Rugby union in Sri Lanka is mainly played at a semi-professional and recreational level. It is a popular team sport with a history dating back to 1879. In 2012, according to International Rugby Board figures, there were over 103,000 registered rugby union players in Sri Lanka, making it the second largest rugby-playing nation in Asia, behind Japan. Governing body The Sri Lankan Rugby Football Union (SLRFU) is the governing body in the country. The Sri Lankan Football Union (as Ceylon Rugby Football Union) was founded in 1908, the first Rugby Union in Asia. The SLRFU joined the IRB in 1988. In March 2011 the IRB stripped the SLRFU of full member status after it failed to conduct board elections in accordance with the By-Laws, the SLRFU's full membership however was subsequently re-instated follows the successful completion of the Union’s Annual General Meeting and Board elections. History Early years: 1879-1945 Sri Lanka discovered the game of rugby at the same time as India, and the first rugby club, the Colombo Football Club, was founded in Sri Lanka in 1879 (in 1896 the Colombo Football Club amalgamated with the Colombo Hockey Club to become the Colombo Hockey and Football Club). The first rugby match played between two selected teams occurred on 30 June that year between Colombo and a 'World' Team. The first ever club game to be played was on 7 September 1880 between Dickoya MCC and Dimbulla ACC at Darawella, with Dickoya winning the game by 9 points to 3. In 1885 E. H. Joseph became the first Ceylonese to represent an English School in Cricket and Rugby. In 1891 rugby was introduced to the country's high schools by L. E. Blaze, the first principal of Kingswood College, Kandy. Kingswood played the first high school rugby match in the country against their hometown rivals Trinity College in 1906. The match resulted in a draw, 6-all. The nation's first 'national' match involved an All Ceylon team playing against the professional All Blacks (the New Zealand rugby league team) under rugby union rules on their 1907–1908 New Zealand rugby tour of Australia and Great Britain on 12 September 1907. The professional all blacks won the match 33-6. The professional All Blacks only played upon being guaranteed a fee of 50 pounds, this resulted in English Rugby Football Union banning its member countries from playing representative matches in Ceylon. As a result, in