COLOMBO, Aug 12: The OLDEST uninterrupted schools cricket match in the world is the one between Prince Alfred College, the alma mater of the Chappell brothers, and St Peters -- a rivalry which dates back to 1878.

Any guess which is the second oldest in the world ? No, it's not the one between Eton and Harrow, which was not played during the World Wars. That honour goes to the St. Thomas vs Royal College Big Match an annual ritual that is one of the biggest events in the sporting calendar of Sri Lanka. It started in 1880 and has been a legend in Lankan sporting heritage.

Between them, the two schools have produced 80 international cricketers in its glorious history, with St. Thomas producing six Sri Lankan captains and Royal College nine though only Duleep Mendis and Ranjan Madugalle were fortunate to captain in an era when their country got Test status from the International Cricket Council.

The Battle of the Blues -- as the Royal-Thomian clash is known because of their school colours -- is three days of carnival time for the ex-students of the two schools.

``It's a ritual for the old boys every year. It's a social event on a much bigger scale than you witness during One-Day Internationals with past students attending these matches with their wives and children,'' says Anura Tenekoon, an illustrious batsman and former captain of Sri Lanka who represented St. Thomas College.

The atmosphere, it is said, has to be seen to be believed. As Madugalle, who played for Royal, recollected: ``Once, we had a few hundred people watching a Test match against England in 1993 in Colombo, while there were about 15,000 people for the Royal-Thomian clash. That's the kind of involvement it enjoys.''

People come in to soak the atmosphere, the culture, the tradition and enjoy the sense of occasion, besides renewing friendship with several past schoolmates, many of whom have gone on to become highly eminent and high-profile personalities in different walks of life.

The two schools, between them, have given Sri Lanka its first elected President, JR Jayawardene, besides four Prime Ministers who have played in these matches. In fact, one of the former Prime Ministers, DS Senanayake, was such an ardent follower of the Big Match that he was known to cancel public engagements and adjourn meetings of the state council and Parliament to watch the fortunes of his alma matter.

``Frequent pitch invasions were positively encouraged; a half-century, boundary or the fall of a wicket was greeted wuth firecrackers and smoke bombs along with animated shrieks of approval. People of all ages danced to bizzare fusion of rock, eastern rhythms, calypso and jazz that poured from the performing bands,'' recalls Emma Levine, a Britain-born and bred photo-journalist who now leads a nomadic life travelling the world.

The loyalty of the spectators is unmistakable from their vocal support and the school colours they proudly wear be it scarves, T-shirts, banners or flags. The greying, balding and overweight old boys, some of whom come to cheer their sons and grandsons, forget their age and status in society to drink, dance and revel in the ribaldry while reliving their days of youth.

There is a bit of colonial hangover in the century-old tradition. Emma, who was here for the Asia Cup and the first India-Sri Lanka Test, says that ``it was somewhat surprising to discover that the root of this Sri Lankan tradition seems more British than the British themselves. There is a complete loyalty to one's school.''

Some of the performances are talked about in as much awe as those by the national cricketers in the international arena. Oldtimers still talk about Duleep Mendis' knock of 184 in 1972 which he scored as the skipper of St. Thomas -- the value of the runs measured against his team's total of 286 for nine.

Sadly, the two schools do not produce the quality of cricketers it once did.Tenekoon gives a probable reason for decline: ``There is not much representation from these public schools because the students may well be concentrating on a career other than cricket. There may be no time for the game which has virtually become full-time now. Combining it with studies is difficult. Another factor can be that the game has spread outside Colombo and the boys there are taking it more seriously and making more effort.''The geography may have changed with the passage of time, but history still continues. The Royal-Thomian is now a part of cricketing folklore in Sri Lanka.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.