Sri Lankan rugby is widely regarded as a sport that is scattered around Kandy and Colombo, where a few occasional fixtures are played in Kurunegala and Galle. But this is no longer true, as the game has spread to areas like Mahiyanganaya, Badulla, Bandarawela, Awissawella, Matale, Kegalle, Ambepussa, Koggala, Hambanthota, and Vavuniya, and nowadays the game belongs to the general community.
Apart from uplifting the capacity and the accuracy of the match officials, the referees society has focused on their size. With the designed pathways and recruitment programs conducted in the last few years, many youths, especially ladies, were motivated to take the challenge of blowing the whistle. With this motive, the society has grown in number to officiate games covering almost every part of the island. Currently they have a membership of over two hundred, with around 130 active referees.
Currently, the referees society is officiating the games majorly at the school level with many age categories up to the grassroots level. While continuing their committed service at the club level, they officiated in university games, regimental matches, mercantile matches, and even friendly tournaments. Apart from them, Sri Lankan referees were featured in many international tournaments in the recent past, which can be considered as a testament to the quality of local referees.
Recently, Sri Lanka Rugby and the Schools Rugby Association have launched a few programs to spread the game to rural areas and motivate more schools and universities to join in this magnificent game. Hence the number of rugby matches will be rapidly increased with the number of locations where the game is happening. Therefore, the Referees Society has already built their capacity to cater to such rapid demand.
