- The club spotlight
Kandy Sports Club is more than just a rugby team, they have unarguably the backing of the best crowd support for a local club in any sport in Sri Lanka especially at their sporting cathedral – the Nittawela fortress.
With their rugby-crazy hill capital fans from all walks of life, reigning champions Kandy SC has been the most successful rugby union club in the island during the last three-decades winning a record 23 league championships, 22 knockout titles and a tonne of trophies in the cabinets at the misty hills. To-date Kandy SC remains the only club based outside of Colombo to play A-Division Rugby.
Tharindu ‘Eheli’ Chathuranga is the newly appointed captain of Kandy, he had a sublime schooling career at Randles Hill donning the Kingswood College jersey. A prolific flanker, ‘Eheli’ has been a mainstay in the Sri Lanka National Tuskers outfit.
Kandy Sports Club hit their sesquicentennial – 150th anniversary-year in 2024. Started by expat coffee planters in 1874, the club has had many nostalgic memories throughout their history.
Kandy SC were pioneers of the Ceylon Club Rugby League from its formative years in the 1950s along with Dimbula Athletic and Cricket Club, Dickoya-Maskeliya Cricket Club, Uva Gymkhana Club, Kelani Valley Club, Havelock Sports Club, Ceylonese Rugby and Football Club (CR&FC), and Colombo Hockey and Football Club (CH&FC).
However, it took more than four decades for the hill capital to taste League glory, winning their maiden title in 1994 under the captaincy of Indrajith Bandaranayake and clinched their maiden Clifford Cup knockout title in 1992.
One of Lanka’s living rugby legends Fazil Marija will continue his duties as Head Coach of his hometown club with eyes set to keep the silverware at home base.
Sanushka ‘kutty’ Abeywickrama, a brilliant product of Trinity College who later donned the Kandy jersey, has been given a great responsibility as Forwards Coach this season, after the exit of Henry Terence who made a lasting impact during his short one-year stint at the hills.
The invincibles of the new millennium
From 2001-2011, Kandy had a League-winning spree starting from Nalaka Weerakkody (2001), Pradeep Basnayake (2002), Sajith Mallikarachchi (RIP) (2003), Radhika Hettiarachchi (2004), Sanjeewa Jayasinghe (2005), Sajith Mallikarachchi (2006), Jeewa Galgamuwa (2007), Sean Wijesinghe (2008), Pradeep Liyanage (2009), Fazil Marija (2010), and Saliya Kumara (2011).
What’s new this season?
Some young guns fresh out of school have joined forces with the Kandy Sports Club this season. The Kingswood duo 2025 skipper Thaveesha Ekanayake and speedster Rivin Baudeen as well as the Josephian skipper Janith Marasinghe will be the youngest additions. Akash Madushanka who had a superb stint with the National 7s and 15s outfit is one of the top signings for Kandy as he crossed over from Police Sports Club.
Kandy SC will take on Navy SC in their opening game of the season at the naval base in Welisara on Saturday, 22 November at 4 p.m.