Fazil Marija is one of Sri Lanka’s spectacular products. Fazil began his career playing for Kingswood College where he was a part of what was the most dominant Schools teams in the 2000’s.
He was also one of the youngest players to represent Sri Lanka at international level. Marija is now the puppet master at his club as he guided Kandy to their virtually uncontested dominance for over a decade. He was also one of the star performers for Sri Lanka in the recently concluded A5N tournament.
Fazil has overcome many a controversy in his career and has often faced troublesome administrators in the past. His spectacular mindset and never say die attitude saw him continuously work on his game and develop himself into the player and leader he is.
Fazil Marija sits down for a look back into his rugby life, special memories and much more; not forgetting to add a few comments to the upcoming school rugby players.
You played for the senior national squad at the age of 17, even before getting into the Under 19 national team. How did you have such a strong approach to rugby?
Well, considering my family background it wasn’t surprising that I had a steady start. My whole family; from my uncles to my cousins have played rugby and half of them have even represented the national squad. When I was starting at the age of nine Under 13 and Under 19 captains of the school teams were my cousins. So I had enormous support and guidance; it was no wonder I was lucky enough to be called on to the national squad at such a young age. There’s something special I’d like to recall. When I was in the national squad I was playing in the team while my cousin and my mentor, who was my Under 13 captain as I started playing rugby, was in the bench. That was great achievement for me.
As a teenager you were battling with seniors shoulder to shoulder. Share with us what was it like?
Well, I got the opportunity due to my performance at the trial match vs. Hong Kong while the Under 19 practices were taking place. To be specific I played two tries in this game which pushed my cousin who was also playing at my position, fly half, to the bench as I mention previously. So once I finally got the word that I was selected to play with seniors it was too much for me to handle. I was really thin back then weighing around 65kgs, so I was nervous as well. Frankly lots of seniors helped me out. To name one, I looked up to Indragith Bandara .
How did you manage everything while schooling? Playing for nationals, Under 19 and school team
Firstly I like mention that I had enormous support for the game from my family. It grew stronger as I climbed up the ladder to represent the nationals. My mother, school team mates, coach and teacher were all happy about my playing and they helped me with my studies and whatnot. After all since everybody looked up to me on a positive note it wasn’t difficult for me to manage everything with their support.
You have been playing for Kandy (club) for almost a decade. How do feel about the training at Kandy compared to the National squad?
National squad has improved drastically in the last three years with the help of Ben Golings as the three-quarters coach. If we can continue to have him for another 2-3 years, I am sure the overall performance will be great. Apart from that I think Kandy training is almost same as nationals, very intense. At Kandy we don’t have an off season. Always we practice, do seasoning, cardio and etc. Sure, with Ben the tactics we gained from the national squad are better; I learned about the running lines and the game lines.
What is your most memorable performance at a rugby match?
Last year I was able to score three tries against CR at a club match. This took place in Kandy and the tries were consecutive. I had the home ground backing and the support from lot of Kandy spectators. However I think of it as a great moment in my rugby life.
From young days you were a role model to lot of rugby fans. How was it growing up with a spot light on you?
Yes, I had to change my way of living as my responsibilities grew. I always had in mind that youngsters will be looking up to me so I had to be disciplined. In that context I believe I maintained a certain level of decorum in my personal life. Nobody is perfect; I think there might have been instances which got out of control as well. In general I wasn’t reckless with anything; it helped me a lot in this aspect. When I look back I have missed certain experiences which a random guy might have had but I always take the opportunity to enjoy myself whenever possible.
As a captain how is it handling rugby players?
It was certainly a privilege to manage and work with certain players. From the young days itself I like to earn the respect from other rather than to force it. I have never hit a player or anyone for that matter in my whole life. Some instances had been really tough to control but even if someone hits me in a game I’d never hit back as a policy. When it comes to leading others too I’d like to be patient and control them in the most humane way I can. There are occasions when you’ll have to push a little harder but at the end of the day if you study the players and know what sort of personalities they are, you can handle them easily.
Where do you picture yourself in the future along with the sport?
For now I am thinking of remaining in the game for only five or six years tops. Rugby is a very unpredictable sport so will never know where it will take me. Then I’d like to coach youngsters and pass on the legacy to them. Even now I’m starting off with Wesley and Kingswood. I have even pushed my marriage life since I want to focus on my sport, so I guess I’ll probably have to consider family life too in the coming years.
How’s work? Any comments you’d like to add about your financial sponsors?
I’ve been working in the last couple of years and right now it’s not a burden to manage along with the sport. The management also is very flexible and supportive of the sport and I use all of the resources to maximize my performance in the ground for Sri Lanka.
On a last note, what’s your advice to the young rugby players at school level?
One has to push himself to the extreme limits. If you monitor your performance today next time you should be able to do better. That is what everyone should have in their minds. Because in the end individual performances matters to the team output. This doesn’t mean one has to focus on a few players and get them to perform better but everyone sharing the same passion for the game and playing well. One other thing, school players also need to work a lot on body seasoning. They are very fit but need to gain more strength.
ThePapare.com hails the maestro for allowing us his valuable time and together with all fans bestows a collective thank you for his service to Sri Lanka rugby.
