the season in grand style. However, during the season St. Peter`s had a bumpy ride winning 5 matches by even beating the President’s trophy champions Wesley College and suffered 4 defeats. However the Blue, White and Gold brigade concluded the season in third place.    

Pre- Season

The lads from the Bambalapitiya began their pre-season practice sessions in the month of October 2013. Under the instructions of the trainer Niroshan Benedict, the boys were put through their paces in the criteria of pres season training and fitness which is an essential factor of the game before they stepped in to ground training. 

St. Peter`s reached the cup semi-finals in the recently concluded School Rugby Sevens championship which gave them enough motivation to begin the season and convert it to a victorious one.

Peterite Rugby Administration

Powered by the Old Peterites, the Administration staff is rendering it`s best to the boys to perform and prove the legacy. Old Peterite Collin Dinesh has taken over the responsibility as the coach for the 2014 season as well. This gentleman needs no introduction to the Sri Lankan Rugby arena. Having coached the Colombo School`s side in the Year 2013, he holds immense experience within him to lead the boys to a victorious season this year.

Together with the Head Coach, Rev. Fr. Lakmin Parasanga the Sports Coordinator of the college and the Rugby Foundation of St. Peter`s College under the leadership of the Nigel Forbes, are right in to the boys providing them with facilities and enough encouragement to make this season a season to remember.

Team Manager Mahesh De Sliva and the trainer Niroshan Benedict fills up the rest to create the back bone of the Peterite Rugby.

Kevin Dixon the Peterite Driving Force

Third year player and with one more year in hand Kevin Dixon is without doubt one player that each opponent has to worry about. Playing under the leadership of Dhanushka Ranjan and Shan Weerakody in the previous  years, he holds the biggest bag of experience with in the team. Playing in his new position as the center he is a ferocious player with one goal in mind; which is to score the try and to make the team victorious. Dixon`s knowledge that he carries within himself about the game provides the force to display his ball and foot skills which he will use to create gaps in the opponents line and to break down the opposition defence to touch the ball on the grass and make it count.  Everyone will be placing their eyes on this young talent which is blooming up with and he will be tested in this season.

Nishon Perera : Vice Captain at his best.

Second year player and with one more year in hand the Vice-Captain for this season is lending his supporting hand to the skipper to martial the troops well. Playing in the position of Flanker, Perera is an impact player who is fearless in tackling the opponent at any time. Ending up the last season in a respectable manner he walks out with immense ball skills which could be used to score at any given time in an open gap. His experience will help the Bambalapitiya boys to win games and win respectably.

Shamri Bura : The boy with Rugby in his Blood. 

Son of late Mr. Fazal Bura who is the former prop forward of CH&FC, he was born and bought up with rugby in his blood. He is one of the most important assets that St. Peter`s College holds for the season. Playing in the position of Fly-Half his ball handling skills will be tested this season as he is an expert in it. The team highly depends on his decision making skills which is considered a talent which will be the main factor of set play for the Peterite Lads.

Conclusion

St. Peter`s College with a history of 92 years and a Rugby History of 82 years have always been a side which every opponent has to worry about. With their consistent performance through-out the history they have proved that the Blue, White and Gold brigade is always good at come backs and arising from the dead. Concluding the last year`s season in the third place and this year under the captaincy of Senal Aponso the Peterites will set foot on lawn to bring glory to their game which they describe as their passion and their life. Their conquest this year would start from one of the heavy weights in the tourney, Kingswood College, Kandy as they would play their first game on the20nd of March.

Blue, White and Gold Squad- 2014

Prop

Udara Anjana /Gihan Fernando/ Reshan Rajapakse/Nishanthan Baskaran/Harin Biyamawila

Hooker

Raveen Yapa/Kusal Rathnayake /Yohan Jason

Locks

Shehan Mark/Rahal Delpachithra/Maleesha Rajapakse

Flanker

Senal Aponso (C)/Nishon Perera(VC)/Frank Roger/Ranith Silva/Dilshan Fonseka

No.8

Senura Premawardhana/Hasindu Fernando

Scrum-Half

Steve Dharamarathene/Ramal Fernando/Stefan Sivaraj

Fly-Half

Shamri Bura/Sandesh Jayawikrama/Deshan Fernando

Center

Kevin Dixon/ Avishka Ranasinghe

Wing-Three Quarter

Shallon Dirckez/Kamesh Fernando/Thakshina Nonis

Full Back

Diyath Fernando

St.Peter’s College Rugby 2014 – Senal Aponso – Captain 

Courtesy: The Papare

Editor's Note: St. Peter's and Rugby Football have been synonymous with each other. Many a brilliant ruggerite have passed through the hallways of St. Peter's College since 1932. Following are names of a few who made an indelible mark on the rugby grounds at Bambalapitiya and progressed to Club Rugby and also represented All-Ceylon and Sri Lanka.

Fred Kellar Archibald Perera Percy Perera Vernon Peiris
Ago Paiva Terry Williams Desmond Ephraims Lakshman Serasinghe
Jayantha Fernando Adiel Anghie Tony Johnson Didacus de Almeida
Royde de Silva Jeyer Rodriguez Stephen Alagaratnam Rohan Abeysundera
Hazmee Hameed Rodney Paternott Darrel Wimalaratne Aubrey Paternott
Carl Fernando Hamish Paternott Ronnie Gunaratna Sunil Perera
Jeffrey de Jong Rohan Wiratunga Nalyn Wiratunga Nimal Jayasuriya
Frank Hubert Hussain Didi Angelo Wickremaratne Roshan Deen
Jeremy Gomes Rohan Paulusz Keith Nugegoda Brian de Silva
Maurice de Silva Len de Silva Gavin Ludowyke Rajeev Perera

2013 – Shan Weerakkody (all island 7s winners)
2012 – Danushka Ranjan (a current Sri Lanka cap)
2011 – Banuka Nanayakkara (all island Western Province 7s winners)
2010 – Keith Gurusinghe – (unbeaten triple Champions – 7s, league and knockout champions)
2009 – Dilshan Paul (Carlton 7s Winners)
2008 – Poornaka Delpachitra (President’s Trophy winners)
2007 – Ranuka Jayasinghe (official unbeaten Champions)
2006 – Harendra Ariyawardena (official Schools’ A Division and knockout champions)
2005 – Sajith Adikari
2004 – Mohamed Rinaz
2003 -Rumaiz Ishaq
2002 – Dilanka Wijesekera (official Schools’ A Division rugby champions)
2001 – Dilan Abeygooneardena (Singer 7s winners)
2000 – Gladwin Georgesz

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Former Peterite cricketer Bernard Wijetunga heads Skal International

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Former Peterite cricketer Bernard Wijetunga heads Skal International

Posted on 03 April 2018 by admin

 

April 2, 2018.

article_image

Former St. Peter’s College cricketer Bernard Wijetunge was inducted as President of Skal International Colombo at its recently concluded AGM held at the Galadari Hotel. Skal is a professional organization of tourism leaders around the world, promoting global tourism and friendship. It is the only international group uniting all branches of the travel and tourism industry. Its members, the industry’s managers and executives meet at local, national, regional and international levels to do business among friends. Skal International today has approximately 15,000 members in 400 Clubs over 90 countries. Most activities occur at local level, moving up through National Committees, under the umbrella of Skal International, headquartered at the General Secretariat in Torremolinos, Spain.

The Office Bearers elected were:

  • President: Bernard Wijetunga
  • Vice President – Ahintha Amerasinghe
  • Secretary – Zahara Mufti
  • Treasurer – Keethi Jayaweera
  • Membership Development Officer – Nirmalan Nagendra
  • Young Skal Coordinator – Rohitha Mendis
  • Public Relations Officer – Dinushka Chandrasena
  • Committee Members – Mahendra Balasuriya and Nishad Wijetunga
  • Immediate Past President – Dushy Jayaweera
  • The Board of Advisors : Sega Nagendra, Jayantha Panabokke, Shamalie de Vaz, Dushy Jayaweera.

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44th Battle of the Saints Limited over match won by St. Joseph's College by 87 runs

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44th Battle of the Saints Limited over match won by St. Joseph’s College by 87 runs

Posted on 03 April 2018 by admin

The Josephian-Peterite limited overs encounter which is the longest running Limited Over encounter in the country and played for the Rev.Fr. Peter A. Pillai trophy was worked off for the 44th consecutive year at the SSC grounds in Colombo on Saturday, March 24, 2018.

 

A solid all-round effort by St. Joseph’s College enabled them to beat arch rival St. Peter’s College by 87 runs in their 44th Battle of the Saints annual limiter overs cricket encounter and win the Fr. Peter Pillai trophy at the SSC ground in Colombo yesterday.

The Joes electing to bat first made 259 in 49.2 overs as Revan Kelley (59), Nipun Sumanasinghe (53) and Dunith Wellalage (37) piled up the runs.

The Peterites got off to a disastrous start losing three wickets for just six runs and never recovered only to be bowled out for 172 as the Daniel duo of Jehan and Ashian grabbed four scalps each. Only Santhush Gunathilake with 49 and Ranmith Jayasena (48) offered some resistance.

Jehan Daniel skipper of St. Joseph’s was adjudicated as man of the match.

St. Joseph’s: 259 in 49.2 overs (Revan Kelly 59, Nipun Sumanasinghe 53, Dunith Wellalage 37, Jehan Daniel 26, Lakshan Gamage 26, Dilesh Perera 19, Shivan Perera 2/32, Santhush Gunathilake 2/44, Mohamed Ameen 2/60)

St.Peter’s: 172 in 38.4 overs (Santhush Gunathilake 49, Ranmith Jayasena 48, Dinith Anjula 25, Jehan Daniel 4/21, Ashian Daniel 4/32)-(YK) 

 

 

The Josephian skipper and Sri Lanka U19 vice captain, Jehan Daniel called correct at the toss and the Josephians batted first on what looked like a good track to bat on. Johanne De Zilva fell early to the left arm spin of Miflal Ameen but experienced campaigners Revan Kelly and Nipun Sumanasinghe resurrected the innings with both batsman making half centuries. Skipper Daniel hit a couple of lusty blows during his short stay but he fell to some canny bowling from Ameen.

The Josephians struggled during the middle overs to gain any momentum but 15 year old Dunith Wellalage gave the innings much needed impetus with a fluent 37, though his dismissal sparked a mini collapse as the Josephians were all-out for 259 after being 237/5. Ameen, Santhush Gunathilaka and Shivan Perera all picked two wickets apiece for the Peterites.

The Peterite run chase got off to a horror start with their top order bar skipper Gunathilaka being dismissed in quick succession as they were reduced to 3/06. Jehan Daniel had his tail up for the Josephians dismissing both right handers with in-swingers to trap them in front while Lakshan Gamage picked up the first wicket to fall.

It was a grand recovery from there onwards for the Peterites through Gunathilaka and Ranmith Jayasena as the duo initially took time before starting to break free as they added 103 runs for the fourth wicket. Then came the most telling point in the match when Jehan Daniel brought himself back into the attack to capture the vital scalp of Jayasena who was unfortunate to be dismissed on 48.

The other Daniel (Ashain) also got into the act as he dismissed the Peterite skipper who was looking well set for a big one to put a halt to the Peterite run chase. The boys from Bambalapitiya never really recovered from there onwards as they eventually folded up for 172 handing a massive 87 run victory to the Josephians.

Ashain Daniel was unfortunate to not pick a five wicket haul but he ended with outstanding figures of 4/32 while captain Jehan Daniel picked up the last wicket to fall to end with a stunning 4/21 as the Josephians recorded a win in the series after 2014.

Jehan Daniel and Ashain Daniel were named man of the match and best bowler respectively while Revan Kelly won the best batsman’s award for his crucial 59. Sulakshana Fernando was named best fielder in the match for his catch and an amazing run out while Santhush Gunathilaka and Ranmith Jayasena won the award for the ‘partnership of the match’.

 

 

 

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On the nose Down Under: Cheating exposes rotten cricket culture by Lawrence Heyn

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On the nose Down Under: Cheating exposes rotten cricket culture by Lawrence Heyn

Posted on 02 April 2018 by admin

On the nose Down Under: Cheating exposes rotten cricket culture

By Lawrence Heyn (Former Peterite cricketer now domiciled in Australia)

The moral high ground Australian sport had chosen to occupy caved in last Saturday, and the country’s reputation plunged into a dark, deep pit of national shame.

All that is left to be done now is for the undertaker – dare I say it, Cricket Australia head James Sutherland – to shovel the dirt in and plant the epitaph: “Here lies Australian Cricket, betrayed by its captain and ‘leadership group’ in South Africa.”

Never again can Australia take back the high ground against cheating because its cricket team has exposed itself as hypocrites of the highest order. The country had installed itself as judge and jury against cheats from other countries, but now that the cricketers have been found wanting national outrage has been deafening. Outrage that Australia’s self-proclaimed pure, righteous image has been blackened.

This sorry episode also is a wake-up call to all cricket-playing countries to clean up their game. Fast.

Captain Steve Smith, banned by the ICC for one match, has been banished by Cricket Australia for a year while the detestable David Warner received an equally long sentence. The feeling among past cricketers, media and most fans is that they will be happy if Warner never plays cricket again.

Lawrence Heyn

As for Cameron Bancroft, his rather clownish attempt at cheating earned him a nine-month ban, and he will have to travel a long road of rehabilitation before cricket fans will forgive and forget so he could wear the baggy green again. He will have to explain his lie about using sticky tape to scuff up the ball in the third South Africa-Australia Test in Newlands, when in fact he had used sandpaper.

The ill-conceived plans to cheat, hatched by Warner, have cost the captain and vice-captain dearly. Smith and Warner have been kicked out of the Indian Premier League, and the repercussions have been huge – each player reportedly set to lose about AUD $4 million in payments and sponsorship deals. Cricket Australia has already lost one of its major sponsors and $20 million. More huge losses are expected as sponsors review their association with CA.

Cricket Australia has meted out stiff punishment to three cheats, although James Sutherland refused to utter the word “cheat” at his train-wreck of an interview in Johannesburg on Tuesday. This was only the start of a bigger story that is ever-changing. There was fury and disbelief that Coach Darren Lehmann had escaped sanction because just like the famed Sergeant Schultz he “knew nothing”.

There is a saying that fish rots from the head, and certainly Lehmann played a stinking role in developing a team that was arrogant, bullying and so out of touch with reality and decency. And, Sutherland has played his part in this. The CA boss has given tacit approval for sledging, “as long as it does not go too far”. Sutherland is now scrambling to save his job, but the weight of public opinion might soon tip the scales against him.

Lehmann, after saying he would stay on in the job and pledging to change so he could fix Australia’s cricket culture, has decided to resign at the end of the South Africa-Australia Fourth Test match.

Cricket Australia has been slow to get it, as the public outrage has not been directed at just the cheats but also at an organisation that enabled the creation of a win-at-all-costs system that was repugnant to cricket followers around the world. Sutherland and Lehmann have been key architects of a rotting culture. CA needs a man of integrity, such as John Buchanan, at the top to win back support.

When the much-loved Test player Philip Hughes died in 2016 after being hit on the head by a cricket ball, the Australian team as one, including Warner, vowed to be better people as a tribute to him. Yet, it has been short lived. In two years we have seen the rise and rise of the Ugly Australian and this week’s flashpoint has brought Australian cricket crashing down to reality. Bullying and sheer aggression against opposing players have been Australia’s modus operandi for too long. For Cricket Australia, this was acceptable as long the team produced results, such as winning the World Cup and Ashes series.

Former Test player and respected cricket writer Ashley Mallett launched a scathing attack on the Australian team in a column this week.

Mallett wrote: “Today’s players should be mindful of their responsibility to leave the game in a better state than they found it. It is a time-honoured, yet unwritten law.

“Back in the latter stages of the 19th Century Lord Hawke, a colossus in world cricket, who played for Cambridge University, Yorkshire, and England, then a leading administrator for 40 years, was the stalwart of all things good in this magnificent game, wrote: ‘Cricket is a moral lesson in itself, and the classroom is God’s air and sunshine. Foster it, my brothers; protect it from anything that will sully it, so that it will be in favour with all men’.”

Mallett continued: “Hawke’s beautiful words tell us all that is wonderful about cricket: that is cricket when it is played hard, but fair and in the spirit of the game. What have we witnessed of late? All that is grubby and deceitful about a group of would-be cricketing thugs who intimidate their opponents like schoolyard bullies. It worked perfectly for them against the inept, weak England team during the Ashes summer, but this time they were up against a tough South African unit who refused to cower from the bully that is the Australian cricket team.”

Australia’s bullying of visiting teams became more brazen, often aided by a parochial media. In fact, in 2013, one newspaper displayed such jingoism that it chose to bully Stuart Broad just because it had the power to do so. It was so distasteful that journalists with any sense of fairness and balance were repelled by the paper’s tactics and prayed they would never see the like again. Lehmann, true to form, also called on the fans to abuse Broad so “he cries and goes home”.

A veteran foreign journalist told me that when he came to Sydney a decade ago for a Commonwealth press gathering one of the topics discussed was how Aussie sports desks actively backed their national teams. “There was no issue of partisanship – it was considered their duty to do so. I remember saying that was probably why the Aussies were so unpopular around the world and the term ABBA came into being; not the Swedish pop group but to mean Any Body But Australia,” he said.

Sledging – a typical Aussie trait

Sledging, a typical Australian trait was getting meaner and angrier and this cancer has spread fast through cricket’s grassroots. No one seemed to have the will to stop it because the role models at the top endorsed it and showed the impressionable juniors how it was done. One cricket lover, who regularly umpired weekend under-13 game told me how distraught he was by what he saw. He tried to counsel the players, but they just laughed at him and claimed that they were doing it because their idols in the Test team were doing it too.

The ongoing tour of South Africa brought out the worst in the Australians. The screaming and bullying on and off the field was at their zenith, with Warner the chief miscreant. His unrelenting sledging of Quinton de Kock, his manic behaviour aimed at opening batsman Aiden Markram after A B De Villiers was run out, and his stairwell aggression showed how bad the problem had become. The others too fell in step with Warner – Nathan Lyons was sanctioned for dishonouring de Villiers, Smith could be seen constantly mouthing off from slip, while Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Marsh, Josh Hazlewood, and Pat Cummins often looked mean and ill-tempered after each ball was bowled.

This was upsetting to the true cricket fans, and the media was slowly starting to wake up and realise that Australian cricket had a putrid smell about it.

Sporting image undone

Australia’s sporting image was finally undone by something deep-rooted and sinister – Warner was a conniving cheat, aided and abetted by Smith and Bancroft. Warner was the team’s designated “ball manager”. What a joke! We all know now that ball manager was code for “chief cheat”. It was curious that Warner always had a heavily strapped left hand. When suspicions grew that the strapping served a more devious purpose, Warner divested himself of this role and recruited a patsy in the shape of the bumbling rookie Bancroft.

Then Karma came knocking and Australia, from the Prime Minister to cricket fans, is reeling under the weight of this national shame. But what will hurt more is that the country can no longer adopt a pious and holier-than-thou attitude it so revelled in, politics and sport.

The game will never be the same. It is a wake-up call to cricket administrators around the world to take back control from rat-bag players. In Sri Lanka, during the Nidahas Trophy tournament, ugly scenes ensued between Sri Lankan and Bangladeshi players. This must not be allowed to happen again. All players should be set clear expectations that bad behaviour will not be tolerated.

The ICC’s demerit points system is a joke. Players will continue to transgress because they know they have wriggle room. Stern measures must be taken, even to the extent of invoking a behaviour clause in players’ contracts. It should be zero tolerance – one strike and you are out. Never has there been a stronger argument for the introduction of the red card, with the umpires given greater autonomy.

Ball tampering cheats are infesting the game round the world. You only have to search “ball tampering” online to see the many devious methods used to change the condition of the ball – from Shahid Afridi biting the seam to Faf Du Plessis’ Lollygate. Then, there was the brazen cheat, Victorian bowling coach Mick Lewis, who kicked the ball into the gutter and then scraped it on the concrete in the 2016 Victoria-South Australia Shield final. Victoria was bowling at the time. Lewis pleaded guilty and was fined more than $2000, but he remained in the game.

Not the first time

It emerged on Friday that Sheffield Shield match referee Daryl Harper had complained about ball tampering by Warner and Smith in an email to umpires head Simon Taufel two years ago. “When David Warner repeatedly bounced his returns in to (NSW wicketkeeper) Peter Nevill on the first day, the umpires appealed to Smith to support their calls for fair play. They weren’t encouraged by his response. I assisted the umpires on the second morning by suggesting to Trent Johnston (coach) that CA didn’t need an issue with the national captain being involved in a ball-tampering incident,” Harper had written.

If the ICC is serious about ball tampering it must reintroduce a long-abandoned rule where only the bowler can shine the ball. The umpires should be handed the ball between overs to cut any illegal activity.

So far, behaviour is measured by such vague terms as “do not cross the line” and “spirit of the game”, and most teams have now corrupted them to the very extreme. The ICC must harness the wisdom of the true gentlemen of the game, I am sure there are a few around – Mahela Jayawardene and Brendon McCallum to name two – to set up a code of conduct that is realistic and enforceable.

Men behaving badly on the cricket field is a universal problem. The constant chirping by wicket-keepers and chatter by close-in fielders to unsettle the batsman have no place in the game. It is disgusting. The cricket field must be treated as a work place; the players are paid obscene sums of money as professionals and they must act as such. Aggression, bullying and vilification must not be tolerated.

As I said, it starts at the top. Cricket boards must be held responsible and sanctioned for the sins of their players.

Last weekend, I was browsing through my considerable collection of Australian cricket books – from Trumper to Chappell – to gain an understanding of how the game has changed. I came across a picture of Frank Worrell handing over the trophy to Richie Benaud after the famous Australia-West Indies tied test of 1960. The pair’s smiles lit up the picture and there was such genuineness and rapport between them. They were truly in the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

We must restore cricket to that state of enjoyment. Otherwise, I might as well toss my books to fuel a funeral pyre for a game strangled by its noxious participants. At this stage, I won’t mourn its loss.

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Happy Easter 2018!

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Happy Easter 2018!

Posted on 01 April 2018 by admin

On Easter Sunday Christians world-wide celebrate the Glorious Resurrection of Jesus Christ, the core-truth of their religious faith and spirituality. Jesus of Nazareth thus became an Eternal Galilean who will rule the world and human history till the end of time. The Crucified Nazarene, the carpenter’s son, the authoritative preacher, the healer of the sick and the possessed, the threat of the demons has vanquished the gloom of the grave and the darkness of that cave having emerged glorious in the brilliance of the Risen Life.

Easter Sunday is the most important day in the Christian church calendar in Canada. It celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ after his crucifixion, according to Christian belief.Christians celebrate Easter on a Sunday as it was the day Jesus rose from the dead, following being crucified on a Friday two days before.

Centuries ago in 325, it was determined by a council of Christian bishops that Easter Day would always be on a Sunday to commemorate the happy occasion. 

Why does the date of Easter change each year?

While the dates for Christmas, Valentine’s Day and Halloween are fixed, Easter can fall any time between March 22 and April 25

In Western Christianity, Easter Sunday must always fall on the next full moon after Spring Equinox.

Easter can fall as early as March and as late as April or May, depending on the year and calendar used.

Christians in the east who use the Julian calendar instead of the Gregorian calendar may have a different date.

The date of Easter changes because the full moon can fall on different days in different time zones.

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