A Rugby player, a coach, a working personality and most of all a Tusker – Henry Terrance

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In its series ‘know your tuskers’ ThePapare.com caught up with a Rugby player, a coach for Wesley, a working personality for Dialog and most of all a Tusker Henry Terrance for a closer look into his rugby life.

 

How was your school life before stepping into rugby?

Speaking sports wise I was a football player though I didn’t enjoy it much. Apart from that teachers regarded me as a reckless kid who used to play around. Particularly my mathematics master viewed me a mischievous child when it came to studies. He was also the rugby master in charge. So he advised me to join rugby practices for a couple of days. Till then I don’t think I did anything productive in my school life.

Having been pushed to get into Rugby how did you feel thereafter?

Back then I was a bit nervous about Rugby. I was pretty forward when it came to matters in real life however I guess I had the wrong impression of the sport. Once I attended a couple of practice sessions, I knew ‘this is it’. It wasn’t all that furious and was about passing the ball around. I liked the sport from top to bottom – even the shape of the ball. But I didn’t have a great start when it came to matches. In the first game itself I fractured my toe. This caused my parents and my sister to get scared. They tried to pull me out but it was too late then. I had already started loving Rugby over Football.

Once you left school, your rugby life was concentrated on clubs rather than the national pool. Can you please explain why?

In my last year, Under 19, I wasn’t a star player. I can remember playing for less than 10 minutes in the game vs. Carey but apart from that I wasn’t very active though I was the vice-captain.  When I was leaving school in 2005, I got a letter from CR&FC stating that I’ve been selected to represent the club. Even this was a shock for me because the school had recommended me without my knowledge. Hence, I started my post school rugby life there. I didn’t have the opportunity to make it to the Under 19 national squad so I didn’t really focus on that. 

So how did your transition finally happen?

2006 was my first year in CR and the start wasn’t glorious for me. I can remember in the first game I was on the bench, not even in the squad, thinking I might not be able to play for the club this year. But soon after that I got an opportunity to play the next game itself. Well, frankly I didn’t earn myself that position, rather it was an opportunity. It was the game against Kandy and due to an injury of a senior player I got into the game within the first 20 minutes. I was honored to play along with many seniors who were in the national team back then. To name a few Viraj Perera, Pavithra Ferenado, Savantha De Saram and Ashean Karathelis . I was in the national squad in the next year. This is where it all changed.

Any achievements parallel to this life changing game? 

If you consider the direct achievements, well I won ‘The Most Promising Newcomer’ award for CR & FC. But along with that I got involved in the sport more. So the next year I was playing in the squad and practicing hard. I was losing weight. I was down to 98 kilos from 118 kilos which made me perform even better.I think I can conclude 2007 as my best year considering rugby life so far. I was playing in the second row and was running like a beast. Once again I was able to put up a great performance against Kandy – the 2007 game. So that sums up the accomplishments I guess.

You stated your best performance was in 2007 due to a huge weight loss. So how are you keeping up with physical training right now?

I think 2007 was the best season. Right now Im holding up an average physique that helps my performance. When I started off it was horrible. I was training in the gym for hour and the results weren’t as I expected. In rugby you should be strong and fast.  So it’s a matter of balancing your weight which is difficult. When you push hard and exercise too the outcome is not always good. My most serious injury also happened while I was working out. A mistake in the dead-lift caused a nerve damage in my spine. I had to bed rest for a long time. Anyway I’ve learnt my lessons in life and now know to manage my fitness levels.

How did you feel when you wore a National Tuskers’ jersey for the first time in your life?

Oh wow, it was inexplicable. Firstly because it wasn’t something I was dreaming on about and secondly because though I was in the squad in 2007 I could not play for the team. I had a severe shoulder injury which prevented me from playing.  So I had to wait for almost a year to finally get onto the field as a tusker. Then my first game was in Singapore vs. Chinese Taipei. So when you sing the national anthem wearing the tuskers’ jersey it’s an amazing feeling. You just can’t expect to have a bigger sense of national pride than hearing the national anthem than representing the country itself. So I think I was privileged to experience that in my life.

We see you have an office life shaped with rugby: you work at Dialog while you coach Wesley College and play for the National team, any comments on this?

Yes I am very thankful to my boss who is very flexible with me. Even today I took a couple of hours off and it wasn’t an issue. Also with coaching I am grateful that my school has given me the opportunity, so I want to be committed and perform my level best. I can’t forget my wife who also manages a lot of things for me. She is very cooperative. Most of all when I can’t be at home and am on a tour or off to practices she understands. I think I should be grateful for people around me mostly for helping me with this life.

Finally, we know Wesley was off to a good start playing in ‘A’ division. What do you feel about current standards in school rugby?

I think it’s pretty good and they are improving. Considering Wesley Im really happy they got into A division and so far they have had a good play for this season. The overall standards are so high that even coaching is pretty challenging. Anyway I am expecting to see a lot of challenges in the coming games. 

ThePapare.com thanks the mighty Tusker for his time and wishes him the best.