Kandy football will miss Bodhi, Hafiz

Kandy Football League will miss the services of former DIG Bodhi Liyanage and Hafiz Marikar, after a long innings in administering and promoting the game in the League paving the way for several players to represent the National team for a number of years. Besides, they not only helped Kandy Football in a big way for the past 25 years, but have created a huge impact on the development despite several constrains both financially and the lack of facilities.

At one time Kandy football was toying with the idea of plonking for local support to ensure football reaching great heights and this was possible with commitment and dedication to progress for the future led brilliantly by the duel.

Now that things are well placed and the need to groom the youth to take over the administration to the next level of the association, both have decided to step down for some time, from Kandy Football League and give an opportunity to others to perform.

Stepping down

Hafiz Marikar said, that although he is stepping down from Kandy football, he will be there to promote the game to achieve his dreams of football reaching the pinnacle of recognition at International level for Kandy and ultimately for Sri Lanka.

He also has promised Manilal Fernando that his services with the Football Federation to promote the game will never die.

It was Hafiz Marikar in the year 1986 who took over the oneous and bring in Bodhi Liyanage DIG (Rtd) to the limelight when the game was at its lowest ebb in Kandy with no assistance to find their whereabouts, with a huge commitment and dedication these two helped Kandy Football League hit the top and also helped the team to win the inter-league competition for the first time in the history of football in 1992 that year Hafiz Marikar was the acting President as Bodhi Liyanage was out of the country on a scholarship.

Overseas tour

Also for the first time, took the Kandy Football team on an overseas tour to Nepal to play in one of their domestic tournaments with praise from the organizers from Nepal.

Bodhi Liyanage hit the top by becoming the president of the Sri Lanka Football Federation, he was in office for one and half years, and Hafiz Marikar was the Secretary General for three long years, it will be difficult for any one from Kandy to come up to this position in football.

It will be great loss for the Kandy Footballers, as it was these two personalities who got the necessary funding to promote the game.

Annually the funds required for the season was over a million rupees, to conduct the domestic and other tournaments. According to Hafiz Marikar, Manilal Fernando is one person who give a very big hand and found over half the money required per season.

Hafiz Marikar said that Manilal Fernando, Chyrisantha Perera and late J S N Anandaraja has given their unstinted support to promote the game both personally and funds when they took office in 1986 and the game really flourished to reach the current heights and standards to focus beyond for the future.

Facilities

Hafiz said, people can come and go, but it is very difficult to manage the affairs of any organization, the need for funds and facilities are limited in Kandy.

In the good old days football was the only game which was promoted in Kandy a true common man’s game with the bare minimum facilities.

Rugby was played by only two schools. Today all Kandy schools play, with the lack of ground facilities.

Bogambara is the only ground, but that too has to cater for other sports, this is an urgent requirement and on previous media reports as well this matter has been addressed with no avail.