An Englishman in Sri Lanka (part 5)

I have absolutely no qualms about recommending this game to those who haven't seen it yet, (particularly to the members of the "Barmy Army" who seem to have invaded our shores in their thousands from "old blighty".

The match in question was a school game between two of Colombo's oldest and most distinguished schools, Royal College and St Thomas's. School games in England do not really set the pulse racing and the crowd usually consists of a few dedicated parents and a couple of dogs. Sri Lankan schools' cricket is very different.

I arrived at the SSC, also the venue for the Third Test match between Sri Lanka and England, to find a carnival atmosphere. Giant flags with the blue and gold of Royal College and the blue and black of St Thomas's were waved by the schoolboys eager for their team to come out top against their most hated rivals.

There was constant noise coming from the many bands that were positioned in each of the stands, some sticking to Sinhalese classics and others trying to cover their favourite Beatles or Bon Jovi classics. The carnival atmosphere was completed by the throwing of bangers or smoke bombs on to the pitch to create a bluey haze, which was definitely a first for me at a cricket ground.

The social side of the match is perhaps more important than the cricket, where the old boys come along to reminisce about their school days in tents with names such as Clan of '69 and Old Stallions.

Drinking plays a large part in the festivities, particularly on the Saturday when the ground is at its fullest. Middle-aged men can be seen staggering arm-in-arm around the ground, not quite sure where they are meant to be. The intervals at lunch and tea provide an opportunity to come on to the pitch where I was greeted by some reveller who forced some arrak (local coconut concoction) on me and told me to drink.

It was easy to forget that there was in fact a high-class cricket game being played in the middle. The match ended in a draw - apparently both sides are very afraid of losing. No one wants to be associated with losing to their bitter rivals.

The few glimpses I had of the cricket were enough to back up the claim by some people that Sri Lankan schools cricket is the best in the world. It certainly was played to a very high standard over the three days.

There are even two schoolboy cricketers in Sri Lanka's 15-man squad for these current Test Matches. That perhaps offers some clue as to the standard of the cricket. I can't quite imagine English selectors placing faith in a schoolboy.