- Peterite ‘Bamba Brigade’ sacrifice their very own Head Coach Martis on the public altar of shame
By Marlon Dale Ferreira
St. Peter’s College rugby football Head Coach Sanath Martis was captured on video footage assaulting one of his own players in public at the conclusion of the game against Vidyartha College played at Nittawela yesterday.
This is the second instance where SPC Head Coach Martis was caught assaulting one of his own players in broad light and in the open.
On the previous occasion the current Peterite and Sri Lanka Head Coach who was the Havelocks Sports Club Head Coach then was eventually slapped with a huge suspension by World Rugby as he is also one of their very own appointed Rugby Educators.
In this instance the video footage posted on the Peterite WhatsApp group ‘Bamba Brigade’ virtually sacrificed their very own Head Coach Martis on the public altar of shame, by posting the video and also highlighting that the Peterite student concerned was their number 22 rugby player who was assaulted for executing a high tackle during the concluded game.
The Morning Telegraph has obtained the screenshots, which were sent to the editorial team by a member of the WhatsApp group in question.
St. Peter’s now has the opportunity to investigate the incident involving their Head Coach, who was previously suspended and take necessary action. This matter cannot be ignored, as both World Rugby and Asia Rugby are likely to scrutinize it further.
The Minister of Sports Harin Fernando’s involvement in this instance is crucial, especially with five sports associations under the Director General where nothing seems to be progressing. As the election drama unfolds, it will be interesting to see how Ministry of Sports and also the Education Ministry respond to the Head Coach Sanath Martis’ actions, which could potentially be deemed a criminal offense in the country and also a huge violation under World Rugby regulations.
In a previous article published in Colombo Telegraph on the 18th of February 2019 and titled “Rugby Kid Assault: St. Peter’s College ‘Okay’ – World Rugby Says ‘No’, stated “St. Peter’s College Bambalapitiya in a shocking communique condoned the behavior of their appointed rugby coach Sanath Martis, when he was caught on video assaulting one of its own student rugby players in full public view recently.
The video which went viral on social media both in Sri Lanka and also reached global audiences, even left officials of World Rugby shell shocked as their appointed Educator & Trainer Sanath Martis was captured violently slapping the rugby kid on three occasions.
Read previously published stories in Colombo Telegraph by clicking the links below:
Rugby Kid Assault: St. Peter’s College ‘Okay’ – World Rugby Says ‘NO’ – Colombo Telegraph
World Rugby To Investigate Educator & Trainer Sanath Martis Assaulting Rugby KId – Colombo Telegraph
