Over a dozen of leading cricket playing schools decided unanimously yesterday to stick to their traditional matches and withdraw from the newly introduced two-day tournament of the Sri Lanka Schools Cricket Association (SLSCA).

Some of the heads and representatives of leading cricket playing schools met at Royal College, Colombo, yesterday to discuss on what measures they were going to make so as to safeguard their traditional matches after the SLSCA introduced a new format to the existing two-day tournament. The leading cricket playing colleges complained the new format would jeopardise their chances of conducting the annual traditional encounters.

"We’ve decided to stick to our traditional matches and some of them have been in existence for over 100 years. To do so, the representatives from leading schools decided unanimously to withdraw from the new tournament the SLSCA has introduced for the upcoming First-XI season," a spokesperson from ‘the breakaway schools’ said yesterday.

"The heads of these schools will write to the SLSCA to inform that they would withdraw from their two-day tournament. They will do that in the cause of the coming week," he further added.

"The meeting was arranged on short notice. Therefore, many other schools who’ve been disappointed by the SLSCA’s new format could not take part in the meeting. But, in spite of bad weather, representatives and heads of a number of top cricket playing schools took part in that meeting," he said.

Meanwhile, the top cricket playing colleges have also decided to increase the number of matches they play against weaker or lesser prominent schools from one to three.

"The gathering agreed to increase the number of matches that they play against outstation schools. Earlier, we played only one match with those up-and-coming teams. And, the schools also agreed to increase that number up to three as a means of helping those institutions. We will play three matches with such schools that are named by the SLSCA."

However, according to the above spokesperson, the leading schools will not boycott the other tournaments conducted by the SLSCA.

None of the SLSCA officials were available for comment as they were out of the country when this edition went to press.