2021 Sri Lanka Super League
Football league season
| Season | 2021 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 19 April 2021 – 11 January 2022 |
| Champions | Blue Star (1st title) |
| AFC Cup | Blue Star |
| Matches played | 45 |
| Goals scored | 137 (3.04 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Senal Sandesh Pingho (10 goals) |
2022 → | |
The 2021 Sri Lanka Super League was the first season of Sri Lanka Super League, after a significant 3 Year delay resulting in Sri Lanka Football having a dry period of a lack of top division football. Today it was meant to be the top division of Sri Lankan football. The season after numerous political delays and lack of preparation finally kicked off in the middle of the pandemic on 19 April 2021. The Super League was the brainchild of the current President Jaswar Umar.
Summary
Impact of COVID-19 pandemic
The start of the season was impacted by the ongoing COVID-19 situation. After the 2018–19 season, the inaugural Super League was scheduled to kick-off in April 2020,[1] but was rescheduled to November 2020,[1] 29 January 2021[2] and finally started on 19 April 2021,[3] due to concerns of the pandemic with discussions held with the health authorities.[4]
Due pandemic, this season was forced to play on a single round-robin system (each club plays the others once).
After the International Break at the end of matchday 3, the tournament recommencement was scheduled to 2 July 2021. But the Football Sri Lanka announced the postponement on 16 June 2021, due to travel restrictions.[5]
Pre-season tournament
After numerous delays, and conflict on basing the National Team Priorities of Technical Head Amir Alagic, clubs were asked if they could play a Premier Season Practice Tournament. Causing further delays to the actual tournament. A pre season was launched with much glamour and delight but unfortunately with Covid 19 being a constant outbreak, the tournament delayed further. Since the Sri Lanka national football team were set to play their 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying second round games against Lebanon and South Korea in March, Football Sri Lanka without any professional consultation conducted Sri Lanka Super League pre-season tournament, without spectators or a plan.[2][6]
Super League pre-season tournament was conducted with the 10 Super League clubs, divided to two groups, group stage matches held from 17 February 2021 to 24 March 2021.[7]
Teams
The league is made up of 10 clubs that were selected from the Sri Lanka Champions League at the end of the 2018–19 season, after meeting the Football Federation of Sri Lanka's Club Licensing Criteria in association with the Asian Football Confederation.[4]
Teams and their divisions
- Note: Table lists clubs in alphabetical order.
Foreign players
| Team | Player 1 | Player 2 | Player 3 | Player 4 | Player 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue Eagles | |||||
| Blue Star SC |  Jerry Arepade Ombenbe |  Mohamed Traoré | |||
| Colombo FC |  Jean Yapo Seka |  Bodric Tagne | Olumide Akofe | ||
| Defenders FC |  Muhammad Adil | Stephane Dang | |||
| Sea Hawks FC |  Motohiro Kaneshiro | Chikara Tashiro |  Samuel Kingston | ||
| New Young's SC | |||||
| Ratnam SC | Enoch Danso | Jide Jimoh | |||
| Red Star SC | Ismaila Abumere Ogudugu | Muritala Oladeni |  Mohammed Mubarak | Emmanuel Godwin | |
| Renown SC | Michael Job | Olumide Agbeti | |||
| Up Country Lions SC |  George Abege |  Elijah Ari |  Martin Karndu | Eugene Swen |
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Blue Star (C, Q) | 9 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 21 | 9 | +12 | 22 | Qualification for AFC Cup preliminary round 1 |
| 2 | Sea Hawks | 9 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 16 | 11 | +5 | 19[a] | |
| 3 | Colombo | 9 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 22 | 11 | +11 | 19[a] | |
| 4 | Renown | 9 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 10 | 7 | +3 | 17 | |
| 5 | Up Country Lions | 9 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 17 | 8 | +9 | 16 | |
| 6 | Red Stars | 9 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 18 | 16 | +2 | 10 | |
| 7 | Defenders | 9 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 12 | 12 | 0 | 10 | |
| 8 | New Young's | 9 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 13 | 31 | −18 | 7 | |
| 9 | Ratnam | 9 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 5 | 16 | −11 | 3 | |
| 10 | Blue Eagles | 9 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 3 | 16 | −13 | 2 |
Source: RSSSF
(C) Champions; (Q) Qualified for the phase indicated
Notes:
(C) Champions; (Q) Qualified for the phase indicated
Notes:
- ^ a b Head-to-head points: Sea Hawks 3, Colombo 0.
Results
Fixture
| Teams | BEG | BST | CFC | DFC | SHW | NYS | RAT | RST | REN | UCL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue Eagles | 3–2 | 0–2 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 0–6 | 0–1 | 0–1 | |
| Blue Star | 1–0 | 3–1 | 3–0 | 4–1 | 3–0 | 2–4 | 0–0 | 2–1 | ||
| Colombo | 3–1 | 2–3 | 4–0 | 4–1 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 3–2 | |||
| Defenders | 2–2 | 6–1 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–2 | ||||
| Sea Hawks | 5–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–0 | |||||
| New Young's | 3–1 | 4–4 | 1–2 | 1–4 | ||||||
| Ratnam | 0–0 | 1–2 | 1–1 | |||||||
| Red Stars | 1–3 | 0–3 | ||||||||
| Renown | 1–0 | |||||||||
| Up Country Lions |
Source: RSSSF
Legend: Blue = left column team win; Yellow = draw; Red = top row team win.
Legend: Blue = left column team win; Yellow = draw; Red = top row team win.
Round 1
Colombo v New Young's
| 19 April 2021 | Colombo | 4–0 | New Young's | |
| 14:00 | Dilshan  15', 85'Zarwan 57' (pen.)Seka 79' |
Blue Star v Red Stars
| 19 April 2021 | Blue Star | 2–4 | Red Stars | |
| 16:00 | Arepade 40' Shifan 55' | Rahman 3', 35', 74' Ogudugu 9' |
Ratnam v Up Country Lions
| 21 April 2021 | Ratnam | 1–1 | Up Country Lions | |
| 16:00 | Jimoh 59' | Akhil 77' |
Blue Eagles v Sea Hawks
| 21 April 2021 | Blue Eagles | 0–1 | Sea Hawks | |
| 16:00 | Hasmeer 11' |
Round 2
Defenders v Blue Eagles
| 24 April 2021 | Defenders | 0–0 | Blue Eagles | |
| 13:00 |
New Young's v Up Country Lions
| 25 April 2021 | New Young's | 1–4 | Up Country Lions | |
| 16:00 | Nithushan 23' | W.Razeek 19', 65', 83' Sujan Perera 90+3' |
Round 3
Sea Hawks v New Young's
| 30 April 2021 | Sea Hawks | 5–0 | New Young's | |
| 16:00 | Hasmeer 28', 55' Kaneshiro 31', 44', 74' |
Blue Eagles v Red Stars
| 1 May 2021 | Blue Eagles | 0–6 | Red Stars | |
| 16:00 | Farhan 9' Rislan 19'Dilakshan 22'Ogudugu 59', 67', 76' |
Up Country Lions v Defenders
| 29 November 2021 | Up Country Lions | 2–0 | Defenders | |
| 11:00 | Abege 28' Asmil 89' |
Round 4
Colombo v Red Stars
| 5 December 2021 | Colombo | 2–2 | Red Stars | |
| 11:00 | Zarwan 69' Shazny 90+5' | Rahman 59', 67' |
Sea Hawks v Up Country Lions
| 6 December 2021 | Sea Hawks | 1–0 | Up Country Lions | |
| 15:00 | Musthaq 90+3' |
Ratnam v Defenders
| 7 December 2021 | Ratnam | 1–2 | Defenders | |
| 11:00 | Hakeem 76' (pen.) | Jayathunga 41' Mohamed 47' (pen.) |
Blue Eagles v New Young's
| 7 December 2021 | Blue Eagles | 1–2 | New Young's | |
| 15:00 | L.Fernando 86' | Sanjeewa 39' Rumesh 53' |
Round 5
Blue Eagles v Renown
| 10 December 2021 | Blue Eagles | 0–1 | Renown | |
| 11:00 | Kurukulasuriyage 74' |
Sea Hawks v Defenders
| 11 December 2021 | Sea Hawks | 2–2 | Defenders | |
| 11:00 | D.Madushan 26' S.Madushan 30' | Chameera 68' Mohamed 73' |
Ratnam v Colombo
| 11 December 2021 | Ratnam | 1–4 | Colombo | |
| 15:00 | Hakeem 84' (pen.) | Dilshan 27', 39', 55' Aakib 65' |
New Young's v Red Stars
| 12 December 2021 | New Young's | 4–4 | Red Stars | |
| 11:00 | Sanjeewa 19', 47', 53' Nitharshan 68' | Dananjaya 6' Ogudugu 24'Rihad 28'Rahman 45+4' |
Up Country Lions v Blue Star
| 12 December 2021 | Up Country Lions | 1–2 | Blue Star | |
| 15:00 | Sujan Perera 71' (pen.) | Arepade 43' Sandesh Pingho 53' |
Round 6
Defenders v Colombo
| 15 December 2021 | Defenders | 1–3 | Colombo | |
| 11:00 | Mohamed 58' (pen.) | Aakib 8', 46', 79' |
New Young's v Ratnam
| 16 December 2021 | New Young's | 3–1 | Ratnam | |
| 11:00 | Danushka 35' Dananjaya 79'Nikila 81' | Enoch 41' |
Blue Star v Sea Hawks
| 16 December 2021 | Blue Star | 3–0 | Sea Hawks | |
| 15:00 | Arepade 14' (pen.) Sandesh Pingho 71', 88' (pen.) |
Red Stars v Renown
| 17 December 2021 | Red Stars | 1–3 | Renown | |
| 11:00 | Rahman 35' (pen.) | Kurukulasuriyage 16' Aman 54'Iqbal 90+2' |
Up Country Lions v Blue Eagles
| 17 December 2021 | Up Country Lions | 1–0 | Blue Eagles | |
| 15:00 | Shifan 90+5' |
Round 7
Sea Hawks v Red Stars
| 28 December 2021 | Sea Hawks | 2–1 | Red Stars | |
| 11:00 | Kaneshiro 45+4' D.Madushan 90+5' | Rahman 15' |
Up Country Lions v Colombo
| 29 December 2021 | Up Country Lions | 2–3 | Colombo | |
| 11:00 | Nitharshan 20', 63' | Aakib 30', 90+6' Tagne 90+5' |
New Young's v Renown
| 29 December 2021 | New Young's | 1–2 | Renown | |
| 15:00 | Agbeti 78' (o.g.) | Supan 53' D.Madushan 57' |
Defenders v Blue Star
| 30 December 2021 | Defenders | 1–3 | Blue Star | |
| 11:00 | Jayasekara 43' | Arepade 37' Sandesh Pingho 73', 84' |
Blue Eagles v Ratnam
| 30 December 2021 | Blue Eagles | 0–0 | Ratnam | |
| 15:00 |
Round 8
Ratnam v Sea Hawks
| 7 January 2022 | Ratnam | 0–1 | Sea Hawks | |
| 11:00 | S.Madushan 58' |
Renown v Up Country Lions
| 7 January 2022 | Renown | 1–0 | Up Country Lions | |
| 11:00 | Job 45+2' |
Blue Star v New Young's
| 7 January 2022 | Blue Star | 4–1 | New Young's | |
| 15:00 | Sandesh Pingho 52', 56', 83' Arshad 90' | Mushikhan 21' |
Colombo v Blue Eagles
| 7 January 2022 | Colombo | 2–0 | Blue Eagles | |
| 15:00 | Seka 24' Aakib 78' |
Round 9
Defenders v New Young's
| 10 January 2022 | Defenders | 6–1 | New Young's | |
| 11:00 | Izzadeen 27', 64', 85' M.Fernando 45+2' (o.g.)Mohamed 84', 89' | Mushikhan 22' |
Red Stars v Up Country Lions
| 10 January 2022 | Red Stars | 0–3 | Up Country Lions | |
| 15:00 | W.Razeek 1', 51', 59' (pen.) |
Colombo v Sea Hawks
| 11 January 2022 | Colombo | 2–3 | Sea Hawks | |
| 15:30 | Aakib 14' Seka 87' | S.Madushan 36' Hasmeer 65' K.Ishan 75' |
Blue Star v Blue Eagles
| 11 January 2022 | Blue Star | 3–2 | Blue Eagles | |
| 15:30 | Fazal 11' Arshad 14'M.Ishan 83' | L.Fernando 15' Malshan 36' |
Top goalscorers
| Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|
 Senal Sandesh Pingho | Blue Star SC | 10 |
| Mohamed Rahman | Red Star SC | 8 |
| Mohamed Aakib | Colombo FC | 8 |
| Ahmed Waseem Razeek | Up Country Lions SC | 6 |
| Chamod Dilshan | Colombo FC | 5 |
| Ismaila Abumere Ogudugu | Red Star SC | 5 |
| Rifkhan Mohamed | Defenders FC | 5 |
| Mohamed Hasmeer | Sea Hawks FC | 5 |
| Zohar Mohamed Zarwan | Colombo FC | 4 |
| Chathuranga Sanjeewa | New Young's SC | 4 |
| Motohiro Kaneshiro | Sea Hawks FC | 4 |
| Jerry Arepade Ombenbe | Blue Star SC | 4 |
| Jean Yapo Seka | Colombo FC | 4 |
Own goals
| Player | Club | Own Goals | Against |
|---|---|---|---|
| Olumide Agbeti | Renown SC | 1 | New Young's SC |
| Madushanka Fernando | New Young's SC | 1 | Defenders FC |
Clean sheets
| Player | Club | Clean Sheet |
|---|---|---|
| Udayanga Perera | Sea Hawks FC | 4 |
| Supun Kaveesh | Blue Star SC | 4 |
| Rasik Rishad | Renown SC | 4 |
| Mohammed Mubarak | Red Star SC | 3 |
| Weerasinghe Sujan Perera | Up Country Lions SC | 3 |
| Nuwan Gimhana | Colombo FC | 2 |
Champions
| Team | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue Star SC | Kalutara | Kalutara Stadium | 15,000 |
References
- ^ a b ‘Super League’ – Sri Lanka’s first Professional Football League to begin in November at Daily News Lanka. date:2 July 2020
- ^ a b Lanka Super League to begin with pre-season tournament at Daily Mirror Lanka. date: 20 January 2021
- ^ Football Super League kicks off tomorrow at Sunday Observer Lanka. date:18 April 2021
- ^ a b Sri Lanka Super League set for November lift off at AFC. date: 2 July 2020
- ^ Super League Postponement at Football Sri Lanka. date: 16 June 2021
- ^ Football Super League kicks off to transform Sri Lanka at Sunday Observer Lanka. date: 4 April 2021
- ^ Super League pre-season tournament group stage schedule at Football Sri Lanka (Facebook). date: 12 February 2021
