Sri Lanka national rugby union team

Sri Lanka

Union	Sri Lanka Rugby Football Union
Nickname(s)	The brave Elephants Tuskers[1]
Coach(es)	Ellis Meachen[2]
Captain(s)	Sean Wijesinghe
Team kit Change kit
First international
Thailand 18–18 Ceylon (13 January 1970)
Largest win
Malaysia 3–77 Sri Lanka (7 November 2007)
Largest defeat
Japan 129–6 Sri Lanka (8 October 2002)
World Cup
Appearances	0

The Sri Lanka national rugby union team represents Sri Lanka in international rugby union competitions. Sri Lanka have yet to make their debut at the Rugby World Cup. They have the longest tradition of organised club rugby in Asia, dating back to 1879, which was just 8 years after the founding of the world’s first rugby union in England.^[3] They regularly compete in the Asian Five Nations tournament and are currently in Division I. In the 2010 tournament, they made it to the finals beating Chinese Taipei 37 to 7.

History

See also: Rugby union in Sri Lanka

Introduction of rugby to Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka Rugby has a long history, dating back to the days of British colonialism. The first High school to introduce Rugby to Sri Lanka is Kingswood College in Kandy, with the first club, Colombo Football Club, being established in 28 June 1879.^[4]

International competition begins

The nation's first "national" match was on 12 September 1907 and involved an All Ceylon team against the All Blacks on their 1907–1908 New Zealand rugby tour of Australia and Great Britain.^[5] The All Blacks won the match 33-6.^[6] In the year 1908, 10 August, saw the creation of the Ceylon Rugby Football Union, which in 1974 changed its name to the Sri Lanka Rugby Football Union.^[7]

20th century

In 1932 the Ceylon RFU XV won the All India Cup at all India Rugby Football Tournament

The 1950 British Lions tour to New Zealand and Australia, also played an unofficial match in Ceylon on their way home.^[8]

Mahesh Rodrigo, better known as an international cricketer, also captained the national team.

World Cup qualifying

1995 World Cup

Main article: 1995 Rugby World Cup qualifying#Asia

1995 was the first time Sri Lanka entered into a World Cup qualifying tournament. Sri Lanka was in Group A along with Japan, Taiwan and Malaysia. They lost all three games scoring an aggregate of 30 against 155. Japan went on to qualify for the World cup.

1999 World Cup

Main article: 1999 Rugby World Cup qualifying#Asia

New millennium

The furthest they have made was to Round 2 of the Asian qualifying competition for the 2007 Rugby World Cup in France. The Sri Lanka rugby team performed above expectations during the qualifying campaign for the world cup, and saw its world ranking improve from 68th place to 43rd place, and its Asian ranking improve to fifth place.^[9]

World Cup qualifying

2003 World Cup

Main article: 2003 Rugby World Cup - Asia qualification

2007 World Cup

Main article: 2007 Rugby World Cup - Asia qualification

2010s

Asian Five Nations and World Cup qualifying

Main article: Asian Five Nations

2008 - 2010

Main articles: 2011 Rugby World Cup – Asia qualification, 2008 Asian Five Nations, 2009 Asian Five Nations, and 2010 Asian Five Nations

Sri Lanka won Division One of the 2010 tournament beating Singapore (23-16), thereby winning promotion to the 2011 Asian Five Nations Top Five.

Asian Division 1

2011 - 2014

Main article: 2015 Rugby World Cup – Asia qualification

Home grounds

• CR & FC Grounds – Colombo 7
• CH & FC Grounds – Colombo 7
• Police Grounds – Colombo 5
• Army Grounds – Galle Face
• Nittawela Grounds – Kandy
• Air Force Grounds – Ratmalana
• Navy Grounds – Welisara
• Havelocks Grounds – Havelock Town
• Maligawa Grounds - Kurunegala
• Bogambara Stadium - Kandy
• Peoples' Park - Anuradhapura
• Slim Line Grounds - Pannala
• Vincent Dias Stadium - Badulla
• Army Grounds - Anuradhapura

Players

Current squad

Backs Player Position Club Roshan Weeraratne Scrum-half Kandy SC Zulki Hamid Scrum-half CR and FC Srinath Sooriyabandara Scrum-half CR and FC Chanaka Chandimal Fly-half Air Force Ashan de Costa Fly-half CR and FC Fazil Marija Fly-half Kandy SC Chamara Vithanage Centre Kandy SC Pradeep Liyanage(CAP) Centre Kandy SC Chula Susantha Centre Navy Gayan Weeraratne Centre Kandy SC Mathisha Silva Wing CH&FC V S Handapangoda Wing Army Vishvamithra Jayasinghe Wing CR and FC Nuwan Hettiarachchi Wing Navy Reeza Mubarak Wing CR and FC Prasanka Lucy Fullback Army Saliya Kumara Fullback Kandy SC

Forwards Player Position Club Rajiv Perera Hooker Havelocks Bilal Hassan Hooker CR and FC Achala Perera Hooker Kandy SC Kishore Jehan Prop Kandy SC Eranga Swarnatilleke Prop Kandy SC Henry Terrence Prop CR and FC Suranga Swarnatilleke Prop Navy SC Ashen Karthelis Lock CR and FC Ishan Noor Lock CR and FC Dinesh Sanjeewa Lock CH and FC Senaka Bandara Lock Kandy SC Zaffer Jahn Lock Kandy SC Danushka Perera Flanker CR and FC Kasun de Silva Flanker Kandy SC Yoshitha Rajapaksa Flanker Navy Dilip Selvam Flanker Kandy SC Sean Wijesinghe Flanker Kandy SC R.M.G. Ratnayake Flanker Army Sharoo Fernando Flanker Havelock SC Dushanthe Lewke Number eight CR and FC Sajith Saranga Number eight Kandy SC

Officials

Coaches

• Coach: Ellis Meachen (2011–Present)

Council Members

• Chairman - Dr. Maiya Gunasekera
• Team Manager - Sanjaya Fernando
• SLRFU President - Nimal Lewke
• Vice President - Asanga Senevirathne
• Executive Director - Dilroy Fernando ^[10]

Former coaches

• Rob Yule (2006–2007)
• Dawie Snyman^[11] (2007–2010)
• Johan Taylor (? - 2011)

See also

• List of Sri Lanka national rugby union team results

References

1. ^ http://www.sundayobserver.lk/2011/04/24/spo03.asp
2. ^ http://print.dailymirror.lk/sports/128-local/41347.html
3. ^ http://www.asian5nations.com/Division1%25262
4. ^ http://www.srilankarugby.com/rugby_history.html A 100 years of Unbroken Tradition!
5. ^ http://www.srilankarugby.com/rugby_history.html/
6. ^ http://www.rugbyleagueproject.org/matches/All_Blacks_Tour_1907/Game_4/Ceylon-vs-New_Zealand.html Match Report
7. ^ http://www.srilankarugby.com/rugby_history.html A 100 years of Unbroken Tradition!
8. ^ Thomas, Clem; updated by Thomas, Greg (2005). The History of The British and Irish Lions. Mainstream Books. pp. pp89–99. ISBN 1-84596-030-0. 
9. ^ Sri Lanka to host Rugby Asiad in November this year
10. ^ [1]
11. ^ Dawie Snyman to coach Sri Lanka

External links

• 2007 Rugby Asiad
• Sri Lanka Rugby Football Union official web site
• List and results of all IRB sanctioned international rugby games played by Sri Lanka