by M. Farook Lantra - With thanks to the Island

Lt. Gen. Denzil Laksman Kobbekaduwa, better known as Denzil, was a great leader and the other, Jupana Jayawardene went on to bag major honours both for his country and the Army. Both scrum halves, Denzil played for Kandy while Jupana played for Havelocks in 1968.

Denzil was born in Kandy on 27, July 1940. He had his early education at Trinity College, Kandy, where he excelled in sports, especially rugby football. He joined the Sri Lanka Army in May 1960. On completion of his training as an officer cadet at the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst UK, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Sri Lanka Armoured Corps on 3 August 1962.

As a young man, General Kobbekaduwe was a cheerful, energetic and efficient officer who won the hearts of all who came into contact with him.

He was an electrifying rugby player who represented the Army as well Sri Lanka. He also made a great contribution to uplift the standard of the game in Sri Lanka by his involvement in the fields of referring, coaching and administration. His outstanding ability in his chosen profession as well as sports enabled him, his unit, the Army and Sri Lanka to bag several laurels.

During his stint at Trinity, Denzil was awarded the coveted Trinity Rugby Lion along with E. D. K. (Eric) Roles (1960 captain) and Johnny Bultjens (Jnr) in l959. Denzil also won his hockey colours and was President of the Lemuel House Association and a Senior Prefect in 1960. During his time there were some great names including three future Sri Lanka captains. They were Nimal Maralanda, Mike De Alwis and Sari De Silva, not forgetting his teammates Ken De Joodt, Jayanthissa Ratwatte and Jayantha Jayawardana, who revealed that Denzil was his first rugby captain when he was 15-years-old, when he attended First XV practices during the holidays and chose to represent Trinity.

Denzil represented the Ceylon Rugby Football Union's President XV in 1970. He was elected Secretary of the Central Province RFU and also took part in the 1974 Rugby Asiad held in Colombo.

Denzil was elected a committee member of the Sri Lanka Rugby Referees' Society in 1976-77 and was the referee who accompanied the Sri Lanka rugby team to the 6th Rugby Asiad in Kuala Lumpur in 1978. He was also the coach of the Sri Lanka Army rugby team which won the Clifford Cup in 1981.

Former Trinity, Army, Havelocks and Sri Lanka scrum half (Rtd) Brigadier Jupana had this to say about the late Lt. Gen. Kobbekaduwa.

"Denzil played as a scrum half for the Army after Berti Dias."

In 1969, after Denzil, it was Jupana Jayawardana who took over the position as the link man for the Army. It was a coincidence that all three of them - Denzil, Jupana and Bertie Dias were Trinity Lions and went on to play as scrum halfs for Sri Lanka and captained the Defence Services rugby team. All three of them were short in stature but agile and nippy on the field.

Jupana states that there were lots to learn from Denzil and he was a brilliant star on the rugby field as well as a good administrator, who also captained the Army rugby team in 1974. His distinguished services were duly recognized and he was awarded several decorations as well as the Vadamaraachchi Operation medal, the ‘Purna Bhumi Padakkama' and the ‘Rana Wickrama Padakkama' for his participation in combat operations in the North and East of the country.

Footnote by the Webmaster:

The Denzil Kobbekaduwa Trust Fund chaired by his beloved wife Lali continues to support fallen war heroes. There is still an opportunity for the public to show their gratitude to our Nations Heros by way of donations to the Trust.

The Kandy Municipal Council headed by L.B. Aluwihare on a request from the Governor of Central Province Tikiri Kobbekaduwa, decided to rename Kandy's famous Col. Bird's Park, situated between the Kandy Market and the clock tower bus stand, as Gen, Denzil Kobbekaduwa Ranaviru Park

Gen. Denzil Kobbekaduwa met with his untimely tragic death on August 8, 1992 in whilst commanding the security forces in the north when the vehicle he was travelling in went over a pressure mine. Denzil was a brilliant military officer and an absolute gentleman.

Even though Denzil has departed, he will be long remembered as a true gentleman and a loyal officer; he is one in a million. His death was not only a loss for the country but also a terrible blow to rugby in general and Kandy in particular.

The decision to rename Bird's Park in Kandy taken by the Govenor Central Province, the Mayor, and the Councillors is a great tribute to this great son of Sri Lanka.