LNP – Sri Lanka rugby legend Yu Cey Chang is no more

Sri Lanka’s rugby community mourned the passing of a stalwart of the game Yu Cey Chang whose funeral took place today just hours after he breathed his last. He was 82 at the time of his death.

A robust personality, YC Chang was one of the greatest forwards the country has seen turning out for Havelocks, Kandy SC and CH and FC with distinction as a prop forward. He represented the national team for a decade during All Ceylon days, captaining Sri Lanka at the Hong Kong Asiad in 1972.

Tough as nails with a no-nonsense approach both on and off the field, ‘YC’ as he was popularly known also distinguished as a rugby administrator. He was President of Sri Lanka Rugby Football Union from 1985 to 1988 and headed the Asian Rugby Football Union when Sri Lanka hosted the Asiad in 1990. He was also a former President of the Trinity College, Kandy Old Boys’ Association Colombo Branch.

Chang attended Carey College and Trinity College, Kandy where he played junior rugby. He made his club rugby debut in 1961 for Havelocks being a member of Dr. Hubert Aloysius’ Cup winning side playing alongside greats like Nimal Maralande, Ken de Joodt, Mike de Alwis, Conrad Ephraums, Maurice Anghie, Dr. Trevor Anghie and Gamini Fernando to name a few.

But it was at Kandy Sports Club which he joined in 1962 and played for nine years that he blossomed as a player and leader, helping the club enter the Clifford Cup final after14 years in 1969 under the leadership of Denzil Kobbekaduwa where they went down to CR and FC 6-12.

When CH and FC lost their captain Darrell Wimalaratne due to an injury early in 1972 season, Chang was thrust into the leadership role which he performed with gusto leading from the front to emerge league champions. Harindra Gunasekera, Bryan Baptiste, Noel Brohier, Lanil Tennakoon, Upali Vithanage, Lorenz Pereira, Hamish Paternott and Tony Amit were some of the players who played under Chang.

His crowning glory was being appointed Sri Lanka captain for the Asian tournament in 1972. However, an incident the following season when he took the team off in protest against the referee’s decision to send off a CH player in a match against Havelocks, virtually ended his playing career.

He took up the whistle briefly before taking up coaching St. Joseph’s College in 1979/80 and later CH and FC for a few years from 1981. He was one of the first to coach Isipathana College in the 1960s. But it was as a rugby administrator that he drove Sri Lanka rugby to new heights.

Under his stewardship with Dushyantha Samarasekera as Secretary and Malik Samarawickrama as Treasurer of SLRFU, he oversaw the professional era of domestic rugby with the likes of Fijian Apisi Nagata also coming close to represent Sri Lanka. He was instrumental in taking the Clifford Cup to Kandy. Among the several foreign tours Sri Lanka undertook during his reign was the historic tour of Wales in 1987.

Y.C. Chang will be remembered as a true legend of Sri Lanka rugby in a bygone era