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| Thursday, 4 November 2004 |
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Another blow for rugby The Sri Lanka team cut a sorry figure when they lost to one-time minnows of Asian rugby, China in the bowl segment of the 2004 Rugby Asiad in Hong Kong last week. Thus, Sri Lanka justified the decision of the Hong Kong organizers and the Asian Rugby Football Union to draw them in the bowl category, which had the weakest teams amongst the participating countries. A decade ago, Sri Lanka was pushing for a place in the top group of the Asiad as they were only behind Japan and Korea and on par with third-placed Taiwan. That was the period when our team was ahead of one time Asian No.3 Hong Kong. When Sri Lanka beat China in back to back rugby union Tests in a home series, no one took those games seriously as the lads from Beijing were the babes of Asian rugby. Such thinking was fair enough because China had just taken to rugby at that time and in contrast, Sri Lanka could boast of a rich 'rugby culture' and a history here. Rugby Football was virtually an unknown sport in China until the mid nineties. It was only a few years ago that the game played with an oval shaped ball was introduced to the country, which has the world's highest population. But in no time the Chinese mastered the game. Even at the very early stages when the game was introduced in Beijing, the Chinese youth showed tremendous potential and signs of becoming a force to be reckoned with in the Asian circuit. The Chinese Rugby Football Union had a vision when the game was first introduced there. They had their short, medium and long-term goals. The professional approach of the Chinese rugby officials and the dedication and skills of their youthful players enabled them to make steady progress in the Asian rugby arena. In contrast, the standard of Sri Lanka rugby has deteriorated drastically. Not only have we been pushed to No. 8 or 9 place in Asia from the No.3 position we enjoyed in the mid nineties, but also it has come to a stage where we are now losing to new teams, which had taken to the sport only a few years ago. As it is, we could only think of beating minnows like India and Pakistan, the countries where there are hardly any systematic rugby set up, compared to that of ours. But at the rate the colours in the Sri Lanka rugby jersey is fading away, it won't be a surprise even if we lose to a team like Pakistan within the next few years. All what Sri Lanka could do at the 2004 Rugby Asiad was to massacre the innocent Pakistanis, who even lacked the basics of the game. The standard of the Pakistan team is understandable, as they had taken to the sport only a couple of years ago. There is a vast gap in the domestic rugby structure of Pakistan and that of ours. At least we thought our team would win the bowl title at the Asiad. That would have at least given something for our rugby officials to crow about and paint a rosy picture of their development work. It's pity that our team could not even become the 'champions of the minnows'. We are not putting the entire blame on our rugby team. A major portion of the blame should go to the people who handle the game here over the past few years. True there was a lot of talking on rugby development here but in real terms, virtually nothing has taken place. Continuous training right through out the season is a must for the national poolists. There is no point in blaming players, stating that they lack commitment to the national team practices and opt for club schedules. Secondly, a good development squad should be groomed to fill the vacancies of the national team. It is unreasonable to blame players that they have more loyalty to their club teams than the national team. True playing for the national team would be a pride but that alone is not going to fulfill the aspirations of poor players. Unlike in cricket, playing for Sri Lanka team would not financially benefit our rugby players. All what they would get is honour of donning Sri Lanka colours. Unlike the good old days, most of those who play the game at present are not from sound financial backgrounds. Playing for a club team during a season will be their bread and butter for the whole year. Hence, we cannot expect those poor but talented players to forget their club commitments and attend national pool practices with empty pockets. There should be a systematic plan to reward the national players, to offer them a reasonable allowance when the national pool is under training. It is not just their playing conditions, but their other socio economic aspects too should be looked into. That would keep them in good frame of mind and motivate them to come out with their best. |
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