STC Matale Old Boys look to lift Lankan hockey

Thursday, 25 September 2014 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Ritzbury All-Island School Hockey Tournament, organised by the St. Thomas’ Old Boys’ Hockey Association will be held on 27 September, at Matale in the hope of bringing Sri Lankan hockey back to its former glory.

The annual tournament will be sponsored by Ritzbury. Hockey has been experiencing a decline during the past few decades and it is indeed interesting to note that the initiatives for reawakening the sport have commenced in Matale, a town well-known for producing many hockey players of both national and international fame. The St. Thomas, Matale Old Boys’ Hockey Association has taken the initiative to reinvigorate the sport. This symbolises the inseparable bond between the school and the sport. In addition to that, the school has provided numerous national level players in the past to strengthen the sport, most notably Lieutenant Colonel Dampiya Wanasinghe, Principal of St. Thomas College, Matale. The following schools will be taking part in the tournament: Royal College, Ananda College, Wesley College, D. S. Senanayake, S. Thomas’ (Mt. Lavania), St. Thomas (Matale) , Dhramaraja, Trinity, St. Sylvester, Kingswood, Christhudewa, Zahira College, Jaffna College, St. Aloysius (Galle), Joseph Vas (Wennappuwa), Maristella (Negombo), Bandaranayaka (Gampaha) and Dharmadutha (Badulla). The tournament consists of 48 games which will be played at Edward Park Grounds. The day’s proceedings are expected to start by 7 a.m. on 27 September.