Off season fitness for sportsmen is a must, says Maurice

S M Jiffrey Abdeen- Kandy Sports Correspondent

Former All Ceylon ruggerite and champion motor racing driver Maurice Perera at 79 years is the oldest sports administrator in the country at present believes that off season fitness for sportsmen and sportswomen is a must.

He made these observations at an interview with this correspondent at his residence bordering the Udawattekele Sanctuary in Kandy which was once the residence of the Mayor of Kandy during the Colonial days. Maurice Perera now nearing his eighties was still fit and appeared in good spirits.

Rugby was his first love and he played for Trinity College in the fifties as a prop forward and he had to fight for his place with the big made European boys in the front row. But Maurice succeeded in having the edge over them. After an illustrious school rugby career the big made Maurice Perera just out of his teens made his debut for Kandy Sports Club in 1953 and once again he had to fight for his berth with the big made expatriate planters and retained a permanent place in the team and he did even better by playing for All Ceylon in the then All India Rugby tournament and against visiting foreign rugby teams which included the New Zealand Colts and the London Lions. In most matches he was the only local in the All Ceylon rugby team which was studded with expatriate planters and others working in the Plantation Agency Houses in Colombo.

Maurice Perera said that off season fitness for ruggerites is a must and once the hectic rugby season is over, they tend to relax or taking it easy consuming buriyani, Chinese foods and the local 'Koththu Rotti' and when they start training before the season begins they would have put on weight or grown side ways or some may even sport a protruding belly. They will have to again work hard to shed these extra weight which will make them uncomfortable. Otherwise this time could be utilised for improving their playing and working out strategies which will have to be done with precision and without the opponents spotting them.

He said that weight training is an important factor as it provides the necessary power to the ruggerites while strengthening the muscles and the Kandy YMCA was the only place available in Kandy in the fifties and they patronised this institution and this helped him to have the edge over the brawny plantares who were busy in the plantations and did not have much time to indulge in exercises of this nature.

The only club he played was Kandy Sports Club and a marvellous club which has now brought honour to the hill capital. He played for the Upcountry team in the annual Capper Cup rugby tie and also against visiting sides.

Once his playing days were over he underwent training as a coach in 'Old Blighty' the home of rugby and came out as a fully fledged coach.

His first coaching assignment was for Kandy Sports Club in 1969 when he often had to don the boots and play when the team required his services. He coached the Kandy Sports Club to the Clifford Cup finals and they lost to CR and FC. Kandy Sports Club was captained by the late Denzil Kobbekaduwa.

He said that the first time Kandy Sports Club reached the finals in any rugby tournament was in 1953 and he played for the side.

This match was played at Longden Place whereas it should have been played at the Bogambara Stadium as Kandy SC had already met the Red Shirts in Longden Place and it was Kandy's turn to host the match. Kandy SC lost the finals narrowly due to a blunder by the reference who signalled a forward pass 20 yards from the goal line when they scored a clean try.

The following year in 1955 too Kandy SC entered the Clifford Cup finals and he played in this match. It was Kandy's turn to host this match and once again a mysterious strategy was employed by the officials to shift the finals to the neutral venue of Darrawela in Dickoya and local spectators hardly had any interest in the match as two outside teams were battling out for honours. Kandy SC lost this match.

The third time Kandy SC entered a Cup final was in 1969 and this time he was the young coach of the side and this time too the trophy eluded the Kandyans.

He coached his alma mater Trinity College in 1977 and there was hardly anyone to take the job as the previous year Royal College under hooker Manik Weerakumar had inflicted the biggest ever defeat on the 'Lions' beating them by an aggregate of 61-0-36-0 in the first leg and 25-0 in the second leg. This was in the Bradby Shield encounter and nothing could be humiliating to the Trinitians as Bradby Shield encounter was so prestigious for the Trinitians.

He took over the coaching of the Trinity team in 1977 and was captained by Ravi Balasuriya and he planned his strategies identifying the plays of the Royalists and the lions did the impossible by defeating Royal College by the convincing aggregate of 22-10 in the Bradby Shield encounter.

The Trinitians were jubilant that the rugby team was rewarded with foreign trip. His job done, he handed back the coaching to another person in 1979.