Northland teen to tour home country

CRICKET MAD: Chamodh Peiris trains at Cobham Oval under the watchful eyes of dad Chandrasiri ahead of a tour to his country of birth, representing Northland.PHOTO/JOHN STONE

Chamodh Peiris moved to New Zealand seven years ago and in April the Whangarei teenager will tour the country of his birth as part of the Northland Secondary Schools Development Team and play cricket in front of his relatives in Sri Lanka.

To him, touring cricket-mad Sri Lanka is akin to taking a group of actors from Northland to produce an Indian movie in Bollywood.

But it's the country's capital Colombo he is most looking forward to visit, as the place evokes childhood memories and it's also where he played one club match at the age of 11 before moving to New Zealand.

Northland Cricket Association general manager Warren Marr said 14 young cricketers from throughout Northland would participate in the 16-day, six-match tour during the Easter school holidays. The group's itinerary comprises a mixture of cricket, leisure, sightseeing, visits to prominent tourism sites, and community engagements.

They will play Sri Lankan club and school teams at various venues, including the Galle International Stadium.

Mr Marr said the team would tour Kandy, Hikkaduwa, Hambantota and Colombo from April 2.

"This trip is not just about cricket. This is about giving young people an opportunity to experience a foreign culture, to test themselves under extremely demanding conditions, and to hopefully give them an understanding of the world, and of how lucky they are to be living in this beautiful country with all the benefits that we have here," he said.

The expectation was to continue the trip every second year, he said.

Chamodh, 16, can't wait to fly into a familiar territory.

"It's really helpful for emerging players to play among different cultures and in a foreign environment ... teaches us how to adapt to new conditions and to play with different people," he said.

On spending about four days in his home district, Colombo, he said: "It's great. I've been looking forward to that for a while and it should be a great experience for my family from both my father's and mother's sides to come and watch me play."

Chamodh said it would be an honour to play on renowned grounds that have hosted many test and one-day internationals, like Galle Stadium. While he is passionate about playing in Sri Lanka and cheering for the country, he harbours an ambition to be a Black Cap in the future but dreads facing the country of his birth.

"I want to go to the highest point I possibly can in cricket. I want to train every day and give 100 per cent towards achieving my goal," said the Whangarei Boys' High School student.

-The touring team is: Matthew Lobb, Chamodh Peiris, Shane Burton, Matthew Kingi, Jarod Ross, Hamish Kidd, Sean West, Liam Jones, Dante Mitchell, Quinn Pooley, Owen Arthur, Connor Wilson, Shaun Beamish, Shannon Kloppers.