Delisted Ranga Ediriwickrama (2009-2010)

michaelw said:

Has got the goods !

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The rabbi said:

Unfortunately Ranga looks to have badly torn his hammy against Williamstown and may be missing for a month or more. I can only hope that the tear was not as bad as it looked. The kid was in considerable pain at the time.

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Riggy1 said:

always has, only has to avoid injury and you have the best player yet from the NSW Scholarship program

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The rabbi said:

Unfortunately Ranga looks to have badly torn his hammy against Williamstown and may be missing for a month or more. I can only hope that the tear was not as bad as it looked. The kid was in considerable pain at the time.

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catattack said:

Club being cagey, but read between the lines and it looks like he's in trouble....

VFL: Ranga's injury looks long-term - Geelong Advertiser

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This Sydney-based product has now found a home in Cat country, writes Richard Hinds.

Ranga Ediriwickrama grew up in Sydney's north-western suburbs barracking for the Swans. He remains friends with a few former junior teammates now wearing the red and white including his former NSW captain Craig Bird and Kieren Jack.

But when Sydney arrive at Skilled Stadium tomorrow to take on the undefeated Geelong, Ediriwickrama will not be much more sympathetic than the local crowd - or the accomplished Cats outfit - there to greet them.

"I do have a little bit of a soft spot for the Swans," he says. "But ever since I got my scholarship [with Geelong], I've been on the Geelong bandwagon."

So far for Ediriwickrama, one of 55 players so far granted scholarships by AFL clubs as part of an aggressive recruitment scheme in NSW, it has been something of a bumpy ride. While he last year made the momentous leap from scholarship holder to the Cats' rookie list, a serious hamstring injury suffered in a practice game has marred his first season.

"It's pretty disappointing," says Ediriwickrama, who had impressed the Cats coaching staff in two reserves practice matches before partially tearing the hamstring tendon from the bone. "I had to have surgery but they're pretty confident I'll be back for the second half of the season."

Despite that setback, since he arrived in Geelong after completing his HSC exams in November, Ediriwickrama has already gained some valuable insight into life with the AFL's benchmark team - still something of a head-spinning experience for the son of Sri Lankan immigrants who was born in Griffith.

"It was a bit daunting," he says of his first appearance on the training track with superstars he knew only from brief visits to Geelong as a scholarship holder. "You feel a bit nervous, but they're a really good bunch of guys here. Even after the first few training sessions you have guys like Gary Ablett coming up to say hello and make you feel welcome."

As is now mandatory at AFL clubs, there was an indoctrination session for new recruits overseen by captain Tom Harley. Ediriwickrama was told of the "trademarks" by which Geelong players measure their performance. "But I can't really tell you much more about that because we keep those things in-house."

What he can say is that training with and, more recently, watching the likes of Ablett, Jimmy Bartel, Cameron Ling, Joel Corey and Joel Selwood has provided something of a midfield master class. "I've learnt things like just how much movement you need to generate to get the footy and how to out-body your opponent and position yourself," he says. "Things you just learn by listening or watching how they go about it."

Because of his background, Ediriwickrama, 18, is occasionally quizzed by his teammates about the prospects of the AFL's proposed expansion franchise in western Sydney. He tells them he is not sure. "Because I'm more from north-west Sydney and they're looking out further west, I don't really know how strong it is there," he says.

Ediriwickrama is, however, understandably complimentary about the AFL's development program. He took up the game as a 12-year-old and eventually it took over from football and cricket as his sporting passion.

"I just loved the number of different skills you needed to be able to play the game," he says. "You need to be able to mark, to kick, to handball, to win contested footy, I just really enjoyed the challenge of harnessing all of those skills."

Ediriwickrama progressed through the elite junior teams to captain NSW at the under-18 carnival last year where he starred in the early games before he suffered another, less serious hamstring injury. But while those performances helped convince Geelong to elevate him to their rookie list, it will be the next stage of his career that is the toughest - somehow finding his way into the best midfield in the AFL.

"I really love the place, it's a great place to live," says Ediriwickrama, who has deferred his commerce studies to concentrate on football this season. "Hopefully I'll get a good run at it when the rehab is finished."

Meanwhile, from his position in enemy territory, Ediriwickrama does not offer much consolation for the Swans as they face the Cats. "I think it might be pretty tough for them," he says. "Just the way we've been playing."

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