I was just 7 years old, in 1955,
when I had the glorious opportunity to attend the first Royal-Thomian cricket match
in my life. The ecstasy of preparing for the game was out of this world. We had
to be clad in white shirt and shorts as members of the school boys tent. The
only colorful attire we had on was the blue and gold flag.
The school bus took us to the
Oval under the watchful eyes of our class teacher, Ms Dissanayake. We arrived
before the match started and took our seats diligently, with the summer sun
eating into our faces. Two days of fun, frolic, and fanfare, accompanied by
cheers, jeers, hot lunch packs, ice cream, soft drinks, pineapple and gram.
As we moved up the ladder and
entered College, the whole spectrum turned on its head. The year was 1960.
Most of us were 12. The evening before the match day was an event not to be
missed. Everyone gathered at the College gates on bicycles. Each bike had a
blue and gold lantern hanging from each handle bar. An old crock truck filled
with seniors led the procession. We took the route along Racecourse Avenue via
Thurstan Road from the Flower Road circle all the way to Bambalapitiya junction
and then back again to College via Reid Avenue. A “papare” band blared out its
sounds on trumpet and percussion and people all along the streets gathered to
watch us pass by. The feeling of being special was unimaginable.
A few years later we were “grown
up” and mature to take the role of the so called “naughty” boys of big matches.
Match morning kicked off with the boys, all clad in various forms of fancy
dress, gathering at the gates to mount the old croc truck. Some wore their sisters bra’s. Some in tail
coats. The Muslims never forgot their Fez caps. The band played. The boys
bellowed. First stop was at CMS Ladies College on Flower Road. The driver
managed to take the truck inside the school. The girls were all excited and
waving. Into the Principals room went a bunch of the mischievous. A few
gathered flowers from the pots nearby. Up went the ;principal on the shoulders
of the boys. “She’s a jolly good fellow …” and “Hip hip hooray” cluttered the
air. The flowers were handed over to her and we had to scoot before the cops
came in. The girls were ecstatic. The Cinnamon gardens Police was alerted. We
were hauled into the station, warned, and despatched with no serious
consequences. Everyone in town knew what the Royal Thomian was all about. Even
politicians were great fans of the match. Since that fateful day, CMS Ladies
College closed school on the first day of the match, which was always a Friday.
Off to Saraswathy Lodge at
Bambalapitiya for breakfast. Dosa and Sambhar with Vadai. Not everyone paid as
they chose to scoot off into the truckwhile the waiters were looking the other
way. Then, a bee line to the Oval. The lyrics of the baila’s sung needed much
censorship. But then, the censor board folks were at the match already. So,
what the heck?
Two days of festivities. Rumor
had it that even our fathers did the same. No one really cared if we won or
lost. It was all about having a great time together. The tradition lives on to
date. May the best team win. R*O*Y*A*L “Royal!”
Fazli
/Feb 2020
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