OWSC’s cricket sixes on October 16, 17 and 18

Over 36 teams vie for honours :

Richard DWIGHT

The Old Wesleyites Sports Club’s (OWSC) 17th annual schools Six-a-Side cricket tournament organized and conducted by the OWSC will be held on the 16, 17 and 18 October 2009 at the Wesley College grounds. It is being actively sponsored by Ceylon Biscuits Ltd. (CBL) for the second consecutive year and played for the “Munchee Glucofit Trophy”.

There will be 36 teams vying for championship honours - inclusive of 9 district combined teams, Viz, Polonnaruwa, Trincomalee, Anuradhapura, Jaffna, Hambantota, Vavuniya, Nuwara Eliya and Bandarawela, Badulla and Moneragala, Ampara and Batticaloa. There will also be two leading international schools invited to take part in this year’s tournament. These details were revealed to media personnel by the chairman of the tournament committee, Navin de Silva, on Tuesday evening at the Wesley College Hall. Navin, did as well give a brief narrative of the coming to be of this tournament, and the progress it has made thus far through the years. He stood grateful to the sponsors, CBL and the print as well as electronic media for their sustained support, without which it wouldn’t be easy to organise events of this nature.

The Group Managing Director CBL, Lakshman de Silva, observed that we ought to see our way through to make this tournament as attractive as possible to draw crowds with this end in view to add glamour, there will be an under 19 girls exhibition match scheduled for the final day. Bringing a new dimension to the event will be an art competition on the theme “Munchee Glucofit Cricket” sponsored by CBL for Wesley’s young artists who will showcase their talents on the second and third day of the tournament.

The defending champions are, Prince of Wales College Moratuwa and, at an opportune moment the master-in-charge of Prince of Wales cricket holding aloft the “Munchee Glucofit Trophy” followed by its cricketers, ceremonially brought the challenge trophy into the hall.

The main trophy will be the “Glucofit Sixes Trophy” that will be awarded to the whiner, the runner-up will receive the “Old Wesleyites Sixes Trophy”. Individual trophies will be made to the Best Batsman, Bowler and Fielder.

Special individual awards will be presented to Man of the Final, Man of the Tournament and for the Highest Number of sixes.

Eight team members of the winning team and the runner-up team will receive trophies.

The draw of the tournament will take place on the 29 September 2009 at the Wesley College Hall at 6.00 p.m.

The President of the OWSC, Ivor Maharoof, said that the newly re-laid turf wickets at the Wesley College grounds, sponsored by Sri Lanka Cricket, will be declared open on the last day of the tournament. The CBL Group Director Marketing and sales Nandana Wickremage also spoke, while Eric Gauder was the compere.