On the eve of the 140th Royal-Thomian Battle of the Blues, the SamT Network would like to take this opportunity to announce the Dayalan Supramaniam Memorial Scholarship.
For those unfamiliar, the Battle of the Blues is the annual cricket match between Royal College Colombo and my Alma Mater, S. Thomas College Mt Lavinia. Although the ‘battle’ started as a match between both students and staff in 1879, the first official match between the students was held in 1880. This was the first schoolboy cricket match to be played over three days in Sri Lanka, and the rivalry has only grown stronger over the years! The days and nights leading up to the match are filled with festive activities, decorated tents and lots of singing and dancing. The day before the matches the students take to the streets to celebrate the camaraderie between classmates who become like family as they take to the streets to display their school colors with pride.
As a cricketer, being part of the Battle of the Blues was one of the most exciting times of the year. During my time at STC, I had the opportunity to play under Dayalan “DK Suppa” Supramaniam. Dayalan played for STC from 1975-1978, captaining the last year in the 99th Royal-Thomian big match. In addition to being a cricketer, Suppa represented STC in Rugby and Athletics and was appointed Head Prefect due to his leadership on and off the field. Known for his colorful personality and large circle of friends both in and out of the cricket world, the talented sportsman passed away in 2014.
In Suppa’s meomory I have created the Dayalan Supramaniam Memorial Scholarship. This scholarship will provide for one student cricketer to attend S. Thomas College. I am honored to announce that the recipient of this scholarship is Arkash Kalahara Fernando. A 13 year old left arm pacie, I look forward to seeing what the future holds for Arkash as both a cricketer and a student at S. Thomas College.
Fellow Sri Lankans’ & Thomians, please feel free to share your memories of Suppa on this post. I had the good fortune to play cricket with Suppa at John Keels in the Mercantile A division under Sri Lankan Cap Nirmal Hettiaratchy.