by Rex Clementine
There are less than a handful of coaches in the game of basketball, who have earned the respect and the admiration of the entire nation. Jayantha Ranawana is one such.
The basketball fraternity embraces him not just for the championships he has won or the players he had produced for the national basketball team. It’s mostly due to the care and concern Jayantha has for his players. He is a legend indeed in the field of basketball.
For over 30 years, Jayantha has been the loyal coach of St. Anthony’s College, Wattala, a powerhouse in the game. For these three decades, Jayantha has not been just a coach. He has done everything for his teams – be it the driver, physiotherapist, doctor, nutritionist, trainer, Master-in-Charge and of course coach. He is a jack of all trades and master of them all too.
Often when teachers and old boys have no time to dedicate themselves to the upbringing of children, Jayantha has been ever present looking after the wellbeing of the children at St. Anthony’s. Jayantha’s role model must be St. Joseph for he is the foster father of so many children at the school.
They say that you’ll get monkeys if you pay peanuts. But Jayantha is an exception. Like most government schools, St. Anthony’s Wattala pays their basketball coach peanuts; money that will not even pay for his petrol. But he spends much more out of his pocket for the children from food to their other needs.
Sadly, the new administration at St. Anthony’s does not respect or acknowledge the contributions of their coach. Or they may be just jealous that he is getting more accolades than they themselves – small minds at big places.
Jayantha has been totally sidelined by the school authorities. Their bone of contention seems to be that basketball players have to be charged a monthly fee for the smooth running of the sport. A condition that the coach has vehemently opposed.
Education Ministry through a circular has very clearly stated that no money should be collected from children for sports or other activities. It seems that the management at St. Anthony’s College, Wattala may have gone against the circular issued by the Education Ministry.
Our efforts to reach Jayantha to obtain further details proved to be futile.
We contacted St. Anthony’s College, Wattala on Monday but the Principal wasn’t available for comment and her deputy refused to comment.
We hope that sanity prevails and Jayantha is reinstalled so that the basketball fraternity can keep marveling at his commitment and passion for the game. Many are Jayantha’s basketball products who have gone on to get prominent posts in the mercantile sector, military, and police due to their basketball. The school authorities are killing these opportunities for up-and-coming players.