With the 17th Asian Games almost at the border, the Sri Lankan teams are in preparation and the Sri Lanka Men’s Hockey Team is one of them.
The team comprising of 16 players accompanied by 4 officials are due to leave Sri Lanka on the 16th September to participate Asian game 2014 scheduled to be worked off in Korea from 19th September to 4th October 2014. A resurgent Lankan squad participated in tournaments held in Bangkok and Bangladesh to qualify for the Asian games after almost 36 years.
Thusith Rathnasiri of the Sri Lanka Air Force and an old boy of Vijaya College, Matale will lead the team with MM Mulafer also of the SL Air Force and formerly Kingswood College, Kandy as the deputy. The team has taken the opportunity received and has been under-going serious training for more than 6 months at Diyathalawa and at the Astro turf at Reid avenue, Colombo 07. They have been under the tutelage of Pakistani coach Nadeem Ahmed Bhatti and former national player Thilak Wimalasinghe prior to the Korea sojourn.
Sri Lanka Men’s Hockey team
Thusith Rathnasiri(Captain), Mm Mulafar(Vice Captain), Nalantha De Silva, Maduranga Wijesinghe, Thilana Perera, Nuwan Anju Hewage, Ishanka Jayasundara, Damith Bandara, Prasanna Dissanayake, Dm Sapugasgodage, Dhammika Ranasinghe, Tharanga Gunawardane, Lahiru Weerasooriya, Sandaruwan Priyalanka, Lakshan Nanayakkara, Tk Hendeniya.
Officials:- Manager Rear Admiral Sarath Dissanayake, Asst Manager P Visvanathan, Coach – Thilak Wimalasinghe, Coach (Pakistan) – Nadeem Ahmed Bhatti
Below is the schedule for the team :
Sri Lanka vs Pakistan – 20th September 2014 – Local Time 1700
Sri Lanka vs India -21st September 2014 – Local Time 1700
Sri Lanka vs China – 23rd September 2014 – Local Time 1300
Sri Lanka vs Oman – 25th September 2014 – Local Time 1500
