2018 Spring UPSL season, Southeast Conference, Atlanta Caribbean Division
The Atlanta Caribbean Division was founded through a merger with the Atlanta Caribbean Soccer League. It overlaps geographically with the Mid-Atlantic Division, with all games taking place at the Southeast Sports Compelex in Lithonia, GA.


2018 Spring UPSL season, Southeast Conference, Atlanta Caribbean Division
The following 8 clubs joined the division for its inaugural season


2018 Spring UPSL season, Southeast Conference, Florida Central Division
The following 10 clubs joined the division for its inaugural season


2018 Spring UPSL season, Southeast Conference, Florida South Division
The following 2 clubs left the South Florida Conference before the season


2018 Spring UPSL season, Southeast Conference, Florida South Division
The following 12 clubs joined the division before the season


2018 Spring UPSL season, Southeast Conference, Mid-Atlantic Division
The Mid-Atlantic Division covers the states of Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia. The division will play a 14 game home-and-away double round robin.


2018 Spring UPSL season, Southeast Conference, Mid-Atlantic Division
The following 8 clubs joined the division for its inaugural season


2018 Spring UPSL season, Southeast Conference, Southeast Conference Playoffs
The champions of the Florida Central and Florida South divisions played at Ives Estates Park, home of Florida Soccer Soldiers. The champions of the Mid-Atlantic and Atlanta Caribbean divisions were originally to play at the neutral location of Spartanburg Day School, home of Sparta 20/20 FC. That match was abandoned due to lightning and was rescheduled for West Orange High School, home of America SC, immediately before the conference final at the same venue.


2018 Spring UPSL season, Southwest Conference
The Southwest Conference is new for this season. It was formed from the Arizona clubs from the Desert Mountain Conference, and also includes New Mexico and West Texas. The conference was originally going to contain Nevada clubs as well, but ultimately none competed in this season.


2018 Spring UPSL season, Southwest Conference
The following 3 Nevada clubs left the Desert Mountain Conference before the season


2018 Spring UPSL season, Southwest Conference
The following 6 clubs joined the conference for its inaugural season


2018 Spring UPSL season, Western Conference, SoCal Division, Pro Premier
The following 6 clubs left the division before the season


2018 Spring UPSL season, Western Conference, SoCal Division, Pro Premier
The following 5 clubs joined the division before the season


2018 Spring UPSL season, Western Conference, SoCal Division, Championship
The following 12 clubs left the division before the season


2018 Spring UPSL season, Western Conference, SoCal Division, Championship
The following 14 clubs joined the division before the season


2018 Spring UPSL season, Western Conference, Wild West Division
For this season, the Red and Blue divisions were merged into a single Wild West Division as a part of the Western Conference. The division was expanded to include the state of Oregon. It will play a 12 game home-or-away single round robin.


2018 Spring UPSL season, Western Conference, Wild West Division
The following 4 clubs left the Wild West Conference before the season


2018 Spring UPSL season, Western Conference, Wild West Division
The following 7 clubs joined the division before the season


2018 Spring UPSL season, Western Conference, Wild West Division, Wild West Division Cup
Concurrently with the season, all Wild West Division teams except for Visalia Golden Bears took part in a knockout competition.


2018 Spring UPSL season, National Playoffs
The national playoffs will be played in Arvada, Colorado and Lakewood, Colorado on August 10–12, hosted by Athletic Club of Sloan's Lake. Teams were randomly paired by draw on July 30.


2018 Spring Vietnam Championship Series
2018 Spring Vietnam Championship Series split (2018 Spring VCS) was the first half of the 6th season of the Vietnam Championship Series, a Vietnamese professional league for League of Legends, the multiplayer online battle arena video game. It was the first VCS staging since Vietnam became independent competitive region from the Garena Premier League.


2018 Spring Vietnam Championship Series
The winner of the playoffs, EVOS Esports, automatically qualified for the 2018 Mid-Season Invitational.


2018 Spring Vietnam Championship Series, Format, International tournaments spots
After becoming an independent competitive region, Vietnam got their own spots in Play-in stage of the Worlds and MSI. Also it was placed in the Rift Rivals Green Rift zone to Turkey and CIS.


2018 Spring Vietnam Championship Series, Regular season
The regular season began on January 18 and ended on March 18.


2018 Spring Vietnam Championship Series, Playoffs
The playoffs started on March 30 and ended on April 7.


2018 Spring Vietnam Championship Series, Summer Promotion
Promotion tournament for two spots in the 2018 VCS Summer was held from May 4 to May 8. Both VCS teams, FFQTV Gaming and Hall of Fame, remains in the league for the next split.


2018 SprintX GT Championship Series
The 2018 SprintX GT Championship Series is the second season of the SprintX GT Championship Series. Michael Cooper and Jordan Taylor are the defending champions in the highest class, the Pro class in GT. It is the second season sanctioned by the United States Auto Club. The season began on 23 March at Circuit of the Americas and will end on 12 August at Utah Motorsports Campus. GTS cars are separated from GT and GT Cup, as the GT4-based category has its own races this season.


2018 SprintX GT Championship Series, Calendar
On 17 November 2017, WC Vision announced the 2018 calendar. All rounds are headliner events held in the United States. Circuit of the Americas was the season opener instead of Virginia. Mosport was dropped from the schedule in favor of Portland.


2018 SprintX GT Championship Series, Championship standings, Drivers' championships
Championship points were awarded for the first twenty positions in each race. The overall pole-sitter also received one point. Entries were required to complete 50% of the winning car's race distance in order to be classified and earn points.


2018 Sri Lanka FA Cup
The 2018 Sri Lanka FA Cup (or Vantage FA Cup for sponsorship reasons) was the 56th season of Sri Lanka FA Cup, the top-tier knockout football tournament in Sri Lanka. A total of 715 teams would participate.


2018 Sri Lanka FA Cup, Round of 16
SLTB SC 1 – 1 (4 – 2 p) Uruthirapuram SC


2018 Sri Lanka FA Cup, Quarter-finals
The draw for the quarter-finals was held on 5 November 2018. All matches take place on 17 & 18 November at the Sugathadasa Stadium.


2018 Sri Lanka FA Cup, Quarter-finals
Colombo FC 0 – 0 (4 – 1 p) New Youngs FC


2018 Sri Lanka FA Cup, Quarter-finals
Renown SC 0 – 0 (1 – 3 p) Police SC


2018 Sri Lanka FA Cup, Semi-finals
The draw for the semi-finals was held on 19 November 2018.


2018 Sri Lanka FA Cup, Semi-finals
25 Nov – Army SC 1 – 0 Police SC – 5.00pm – Sugathadasa Stadium


2018 Sri Lanka FA Cup, Semi-finals
25 Nov – Saunders SC 2 – 0 Colombo FC – 7.30pm – Sugathadasa Stadium


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis
A constitutional crisis began in Sri Lanka when President Maithripala Sirisena appointed former president and member of parliament Mahinda Rajapaksa as Prime Minister on 26 October 2018 before formally dismissing the incumbent Ranil Wickremesinghe, resulting in two concurrent Prime Ministers. Wickremesinghe and the United National Party (UNP) viewed the appointment as illegal, and he refused to resign.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis
Sirisena's sudden decision instigated "political turmoil in the country", and drew international criticism. Wickremesinghe, the majority of the parliament, and opposition parties refused to acknowledge his removal and the appointment of Rajapaksa, stating that Sirisena's move was unconstitutional. Wickremesinghe claimed that he still commands a majority in parliament and requested that Speaker of the Parliament Karu Jayasuriya convene parliament immediately. Sirisena ignored all calls to reconvene parliament and on 27 October prorogued parliament, delaying its meeting till 16 November.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis
After an attempt to form a new cabinet of ministers with Rajapaksa as Prime Minister failed, Sirisena attempted to dissolve parliament on 9 November. The UNP declared the move unconstitutional and subsequently the Supreme Court stayed Sirisena's dissolution until December 2018, when it ruled that the move was unconstitutional and illegal. Rajapaksa backed down from claiming the office and Wickremesinghe was once again reinstated, ending the crisis after 7 weeks of political and economic turmoil.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis
The roots of the crisis date back to the late Rajapaksa presidency which turned increasingly authoritarian in its second term, after the end of the Sri Lankan Civil War. During his time in office President Rajapaksa expanded the power of the presidency, centralising power under his control, while drawing the country closer to China. He and his close family have been accused of and are currently under investigation for corruption, and the former president has also been accused of war crimes and human rights violations.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis
The crisis was triggered by a false allegation of an assassination plot against President Sirisena and lasted for 7 weeks but had a lasting political and economic impact on the country. Due to the fragile Sri Lankan economy the crisis cost the country a billion US dollars in reserves, dropping from $7.991 billion in forex reserves to $6.985 billion. The Sri Lankan rupee ultimately devalued by 3.8% during the same time, while US$312.9 million, in the form of treasury bonds, and US$29.8 million in the form of treasury bills left the country.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis
Sri Lanka's credit was also downgraded as a result of the crisis, while the United States and Japanese governments froze more than a billion US dollars worth of development aid. November saw industrial activity in Sri Lanka slow as a result of the crisis, falling 3.7% from October to November, the largest seen since it began in 2016.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Background, Rajapaksa presidency
The presidency of Mahinda Rajapaksa, from 2005 to 2015 was an increasingly authoritarian regime characterised by the diminishing human rights in the country, nepotism, weakening of government institutions, slow progress of national reconciliation in the aftermath of the Sri Lankan Civil War, and close ties to China. Before serving as president, Rajapaksa also served as Prime Minister. In 2009, Rajapaksa ended the 27-year long Sri Lankan Civil War, but has been accused of war crimes and human rights abuses.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Background, Rajapaksa presidency
At the height of his power, Rajapaksa and his family controlled 80 percent of the national budget where Rajapaksa simultaneously served as finance minister and four other cabinet posts on top of the presidency, while his three brothers served as the defence secretary and ministers of economy and ports and the Speaker of the Parliament. Many of those, including journalists, who were critical of him disappeared. According to Reuters, in the aftermath of the Sri Lankan Civil War, Rajapaksa borrowed "billions of dollars" from China to build infrastructure projects, though these had little economic value to the country. These projects were seen as vanity projects or white elephants.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Background, 2015 presidential election
In response to the degrading democracy in the country, the United National Party (UNP), along with several other parties and civil organisations, signed a Memorandum of Understanding and decided to field the then Secretary General of Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), Maithripala Sirisena, as the Common Candidate for the 2015 Presidential Election. Sirisena, a former health minister under Rajapaksa, pledged to appoint UNP Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe as the Prime Minister if he were to win the election.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Background, 2015 presidential election
Sirisena won the January 2015 election and became the 7th President of Sri Lanka and appointed Wickremesinghe as the Prime Minister as promised. The presidential election was followed by a General Parliamentary Elections, held on 17 August 2015, in which the UNP-lead coalition gained 106 seats in the Parliament and formed a National Government with several other parties. Wickremesinghe and the UNP came to power promising accountability for alleged atrocities committed during the Sri Lanka civil war and during the Rajapaksa presidency. Following the 2015 election defeat, Mahinda Rajapaksa held India's intelligence service, Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), among those responsible for the change in regime. The Government of India also welcomed Rajapaksa's defeat, claiming that the former leader had strained ties with them while moving the country closer to China.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Background, 2015 presidential election
A national unity government was formed, which passed the Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka on 28 April 2015, stipulating that the Prime Minister should remain in office for as long as his cabinet functions, unless he resigns or ceases to be a member of parliament.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Background, Uneasy coalition
The Sirisena-Wickremesinghe government had been struggling to repay the debts incurred during the Rajapaksa presidency. The Magampura Mahinda Rajapaksa Port, built with Chinese money, was handed over to Beijing in a 99-year lease in 2017 as a form of payment. Sri Lanka also recorded just 3.1% economic growth rate, the lowest for 16 years in 2017. By 2018, following Mahinda Rajapaksa's proxy Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna winning a landslide victory in the 2018 local authority elections, disputes among the members of the National Government began to surface and a major rift between the President and Prime Minister appeared. Sirisena claimed Wickremesinghe to have led to the loss of 11 billion Sri Lankan rupees ($65 million; £50 million) in the controversial central bank bond sale, and also alleged that a cabinet minister was involved in a plot to kill him and that police had obstructed an investigation.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Background, Uneasy coalition
In 2017 opinion poll conducted by the Centre for Policy Alternatives revealed Fifty-six percent of respondents are unhappy with the coalition government. Specially 63 percent of majority Sinhalese respondents.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Background, Special high courts for bribery and corruption cases
In May 2018, the Sri Lanka parliament approved a special high court that would expedite the hearing and trial of bribery and corruption related cases. The concept for the High Court Trial-at-Bar was instituted with the passage of amendments to the Judicature Act, the purpose of expediting cases from the Rajapaksa Government era. The Sunday Times of 15 July 2018 stated that "the former Sri Lanka Insurance Corporation chairman Gamini Senarath and its Managing Director Piyadasa Kudabalage will be the first to be indicted before the newly set up court." Senarath was the chief of staff of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa. The Special Courts are also strongly regarded as a factor in the creation of the 2018 Constitutional Crisis.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Background, Alleged assassination attempt
Reports of an assassination plot emerged in September when an individual named Namal Kumara claimed he was aware of a plan to assassinate President Sirisena and former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Kumara was interrogated by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), and in late September the police arrested an Indian national, Marceli Thomas, from Kerala, claiming he knew of the plot. Kumara alleged the Director of the Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) of the Sri Lanka Police, Deputy Inspector General of Police Nalaka de Silva had masterminded the plot. Nalaka de Silva was suspended pending a formal investigation by the CID and later arrested by CID on 25 October under the Prevention of Terrorism Act and remanded till 7 November.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Background, Alleged assassination attempt
In mid October 2018, Indian newspaper The Hindu reported that Sirisena told Cabinet members that India's intelligence service, Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), had devised a plot to assassinate him, though Sirisena denied the report. Sirisena in the cabinet meeting told Ministers that RAW was "trying to kill" him, but "Prime Minister Narendra Modi may not be aware of the plan."


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Background, Alleged assassination attempt
On 18 October 2018, a statement released by India's Prime Minister Office (PMO) said that Sirisena called Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to reject the media reports about him alluding to the involvement of India in the alleged assassination plot. Sirisena also stated that he "regards the [Indian] Prime Minister as a true friend of Sri Lanka, as also a close personal friend. He stressed that he greatly valued the mutually beneficial ties between India and Sri Lanka, and remained steadfast to work with the Prime Minister for further strengthening them."


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Background, Alleged assassination attempt
On 26 October 2018, the United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) withdrew from the government, ending the national government that was in place since 2015. The same day, Sirisena also alleged that a cabinet minister was involved but did not name the cabinet minister. However said "Under these political problems, economic troubles, and the strong plot to assassinate me, the only alternative open to me was to invite former president Mahinda Rajapaksa and appoint him as Prime Minister to form a new government."


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Background, Alleged assassination attempt
In February 2019 Sri Lankan police refused to press charges against Indian national, Marceli Thomas and cleared the man of wrongdoing due to lack of evidence. "There is no sufficient evidence to file charges against him and we will not file charges against him", S. Wijesuriya, an investigating official, told the Colombo Magistrate Court.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Two Prime Ministers
The president's UPFA had earlier on Friday, 26 October, quit the national unity government that had governed with Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's UNP.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Two Prime Ministers
Later at about 7:00 pm without a prior announcement, President Maithripala Sirisena unexpectedly appointed former President Mahinda Rajapaksa as Prime Minister in a live swearing-in ceremony broadcast over television. Rajapaksa took an oath of office in the presence of Sirisena and representatives of the military inside the Presidential Secretariat. He was sworn in while Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was still the incumbent and away touring in the south of the country. The situation in Colombo was uneasy with some cabinet ministers immediately declaring the move unconstitutional, while other Cabinet ministers and parliamentarians began defecting to the new government.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Two Prime Ministers
Wickremesinghe addressed the nation saying, "I am addressing you as the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka. I still hold the majority of the house. [ ...] Convene parliament and I will prove it." Three ministers, including Mangala Samaraweera and Cabinet Spokesman Rajitha Senaratne, tried to address the nation during a live television program. That day Rajapaksa loyalists stormed two state-owned television networks which they regarded loyal to Wickremesinghe and the sitting government, including Rupavahini, and forced them off the air. Troops were brought in to protect the channel's staff.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Two Prime Ministers
Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera tweeted that Rajapaksa's appointment was "unconstitutional and illegal. This is an anti-democratic coup," saying Wickramasinghe remained leader as he could not constitutionally be removed by the president. While UPFA MP Susil Premajayantha told reporters that a new cabinet would be sworn in soon. Speaker of the Parliament Karu Jayasuriya said he was to decide on Saturday (27th), after seeking legal advice, whether to recognise Rajapaksa or not. The Parliament was not due to meet until 5 November when the 2019 national budget was to be presented. The Supreme Court, which is empowered to resolve constitutional disputes, was shut for the weekend, to be reopened on Monday.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Two Prime Ministers
On 27 October President Sirisena issued a formal notice for Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe to step down. Sirisena later issued gazettes formalising and defending the dramatic move. Wickremesinghe however entered Temple Trees, the Prime Ministers residence, refusing to accept the appointment of Mahinda Rajapaksa and his dismissal, insisting in a letter to Sirisena that he was still in office. Sirisena and Rajapaksa announced their intent to form a new cabinet. Nalaka Kaluwewa, an Acting Additional Secretary in the Presidential Secretariat, was appointed as Acting Director General of Information under the instructions of President Sirisena.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Two Prime Ministers
The day after Rajapaksa's appointment, the Parliament, which was due to meet on 5 November to discuss the budget for the next year, was prorogued by the President, delaying its meeting till 16 November. President Sirisena stated on Saturday night that the main reason for him to form a new government with Mahinda Rajapaksa as Prime Minister was the alleged plot to assassinate him. He claimed that the name of Sarath Fonseka had come up in the investigation of the CID but was suppressed.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Two Prime Ministers
On 27 October, Mangala Samaraweera tweeted that the security personnel and official verticals assigned to the Prime Minister were withdrawn from Wickremesinghe and assigned to Rajapaksa on orders from the President. The Inspector General of Police (IGP) Jayasundara had ordered the 1,008 police and STF personnel assigned to Wickremesinghe as Prime Ministerial security to be withdrawn and replaced with 10 police personnel from the Ministerial Security Division (MSD). The security details of ministers of the former government have been also reduced to the levels provided to parliamentarians.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Two Prime Ministers
China, Burundi and Pakistan had recognised Mahinda Rajapaksa as Prime Minister. Chinese President Xi Jinping was one of the first to congratulate the pro-Beijing leader.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Calls to reconvene Parliament
The Speaker of Parliament, Karu Jayasuriya requested the President to reconvene parliament following consultations with party leaders of the UNP, ITAK, JVP and the SLMC on 30 October. The Attorney General Jayantha Jayasuriya stated that it is inappropriate for him to express an opinion on the matter, in response to a request for comment by the Speaker.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Calls to reconvene Parliament
UPFA MP Susil Premajayantha stated that Parliament would reconvene on 16 November as per the Gazette and not on 5 November as said by Rajapaksa the day before.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Calls to reconvene Parliament
On 2 November 119 MPs from several parties met and passed a resolution calling for immediate convention of Parliament claiming that the removal of the Prime Minister and the appointment of another was unconstitutional. The Speaker has stated that the President agreed to convene Parliament on 7 November. However, if the President fails to issue the gazette notification to convene Parliament, the Speaker has stated that he will convene Parliament on 7 November under the powers vested in him. Speaker Jayasuriya later in a statement announced that he will not accept any changes that had happened in Sri Lanka after 26 October until they are verified in parliament.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Calls to reconvene Parliament
On 7 November UPFA MP Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena said that the only item on Parliamentary agenda on 14 November is the policy statement by President Sirisena.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Calls to reconvene Parliament
President Sirisena met with a Tamil National Alliance (TNA) delegation whom he asked to abstain from a vote of no confidence if it were moved. The TNA told Sirisena it had taken a decision to vote against the appointment of Mahinda Rajapaksa as the Prime Minister. The President in response is reported to have said that he will not reappoint Ranil Wickremesinghe as the Prime Minister, even if his party secured a majority in Parliament.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Calls to reconvene Parliament
While making an address on 8 November the SLFP executive committee meeting Sirisena said that "he had used only one trump card and there were more trump cards still in his hand", and that he would not go back on any decisions that he had taken already, during this crisis. Sirisena said he was going to make a request to the UNP to support the government's work plan when Parliament reconvenes on the 14th.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Calls to reconvene Parliament
The UNP said it would explore the possibility of removing President Sirisena in conformity with Article 38 (2) of the Constitution. The Tamil Progressive Alliance (TPA) responded it would not support any impeachment move as, while they do not support the appointment of Rajapaksa, "they are not in favour of adding more fire to the current crisis".


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Sirisena-Rajapaksa cabinet appointments
On 29 October, President Maitripala Sirisena appointed the first members of a new cabinet at the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo, with four UNP MPs appointed as ministers including Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, Vadivel Suresh, Vasantha Senanayake and Ananda Aluthgamage.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Sirisena-Rajapaksa cabinet appointments
UNP MP Dunesh Gankanda was sworn in as State Minister of Environment along with a dozen secretaries to various ministries on 30 October.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Sirisena-Rajapaksa cabinet appointments
UNP MP Ashoka Priyantha was appointed on 4 November as Deputy Minister of Cultural and Internal Affairs, and Regional Development (Wayamba). While UPFA MPs Dinesh Gunawardena was appointed Minister of Megapolis and Western Development; Vasudeva Nanayakkara, Minister of National Integration, Reconciliation, and Official Languages and Keheliya Rambukwella State Minister of Mass Media and Digital Infrastructure.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Sirisena-Rajapaksa cabinet appointments
On 6 November Deputy Minister of Labour and Foreign Employment and UPFA MP Manusha Nanayakkara resigned from his ministerial position and pledged support to Ranil Wickremesinghe. Nanayakkara says that staying true to his heart he cannot join or participate in the recent appointments made and the change in government. UPFA MP Dinesh Gunawardena was appointed Leader of the House.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Bribery allegations
In an effort to show a majority in parliament for a vote of confidence the Sirisena-Rajapaksa group have been seeking defections from opposing parties in an attempt to reach 113 MPs. Amid these attempts have been claims of bribery and threats against those opposing the Sirisena-Rajapaksa group. UNP MP Hirunika Premachandra's political career had been threatened, over a phone call to her aunt, if she failed to accept a ministerial portfolio with the Sirisena-Rajapaksa group. The UNP alleged that Rajapaksa loyalists had been luring its MPs to support Sirisena and Rajapaksa with the offer of significant bribes and ministerial portfolios.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Bribery allegations
Some say they have been offered over Rs. 500 million (US$2,796,150, Dec 2018) to defect. Another UNP legislator claimed he had been approached by Sirisena’s party to defect with an offer of 500 million rupees and an apartment in Malaysia along with free passage for the entire family to a foreign destination. Some UNP MPs have said the bribery is being financed by China, which Beijing has denied. Namal Rajapaksa responded on Twitter saying his party had no information about bribes.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Bribery allegations
Palitha Range Bandara told Speaker Jayasuriya he had been offered a bribe of Rs. 500 million to defect to Mr. Rajapaksa’s party. On 3 November, the UNP released an audio recording, which claimed to attempt to buy UNP MPs which contained a phone conversation allegedly taken place between UPFA MP S. B. Dissanayake and UNP MP Palitha Range Bandara. Bandara said he would hand over the electronic and documentary evidence to the Bribery Commission to file a complaint.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Bribery allegations
Members of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress, who have 7 MPs, have said its members have been approached with offers to join the Sirisena-Rajapaksa camp.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Bribery allegations
In an interview, with the Daily Mirror in early December, President Sirisena confirmed the bribery allegations made by the UNP remarking he personally knew about the situation. "Some MPs even asked for Rs. 500 million ($2,796,150 USD, Dec 2018) to crossover. I personally know about such situations. It was like calling for tenders. That is why Mahinda Rajapaksa could not show a majority in Parliament" he said.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Bribery allegations
Sirisena openly admitted his candidate for Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa attempted to bribe members of parliament in order to show majority in the House, he went on to say that the current crisis could have been avoided had he been able to the 113 MPs. However he said he "believes that Mahinda Rajapaksa couldn't show majority because MPs demanded millions, as high as Rs. 500 million to crossover.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Bribery allegations
The Daily Mirror later removed the video of the interview from its Facebook page upon coming under increasing pressure from the President’s Media Division. The video was replaced with an audio based short video of photographs of Sirisena. A second version did not carry Sirisena’s remarks about MPs asking for bribes.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Dissolution of parliament and elections
President Sirisena issues a gazette notification bringing the Sri Lanka Police under the purview of the Ministry of Defence, which was earlier under the Ministry of Law and Order. This was followed with the transfer of the Department of Government Printing which publishes the government Gazette under the Ministry of Defence. Sirisena has brought the Military, Police and the Gazette under his direct control.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Dissolution of parliament and elections
Amid calls to reconvene parliament Sirisena and his party admitted they did not have enough votes to support Mahinda Rajapaksa against Ranil Wickremesinghe to decide the office of Prime Minister. Ahead of the president's announcement the UPFA said they were at least eight legislators short of getting a majority for Rajapaksa in the parliament. "At the moment we have 104 or 105 MPs," UPFA's spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella told reporters. He further went on to say the Sirisena-Rajapakse group hoped to secure support from "crossover" legislators.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Dissolution of parliament and elections
This is in contrast to what Sirisena claimed on the 5th, that he had the support of 113 legislators when he sacked Wickremesinghe. According to an AFP count, 120 MPs support Wickremesinghe and his allies. President Sirisena dissolves Parliament by proclamation, from midnight of 9 November and declared snap elections to be held on around 5 January 2019. The move was swiftly denounced by the United National Party in a post on Twitter, saying it "vehemently rejects" the sacking of the parliament. The party also accused Sirisena of robbing the "people of their rights and democracy".


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Dissolution of parliament and elections
The act was in violation of the 19th Amendment to the constitution, which he co-sponsored. A short while later it was announced through an extraordinary gazette notice that general elections will be held on 5 January 2019, with the first meeting of the new Parliament to be held on 17 January 2019. UPFA MP Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena said "The nominations would be tendered from 9 to 26 November". The JVP has accused Sirisena of trying to consolidate his power grab. The election date was announced even before preparing the government's annual budget for the next fiscal year in 2019.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Dissolution of parliament and elections
Sirisena inducted more cabinet ministers prior to signing the order to dissolve the parliament. Supporters of Ranil Wickremesinghe were in the process of preparing legal papers to challenge the latest move in the country's Supreme Court.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Dissolution of parliament and elections, Sri Lanka Freedom Party Split
Succeeding the dissolution of parliament and the announcement of snap elections, Mahinda Rajapaksa and 44 other members of parliament on 11 November defected from the Sri Lanka Freedom Party, led by President Maithripala Sirisena, to join the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP). The SLPP was formed in 2016 by Basil Rajapaksa, younger brother of Mahinda. A member of the SLPP said that 65 out of 82 Sri Lanka Freedom Party MPs will eventually join Rajapaksa's party. Other prominent defectors include Mahindananda Aluthgamage, Rohitha Abeygunawardena, Anura Priyadharshana Yapa, Johnston Fernando and Namal Rajapaksa. Namal Rajapaksa said relating to the defections, "We will strive to create a broader coalition with many stakeholders under the leadership of Maithripala Sirisena & Mahinda Rajapaksa to face the upcoming General Election and come out victorious."


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Dissolution of parliament and elections, Supreme Court stays proclamation dissolving parliament
On 12 November, twelve Fundamental Right petitions were submitted to the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka challenging the president's decree sacking parliament and calling a snap election, by the UNP, TNA, JVP, SLMC and others including Prof Ratnajeevan Hoole, a member of the Election Commission. Arguing that Sirisena's actions were unconstitutional, illegal and against the people of Sri Lanka, Hoole demanded the restoration of status quo prevailing prior to 26 October. Hoole's position strengthens the argument of 11 other petitions.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Dissolution of parliament and elections, Supreme Court stays proclamation dissolving parliament
These were taken up for hearing on the same day by a three-member bench of the Supreme Court consisting of the Chief Justice Nalin Perera, Justices Prasanna Jayawardena and Priyantha Jayawardena. Responding to the petitions, Attorney General Jayantha Jayasuriya made submissions stating that "the court had no jurisdiction to hear and determine the Fundamental Rights petitions against the dissolution of Parliament". On the same day, 5 petitions by Prof G. L. Peiris, Minister Udaya Gammanpila, Minister Vasudeva Nanayakkara and two others supporting the dissolution of parliament were filed at the Supreme Court. However, in the evening the three Judge bench issued an interim order till 7 December staying the proclamation issued by President Sirisena to dissolve parliament and granted leave to proceed with the Fundamental Rights petitions that challenged the President's dissolving parliament.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Dissolution of parliament and elections, Supreme Court stays proclamation dissolving parliament
Following the stay order of the Supreme Court, President Sirisena convened the National Security Council at the Presidential Secretariat; where he ordered the police and armed forces to maintain the peace in the country. Soon after the IGP Jayasundara ordered senior police officers to maintain the law and order in the country.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Parliamentary clashes, 1st Motion of no confidence
The Speaker office stated on 13 November, following the stay order from the Supreme Court, that Parliament would convene on 14 November as per the gazette issued by President Sirisena on 4 November. On 14 November the Parliament gathered for the vote. Rajapaksa and his son Namal walked out of the chamber just before the Speaker called for a vote. Amid shouting, speaker Karu Jayasuriya took a voice vote while members loyal to Rajapaksa attempted to grab the mace, the symbol of authority of the legislature, to disrupt it. The vote went ahead and a no-confidence motion against Mahinda Rajapaksa was passed.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Parliamentary clashes, 1st Motion of no confidence
Wickremesinghe said he submitted a petition carrying signatures of 122 MPs who support the no-confidence motion. Jayasuriya confirmed that the no-confidence motion against Rajapaksa had support of 122 members in the 225-member house.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Parliamentary clashes, 2nd Motion of no confidence
A second Motion of no confidence took place on 16 November which was approved. However it too was not accepted by the President, who later requested for a third motion of no confidence to be passed in parliament.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Parliamentary clashes, Motion of confidence
On 12 December, the parliament passed a vote of confidence in support of Ranil Wickremesinghe as Prime Minister.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Rajapaksa led government moves
During the period of the crisis the disputed government hastily made controversial government decisions and contracts in order to win over public opinion. The Rajapaksa led government had made plans to lower fuel prices and income taxes in a bid to increase public support.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Rajapaksa led government moves, Transferral of Nishantha Silva
The intervention of the Police Commission in preventing the arbitrary executive actions of transferring an officer is an important result of the independent commissions introduced by the 19th Amendment. Robust democratic institutions are key to protecting the freedoms of citizens from arbitrary actions of the state. We must defend and strengthen such institutions.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Rajapaksa led government moves, Transferral of Nishantha Silva
Since the start of the crisis, President Sirisena has taken the police under his direct control. Inspector of Police Nishantha Silva is the officer in charge of Criminal Investigation Department's (CID) Organised Crimes Investigation Unit. Silva is handling investigations into major incidents including those during the Rajapaksa administration, most notably the abduction and the assault of Journalist Keith Noyahr, in 2008 and the murder of Lasantha Wickrematunge in 2009, in addition to at least 60 crimes committed by the LTTE.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Rajapaksa led government moves, Transferral of Nishantha Silva
He is also investigating the rape and the murder of student Sivaloganathan Vithya and the abduction of 11 youths in Colombo, in 2008-09 where Chief of Defence Staff Admiral Ravindra Wijegunaratne is allegedly involved in harbouring a suspect of the abduction. Mahinda Rajapaksa, his family and associates are directly connected to these investigations, and as Silva pursued inquiries into them, on 18 November he was transferred by IGP Pujith Jayasundara on the orders of President Sirisena to the Negombo Division with "immediate effect on service requirements". Silva had just secured an arrest order for Admiral Wijegunaratne when he was shifted.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Rajapaksa led government moves, Transferral of Nishantha Silva
Wijegunaratne, however has retained the office of Chief of Defence Staff. Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, the Former defence secretary and brother of the former president, is being investigated on allegations of defrauding the state and was indicted in September. Silva was also investigating Gotabhaya for alleged corruption in aircraft purchases from Ukraine during his time in the Rajapaksa administration.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Rajapaksa led government moves, Transferral of Nishantha Silva
In response to the transferral Silva had appealed to the National Police Commission (NPC). The Commission requested a report from IGP Pujith Jayasundara as to why the officer handling several high-profile investigations had been transferred. The intervention by the NPC prompted IGP Jayasundara to reverse his order and withdraw the transfer, on the 19th, allowing Silva to continue in the same capacity.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Rajapaksa led government moves, Transferral of Nishantha Silva
It was learnt in a letter to IGP Jayasundara, written by CID Director Senior DIG Ravi Seneviratne that it was Admiral Wijegunaratne who had orchestrated the transferral by framing allegations against Silva of maintaining connections with the LTTE, during the last security council meeting chaired by President Sirisena. The daughter of Lasantha Wickrematunge, Ahimsa Wickrematunge wrote to the President against the obstruction of justice.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Rajapaksa led government moves, Sugar tax
The disputed government controversially lowered taxes on sugary drinks which attracted immediate criticism. The tax that was introduced by the Sirisena-Wickremesinghe government sought to tackle the prevalence of diabetes in the country. The sweet tax, which taxed 50 cents on every gram of sugar in fizzy and fruit drinks was cut to 30 cents starting 1 December. Mahinda Rajapaksa who holds the Ministry of Finance in the disputed government instructed the cut the sugar tax by 40 percent, a move made after a meeting with business leaders in the industry. The measure could reduce soft drinks prices by 30%, Prime Minister's Office said.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Court order restraining Prime Minister and Ministers
The damage that will be posed by temporarily restraining a lawful cabinet of ministers from functioning would be … outweighed by the damage that would be caused by allowing a set of persons who are not entitled in law to function as the Prime Minister or the cabinet of ministers,"


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Court order restraining Prime Minister and Ministers
Following a quo warranto writ petition filed by 122 MPs against the appointment of Mahinda Rajapaksa as Prime Minister and other Ministers, the Court of Appeal issued an interim order on 3 December restraining the functioning of the respondents Mahinda Rajapaksa as Prime Minister as well as other cabinet ministers, deputy ministers and state ministers. The following day Rajapaksa filed an appeal in the Supreme Court against the interim order.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Court order restraining Prime Minister and Ministers
On 14 December 2018, the Supreme Court refused to issue an interim order vacating the earlier interim order of the Court of Appeal restricting the functions of the Prime Minister's office, the matter was set down for hearing in mid-January 2019. Following this decision, the Prime Minister indicated his intention to resign.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Court order restraining Prime Minister and Ministers
Concerns have been raised over a possibility of a government shutdown similar to those in the United States, without the parliament passing finances for the government spending for the year 2019. Without a lawful finance minister it is unclear if the government's $1 billion foreign debt repayment due in early January can be serviced.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Supreme Court rules dissolution of Parliament unconstitutional
"It has been said by some of the added Respondent that refusing the Petitioner’s applications will enable a General Election to be held in pursuance of the Proclamation marked "P1" and, therefore, justified because it will give effect to the franchise of the people. That submission is not correct. Giving effect to the franchise of the people is not achieved by the court permitting a General Election held consequent to dissolution of Parliament which has been effected contrary to the provision of the Constitution. Such a General Election will be unlawfully held and its result will be open to question. A General election will be valid only if it is lawfully held. Thus, a General Election held consequent to dissolution of Parliament which has been done contrary to the provisions of the constitution will not be a true exercise of the franchise of the people".


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Supreme Court rules dissolution of Parliament unconstitutional
On 13 December 2018, the Supreme Court ruled that President Sirisena’s decision to dissolve the Parliament 20 months before the end of its term was unconstitutional. A full (seven-judge) bench unanimously ruled on that the President cannot dissolve Parliament until it completes a four-and-a-half-year term. The court also said the President's decision to call snap elections was illegal. On 14 December in response to the Supreme Court rulings, according to party members, Mahinda Rajapaksa said he would relinquish his claim to be Prime Minister and would back down after an address to the nation on Saturday (15th).


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Supreme Court rules dissolution of Parliament unconstitutional
Rajapaksa's son Namal wrote in a Twitter post "to ensure stability of the nation, Former President Rajapaksa has decided to resign from the Premiership tomorrow after an address to the nation". Namal Rajapaksa went on to say "his family’s political party would work with Mr. Sirisena’s party to form a broader coalition in Parliament".


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Supreme Court refused to vacate Court of Appeal interim order
The following day, the Supreme Court also refused to vacate the interim order given by the Court of Appeal restraining Rajapaksa and his cabinet from functioning.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Rajapaksa relinquishment of his claim and reinstatement of Wickremesinghe
On 15 December 2018, Mahinda Rajapaksa signed a letter of resignation as Prime Minister. He stated he has no intention of remaining as Prime Minister without a general election and does not wish to hamper the president forming a new government. Former minister S. B. Dissanayake claimed that Rajapaksa intends to become the Leader of the Opposition while Dinesh Gunawardena intends to become the Chief Opposition Whip. On the same day, it was announced that Wickremesinghe would be reinstated as Prime Minister the next day.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Rajapaksa relinquishment of his claim and reinstatement of Wickremesinghe
Ranil Wickremesinghe was sworn in as Prime Minister at 11:16am on 16 December at the Presidential Secretariat. The UNP has said it will appoint a UNP government but several legislators from the SLFP have expressed interest in joining the new government.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Timeline of events, Rajapaksa relinquishment of his claim and reinstatement of Wickremesinghe
Meanwhile, Rajapaksa said he will continue to work with Sirisena to establish a majority or push for a general election.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Outcomes, Political
With the presidential election in 2019 and parliamentary elections in 2020 coming President Sirisena and Rajapaksa's moves to consolidate power backfired due to the political and economic instability during this whole crisis. The turmoil angered many Sri Lankans and weakened both the president and Rajapaksa ahead of the polls. Senior political scientist Jayadeva Uyangoda, called President Sirisena and his party the SLFP the "ultimate casualties" of the crisis.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Outcomes, Political
It saw the split of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party when Rajapaksa and his loyalists broke away from the party days after being appointed Prime Minister and took up membership in the Rajapaksa-backed Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna. Prof. Uyangoda said Sirisena, after the crisis, has no independent power base with his party having been virtually absorbed by the pro-Rajapaksa SLPP. "Sirisena has proved to be the country's poorest political leader when it comes to political strategising", Prof. Uyangoda told The Hindu.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Outcomes, Political
Rajapaksa and his allies continued to demand for early elections, but as they are seen as the chief architects of the recent political turmoil the Rajapaksa family will probably enter any race with considerably less popular support than it had before the crisis. The Rajapaksa's were surprised when they were unable to secure enough votes in Parliament to form a government and have admitted privately that the political crisis has hurt their chances in an election in the urban areas.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Outcomes, Political
The crisis saw a central role for the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka. Its significance was huge in restoring constitutional governance for democracy in the country. The greatest outcome of the Supreme Court’s rulings against President Sirisena is the re-emergence of the judiciary with a clear sense of institutional autonomy and independence. In doing so, it also protected the constitutional protection to the Prime Minister and the Cabinet was ensured as well as the institutional autonomy of the legislature. The two decisions by the Supreme Court in the last week of the crisis were not only landmark judgments but will go on to define judicial verdicts of the future.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Outcomes, Political
The crisis which gave the prospect of a new Mahinda Rajapaksa backed government coming to power prompted authorities in United States to publicly disclose money laundering and visa fraud charges against the former Sri Lankan Ambassador to the United States Jaliya Wickramasuriya to ensure that he is swiftly prosecuted before a Rajapaksa administration could restore his diplomatic immunity. Wickramasuriya who is the cousin of Rajapaksa has become the first Rajapaksa relative to be prosecuted abroad. He will face a possible lengthy jail term following five counts of charges ranging from wire fraud to immigration offences.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Outcomes, Economic
The fragile Sri Lankan economy was badly hurt during the political upheaval with the steep loss in value in its currency, downgrading of its economy and loss in tourist revenue. The economic loss and financial slippage, according to a provisional assessment, caused to the country during this period has exceeded Rs. 102 billion. In January 2019 it was revealed that the crisis cost the country a billion US dollars in reserves. The government on 26 October had $7.991 billion in forex reserves but by the end of this period reserves had depleted to $6.985 billion.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Outcomes, Economic
The Colombo Stock Exchange recorded some growth during the crisis. However, the rupee reached a record low during the same time, but was boosted by Central Bank dollar sales. The Sri Lankan rupee was ultimately devalued by 3.8% during the 7-week political crisis. USD $312.9 million, in the form of treasury bonds, and US$29.8 million in the form of treasury bills had also gone out of the country.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Outcomes, Economic
Sri Lanka's credit was also downgraded during the period. On 20 November credit rating agency Moody's released a statement downgrading the Sri Lankan government's foreign currency issuer and senior unsecured ratings to B2 from B1 and changed the outlook to stable from negative. Moody's says the downgrade was driven by the "ongoing tightening in external and domestic financing conditions and low reserve adequacy, exacerbated most recently by a political crisis which seems likely to have a lasting impact on policy".


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Outcomes, Economic
In the wake of the political crisis and doubts about the future of democracy in the nation, the United States and Japanese governments froze more than a billion US dollars worth of development aid. The European Union also warned that if it did not stick to commitments on national reconciliation, it could withdraw duty-free concessions for Sri Lankan exports.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Outcomes, Economic
In November industrial activity in Sri Lanka slowed as a result of the crisis. The Index of Industrial Production compiled by the Department of Census and Statistics fell 1.2% to 107.3 points in November when compared to the same time a year earlier. Food production, which contributes 35.2% to overall manufacturing activities fell 2.7% in November. Manufacture of other non-metallic mineral products, the third largest industrial production, fell 11.3% compared to a year earlier. Sri Lanka's leading export however, which forms 19.8% of industrial activity, apparel production grew 3.8% and exports of garments during the month grew 9.9%. Coke and refined petroleum production, Sri Lanka's fourth largest manufacturing activity, and rubber and plastic product manufacturing, the fifth largest, also grew 5.8% and 13.3% respectively. Overall the index recorded a 3.7% fall from October to November, the largest seen since it began in 2016.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Outcomes, Social
The crisis saw the resilience of Sri Lanka’s democracy among its citizens amid multiple setbacks. Activism by citizens in defence of political freedom, political consciousness, education and participation greatly increased. Activism, participation and resistance was particularly large among young voters, whose political weapons were the use of political humour shared through social media. President Sirisena's betrayal of the 2015 mandate, which opened a democratic space for Sri Lankans, shook and angered many citizens who spontaneously mobilised to defend constitutional governance, democracy, and freedom.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Outcomes, 2019 Sri Lanka Easter bombings
The political fallout of the constitutional crisis and the bitter infighting between the country's leaders has been questioned by various individuals on whether it may have contributed to a breakdown of the government's functionality contributing to the 2019 Sri Lanka Easter bombings.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Protests
The UNP held a protest near the Temple Trees on 31 October, where thousands of Sri Lankans have taken to the streets urging President Sirisena to uphold democracy.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Protests
The JVP held protest rally at Nugegoda on 1 November demanding the president to reconvene parliament immediately and to restore democracy in the country.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Protests
Tens of thousands of Sri Lankans marched Monday 5 November in support of a new government of Mahinda Rajapaksa and Maithripala Sirisena. Sri Lanka Police estimated 120,000 people attended the rally.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Protests, Violence
Rival groups supporting Mahinda Rajapaksa and Ranil Wickremesinghe have been gathering at different locations around Colombo. Hundreds of supporters of Wickremesinghe have gathered around Temple Trees and say they will stay there to protect the ousted Prime Minister. So far demonstrations have been mostly peaceful, but Speaker Jayasuriya, and others, have warned of a "blood bath" if Parliament was not permitted to meet and end the constitutional crisis.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Protests, Violence
With the rushed swearing in of Rajapaksa, Rajapaksa loyalists stormed two state-owned television networks which they regarded loyal to Wickremesinghe and the sitting government and forced them off the air. Trade unions linked to Rajapaksa's party have also been blocking access to ministers who are from the United National Party.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Protests, Violence
On Sunday 28 October, the bodyguards of a deposed government minister opened fire on a crowd of protestors resulting in the death of one person. The first reported outbreak of violence occurred at the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC), which houses the headquarters of national oil and gas company, resulted in a shooting between members of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party CPC Trade Union and the personal security detail of deposed petroleum minister, Arjuna Ranatunga.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Protests, Violence
Crowds loyal to the president attempted to prevent Ranatunga from entering the government building in Colombo as he was attempting to retrieve belongings from the CPC offices. One union member was killed and two or three injured by shots fired by a member of the police MSD security detail as the crowd tried to take Ranatunga hostage. Ranatunga was rushed into the building in the immediate aftermath of the shooting. The SLFP CPC Trade Union went on strike until Ranatunga was arrested, causing long queues at filling stations.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Protests, Violence
Ranatunga was dressed in a helmet and camouflage, and escorted by the Special Task Force, dozens of regular police were deployed in order to pacify a still-agitated crowd. He was arrested by police on 30 October, and was subsequently released on bail. The strike was called off. One security member was arrested and an investigation has begun into the incident, police have confirmed.


2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis, Protests, Violence
After being rescued by police commandos, later on Sunday speaking to reporters Ranatunga said his bodyguards opened fire because the crowd "They came to kill me – I state this responsibly – and you can check the CCTV footage," "For the first time, I feared for my life. I thought of my children and my family.""


2018 Sri Lankan local elections
Local elections were held in Sri Lanka on 10 February 2018. 15.7 million Sri Lankans were eligible to elect 8,327 members to 340 local authorities (24 municipal councils, 41 urban councils and 275 divisional councils) in the country. It was the largest election in Sri Lankan history. This was also the first election under the mixed electoral system where 60% of members were elected using first-past-the-post voting and the remaining 40% through closed list proportional representation.


2018 Sri Lankan local elections
In a surprise result the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna, led by former president Mahinda Rajapaksa, came first by winning 40% of the votes and securing the most number of seats and local authorities. The United National Front led by Prime Minister of Sri Lanka Ranil Wickremesinghe came second with 29% of the votes whilst the United People's Freedom Alliance led by President Maithripala Sirisena came third with 12% of the votes. However, most local authorities were hung with no overall control.


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Background
The last major round of local government elections was held in 2011 when elections were held in 322 of the then 335 local authorities. Elections to two other local authorities in Mullaitivu District were due but were repeatedly postponed due to alleged delays in resettling internally displaced persons following the end of the civil war in 2009. Elections to the remaining 11 local authorities were not due as they had their last election in 2008 or 2009. Since 2011 six new local authorities have been created (1 MC, 5 DC) taking the total number of local authorities to 341 (24 MC, 41 UC, 276 DC).


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Background
The normal term of a local authority is four years but the law allows the central government to extend this by a further year. The term of the 234 local authorities (3 MC, 30 UC, 201 DC) that had their election on 17 March 2011 was due to expire on 31 March 2015 but on 27 March 2015 their term was extended to 15 May 2015. These 234 local authorities were then dissolved and their administration placed under special commissioners appointed by the government.


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Background
The term of the 65 local authorities (1 MC, 9 UC, 55 DC) that had their election on 23 July 2011 expired on 31 July 2015 after which their administration was placed under special commissioners. The term of the 23 local authorities (16 MC, 1 UC, 6 DC) that had their election on 8 October 2011 was due to expire on 15/31 October 2015 but in October 2015 their term was extended to 31 December 2015. This was subsequently extended to 30 June 2016. These 23 local authorities were then dissolved and their administration placed under special commissioners.


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Background
On 10 October 2012 Parliament passed the Local Authorities (Special Provisions) Act, No. 21 of 2012 and Local Authorities Elections (Amendment) Act, No. 22 of 2012, changing the electoral system for electing local authority members from open list proportional representation (PR) to a mixed electoral system whereby 70% of members would be elected using first-past-the-post voting (FPTP) and the remaining 30% through closed list PR. The number of local authority members was increased significantly from around 4,500 to 8,000.


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Background
A five member National Delimitation Committee headed by Jayalath Dissanayake was appointed by Minister of Local Government and Provincial Councils A. L. M. Athaullah on 12 December 2012 to demarcate the new local authority wards. After much delay the committee's final report was handed over to Minister of Provincial Councils and Local Government Faiszer Musthapha on 19 June 2015. The committee recommended that the number of members elected using FPTP be increased by 595 to 5,081. On 21 August 2015 a gazette was published detailing the wards.


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Background
The new wards received more than 1,000 complaints and as a result the government appointed the Delimitation Appeals Investigation Committee headed by Ashoka Peiris to review the complaints. The appeals committee's report was handed over to Musthapha on 17 January 2017. The revised ward details were gazetted on 17 February 2017.


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Background
In February 2016 Parliament passed Local Authorities Elections (Amendment) Act, No. 1 of 2016 requiring 25% of candidates at local elections to be female. Small parties and those representing ethnic minorities complained that the new mixed electoral system put them at a disadvantage and as a result the government agreed to change the ratio between FPTP and PR. On 25 August 2017 Parliament passed Local Authorities Elections (Amendment) Act, No. 16 of 2017 which, amongst things, changed the ratio between FPTP and PR from 70:30 to 60:40.


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Background
On 15 November 2017 six voters filed a petition with the Court of Appeal challenging the legality of the gazette on demarcation of wards issued in February 2017, affecting 208 local authorities. On 22 November 2017 the Court of Appeal suspended the implementation of the gazette until 4 December 2017, preventing elections from being called to the 208 local authorities. Nominations to 93 local authorities not affected by the petition were called by the Election Commission on 27 November 2017. Nominations to 40 other local authorities not affected by the petition could not be called due to errors in the gazette.


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Background
The legal petition was withdrawn on 30 November 2017 following which the Court of Appeal rescinded the suspension of the gazette. The gazette correcting the errors in respect of 40 local authorities was published on 2 December 2017. Nominations to the remaining 248 local authorities were called by the Election Commission on 4 December 2017.


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Prior to the election
Opinion poll conducted by the Centre for Policy Alternatives revealed Fifty-six percent of respondents said the coalition government should not continue. Specially 63 percent of majority Sinhalese respondents.


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Details, Nominations
Nominations to 93 local authorities (7 MC, 18 UC, 68 DC) without any legal issues took place between 11 and 14 December 2017. 523 nominations (466 form registered political parties, 57 from independent groups) were received of which 500 were accepted (447 form registered political parties, 53 from independent groups) and 23 rejected (19 form registered political parties, 4 from independent groups).


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Details, Nominations
Nominations to the remaining 248 local authorities (17 MC, 23 UC, 208 DC) took place between 18 and 21 December 2017. 1,582 nominations (1,399 form registered political parties, 183 from independent groups) were received of which 1,553 were accepted (1,379 form registered political parties, 174 from independent groups) and 29 rejected (20 form registered political parties, 9 from independent groups).


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Details, Nominations
On 18 December 2017 the Election Commission announced that elections to all 341 local authorities would be held on 10 February 2018. Around 13,000 polling stations were used. The election is expected to cost around Rs. 4 billion and required 300,000 staff, including public sector employees. Postal voting has taken place on 25 and 26 January 2018.


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Details, Nominations
On 30 January 2018 the Supreme Court issued an injunction preventing election in Elpitiya DC following a petition by the Democratic United National Front against the rejection of their nomination list.


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Details, Calculation of seats
60 percent of the seats in each local government authority were elected under the first-past-the-post (FPTP) system. The candidate who receives the most votes were declared the elected representative. The other 40 percent of seats were elected based on the proportion of votes received by each contesting political party or independent group. To complete the seat calculation, the district returning officers first counts the total number of valid votes cast and divides that number by the total number of seats up for election in a given local authority. This number represents the average number of votes cast per seat (X).


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Details, Calculation of seats
To identify the number of seats a political party or independent group gained (Y), the district returning officer then takes the total number of valid votes a party or group received in the local authority and divides that by the average number of votes per seat (X). Finally, to account for seats already won through the FPTP system, the district returning officer takes the total number of seats a political party or independent group gained (Y) and subtracts the total number won through FPTP. The result is the number of seats a political party or group is entitled to under the proportional representation system.


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Parties that contested, United People's Freedom Alliance
The United People's Freedom Alliance's main constituent- the Sri Lanka Freedom Party- underwent a split before the election, with loyalists of ex-president Mahinda Rajapaksa breaking away and creating a political front of their own. The UPFA thus contested for some seats as an alliance while the Sri Lanka Freedom Party contested alone in others, both being led by incumbent president Maithripala Sirisena. This marks the first time since 1991 that the SLFP contested under their own election symbol.


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Parties that contested, United National Front
The United National Front led by the United National Party's Ranil Wickramasinghe contested under their elephant election symbol, bringing together constituent parties including the Jathika Hela Urumaya led by Champika Ranawaka, the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress led by Rauff Hakeem, and the Tamil Progressive Alliance led by Palani Digambaran.


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Parties that contested, Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna
Mahinda Rajapakse's Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna contested under their flower bud election symbol, gaining the majority of the seats on offer and control over most of the island's local authorities.


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Results
The elections resulted in parties winning an absolute majority of seats in only 141 of the 340 local authorities - Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) in 126 LA's, United National Front (UNF) in five, independents in two, National Congress in two, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) in two, United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) in two, Ceylon Workers' Congress (CWC) in one and Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP) in one.


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Results
The remaining 199 LA's were hung with no overall control. Of these, the SLPP was the largest party in 95 LA's, TNA in 36, UNF in 29, Sri Lanka Muslim Congress in four, UPFA in four, Independents in three, CWC in two, Tamil National People's Front in two, EPDP in one, United Lanka Great Council in one, Muslim National Alliance in one, Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal in one and Tamil United Liberation Front in one. The remaining 19 LA's were tied (SLPP/UNF in nine LA's, ACMC/UNF in two, TNA/TMVP in two, CWC/UNF in one, SLFP/ SLPP in one, SLMC/SLPP/UPFA in one, SLMC/UNF in one, TNA/UNF in one and UNF/UPFA in one).


2018 Sri Lankan local elections, Aftermath
With so many local authorities hung with no overall control the path was open for back-room deals between parties to take control of local authorities. As result the leadership of several local authorities was captured by a party other than that which won the most number of seats.


2018 Sri Lankan southwest monsoon floods
2018 Sri Lanka floods and landslides caused from an annual heavy southwest monsoon beginning around 19 May. As of 26 May 2018; the monsoon floods affected in about 19 districts, killed at least 21 people, about 150, 000 people were affected and further left approximately 23 people missing. The death casualties were reported from 22 May onwards in the provinces including South, Northwest, North and East. About 4 people were reported dead due to lightning, 5 people were killed due to floods and lightning, 8 people died due to drowning and further left 4 people dead resulting from fallen trees. The DMC report claimed about 400, 000 people have been displaced to safer locations. About 105 houses were reported to have fully damaged and over 4832 houses have been partially damaged.


2018 Sri Lankan southwest monsoon floods
The red alert was issued to areas which are surrounded near rivers such as Kelani Ganga, Kalu Ganga, Gin Ganga and Nilwala Ganga. Residents who were living surrounding the red alerted areas were forced to be evacuated by security personnel. The reports also stated that the rivers Kelani river and Kalu river have been overflowing due to heavy flash floods. Further the Meteorological Department of Sri Lanka predicted further rainfall in the coming days especially in the south and west parts of the country before the conclusion of the monsoon season. After the end of the monsoon period, few parts of the country including commercial capital Colombo received torrential rains.


2018 Sri Lankan southwest monsoon floods, Causes
The southwest monsoon typically peaks during late May to the beginning of June in Sri Lanka, with prevailing winds from the south and southwest, streaming toward the Bay of Bengal. The areas that usually receive the heaviest rain are the south and west of the country, including Kalutara, Ratnapura, and Colombo. May is generally considered as the wettest month of the year.


2018 Sri Lankan southwest monsoon floods, Causes
The 2017 Sri Lanka floods affected 15 districts, killed at least 208 people and left a further 78 people missing. 698, 289 people were affected, while 11, 056 houses were partially damaged and another 2 093 houses completely destroyed.


2018 Sri Lankan southwest monsoon floods, Floods
The annual southwest monsoon rains started from May 19 and caused severe damages throughout the nation with heavy rainfall causing flash floods. The flooding severely affected Sri Lanka's Sabaragamuwa Province, Central Province, Northern Province, Southern Province and Western Province leaving 13 dead, 23 missing and about 125, 954 have been affected by the floods.


2018 Sri Lankan southwest monsoon floods, Floods
Gampaha was one of the worst affected areas with having about 42, 973 people affected and 33, 832 had been sheltered in the area. 28, 328 were affected in Ratnapura, the second most affected area in the island due to the prevailing weather conditions. Puttalam also was one of the hardly hit areas with Ratnapura as it received about 122.7mm rainfall on 23 May within 24 hours. The Ministry of Disaster Management revealed that Ja-Ela was overflowing due to the rise of water levels of Attanagala Oya which is located in Attanagalla close to Ja-ela area. People living in low-lying areas near Ja-ela were earlier asked to displace to safer places.


2018 Sri Lankan southwest monsoon floods, Floods
The water levels of both Kelani river and Kalu river were assumed to be rising due to the heavy rain and leaving the Kaduwela-Biyagama bridge to submerge. On 24 May 2018, the bridge which connects both Kaduwela and Biyagama which lie in the Western Province was officially announced to be closed for 7 hours from 10pm until 5am on 25 May due to soil erosion. The roads in low-lying areas Kaduwela, Biyagama and Malwana were flooded with temporary closure was determined for the particular roads.


2018 Sri Lankan southwest monsoon floods, Floods
The people who were living along the river banks were warned to be evacuated following the rise of river water levels in the entire country. The spill gates of Deduru Oya and other tanks were also opened as a result of extreme weather conditions. Unnichchei tank in Batticaloa also reached spill levels.


2018 Sri Lankan southwest monsoon floods, Floods
Further landslide warnings were also issued to districts such as Colombo, Kegalle, Gampaha, Badulla, Kurunegala, Nuwara Eliya, Kalutara, Galle and Ratnapura as a result of the high rainfall. On 24 May, the Colombo-Hatton main road was blocked and disrupted due to landslides which caused traffic block in the main road.


2018 Sri Lankan southwest monsoon floods, Health issues, Spread of virus flu
The deadly virus flu which mainly affects the children and infants (most common type of virus among babies) was spread in the Southern Province of Sri Lanka including Galle, Hambantota, Tissamaharama and Matara following the monsoon rain season which affected the Southern region of the country. The particular virus was considered to be an unidentified viral fever initially since its outbreak and was later described to be a pneumonia. Nearly, cases related to the viral fever were increased with 50 percent in Southern Province since the start of the monsoon season from May 19.


2018 Sri Lankan southwest monsoon floods, Health issues, Spread of virus flu
14 people including 11 children were killed due to pneumonia with about 400 patients being treated at hospitals in the South. The health authorities in the country also warned there would be an increased risk of viral flu in the southern part of the island due to the prevailing inclement weather situation. Some preschools in Galle, Matara, Tissamaharama and Hambantota were scheduled closed for a week since the virus outbreak during the early month of May. However, later the health authorities stated that the viral fever which prevailed in down south region was under controlled.


2018 Sri Lankan southwest monsoon floods, Health issues, Spread of dengue, cholera
The Health Ministry of Sri Lanka warned people that diseases such as dengue, cholera, leptospirosis and other skin related disorders could spread in the areas affected by floods with flood waters receding in several districts after the end of monsoon period.


2018 Sri Lankan southwest monsoon floods, Response
The Sri Lanka Navy deployed 38 officials to help the affected people due to flash floods. The Sri Lanka Navy launched operations to rescue the affected people who were caught trapped due to heavy torrential rains at their homes in the Pothuvil area. The army also joined hands with the Sri Lankan Navy with starting the evacuation process by sending more than 100 soldiers.


2018 Sri Lankan southwest monsoon floods, Response
The National Disaster Relief Services also donated 12.7 million rupees to the affected 12 district secretaries in order to address the issues of the affected people.


2018 Sri Lankan southwest monsoon floods, International response
Australia, UN - Australian government jointly with the UNICEF promised to raise funds as compensation during the monsoon period in Sri Lanka by signing a 3-year deal between 2018 and 2020 with the Sri Lankan government for AUD 750, 000.


2018 Sri Lankan southwest monsoon floods, International response
China - China and Sri Lanka signed an agreement on constructing tunnels to prevent flooding situation in Colombo in the future following the deadly floods.


2018 Sriwijaya F.C. season
The 2018 season was the Sriwijaya's 12th season in the club's football history. Along with Liga 1, the club will compete in Piala Indonesia. In the pre-season, Sriwijaya attended two competitions, 2018 Indonesia President's Cup and 2018 East Kalimantan Governor's Cup with resulted in third place and champion respectively.


2018 Sriwijaya F.C. season, Month by month review, November 2017
The team has announced former T-Team coach, Rahmad Darmawan as their new head coach. He is also Sriwijaya's former coach from 2007 season to 2009 season. Several players from previous season left the club as their contract terms came to their end and the club didn't renew their contracts. Esteban Vizcarra, Makan Konaté, Adam Alis, Alfin Tuasalamony, and Yogi Rahardian joined the club not long after the appointment of the new coach.


2018 Sriwijaya F.C. season, Month by month review, December 2017
The club started their training for 2018 season on 4 December 2017 without their head coach due to his pilgrimage to Mecca. As of 8 December 2017, 13 new players had been signed for Sriwijaya, including 2017 AFC Cup best player and former FC Istiklol player, Manuchekhr Dzhalilov. However, two Semen Padang players, Irsyad Maulana and Agung Prasetyo cancelled from signing to Sriwijaya due to them accepted their previous club's new contract. Alberto Gonçalves and Esteban Vizcarra applied for Indonesian citizenship and expected to be completed before the new season league. The club held two friendly matches with local clubs with good results.


2018 Sriwijaya F.C. season, Month by month review, January 2018
Several new players signed for Sriwijaya in January 2018, including ex-Borneo FC, Patrich Wanggai. The club also held one more friendly match with local club before heading to Java to hold two more friendly matches in Cilegon and Bekasi. Then, the team went to Bandung to compete in 2018 Indonesia President's Cup Group A with Persib Bandung, PSMS Medan, and PSM Makassar, booked their place in quarterfinal as the group leader with two wins and one loss.


2018 Sriwijaya F.C. season, Month by month review, February 2018
Sriwijaya went into President's cup quarterfinal against Arema FC in Manahan Stadium, Surakarta and won against them with 3–1 score. The team failed to proceed to the final after they lost against Bali United by 0-1 aggregate. Sriwijaya won the third place of the cup after they defeated PSMS Medan with 4–0 score.


2018 Sriwijaya F.C. season, Month by month review, February 2018
The team went to Balikpapan to attend 2018 East Kalimantan Governor's Cup in Group B with Persiba Balikpapan, Madura United, and Persebaya Surabaya. After having a win streaks against Persiba and Madura United, the team played their second team and lose against Persebaya 0-2 and booked the second place in the group and faced Borneo FC in Samarinda.


2018 Sriwijaya F.C. season, Month by month review, March 2018
On 2 March, Sriwijaya won against Borneo 5–4 in penalty shootout. In this match, Sriwijaya's wingback Marckho Meraudje was punched by two match officials on the corridor leading to the dressing room after being sent off by referee after a red card for his foul against Borneo player Abdur Rahman, sparking outrage from his club.


2018 Sriwijaya F.C. season, Month by month review, March 2018
On 4 March, Sriwijaya won 2018 East Kalimantan Governor's Cup after defeating Arema 3–2. Four days later, the throphy was brought to a parade in Palembang as the team came back from Kalimantan.


2018 Sriwijaya F.C. season, Month by month review, March 2018
On 25 March, Sriwijaya's first match was ended in an away draw against Borneo 0–0 in Samarinda. Under fears of the cup incident, the team played stagnantly in the first half of the match with little improvisation and predictable attack plans. The team situation improved in the second half with aggressive approaches and increased pace as the team spent less time in holding the ball and attacking more aggressively, but they can't score any goals.


2018 Sriwijaya F.C. season, Month by month review, April 2018
On 1 April 2018, Sriwijaya earned their first home victory against Persib Bandung 3–1. The first half marked by a sluggish start by Sriwijaya as the home stunned by Ezechiel N’Douassel in a counterattack, making Persib leads 1–0 against Sriwijaya. Two minutes on the second half, a long shot by Ezteban Viscarra equalised the score, then Sriwijaya leads the game 2-1 as Marckho Meraudje launched a strike to the upper left corner of the goal. Dzhalilov earned his first goal in the league as he ran onto Vizcarra's slide-rule pass before lifting his shot over Wirawan.


2018 St Albans City and District Council election
The 2018 St Albans City and District Council election took place on 3 May 2018 to elect members of St Albans City and District Council in England. This was on the same day as other local elections.


2018 St Helens Metropolitan Borough Council election
The 2018 St Helens Metropolitan Borough Council election took place on 3 May 2018 to elect members of St Helens Metropolitan Borough Council in England. This was on the same day as other local elections. It saw the Green Party get the biggest vote growth, However the only seat change was in Rainhill where an Independent beat Labour. Elsewhere UKIP's Vote share collapsed.


2018 St Kilda Football Club season
The 2018 St Kilda Football Club season was the St Kilda Football Club's 120th season in the AFL.


2018 St Patrick's Athletic F.C. season
The 2018 season was St. Patrick's Athletic F.C. 's 89th year in existence and was the Supersaints' 67th consecutive season in the top flight of Irish football. It was the seventh year that Liam Buckley is the team's manager (in his current spell), following replacing Pete Mahon in December 2011. Buckley resigned from his post as manager on 25 September with assistant Ger O'Brien taking over for the remainder of the season.


2018 St Patrick's Athletic F.C. season
It was the first year of the new format of the League of Ireland Premier Division where by there will be 10 teams playing each other four times, twice home and twice away. On 19 December 2017 the fixtures were announced with Pat's down to play champions Cork City on the opening day of the season on 16 February 2018.


2018 St Patrick's Athletic F.C. season, Squad, Squad statistics, Appearances, goals and cards
Number in brackets represents (appearances of which were substituted ON). Last updated – 28 October 2018


2018 St Patrick's Athletic F.C. season, Squad, Squad statistics, Captains
Last updated: 28 October 2018Source: Competitive match reports. Competitive matches onlyMatches started as captain onlyCountry: FIFA nationality; No. : Squad number; P: Position; Name: Player name; No. Games: Number of games started as captain.


2018 St Patrick's Athletic F.C. season, Club, Kit
Supplier: UmbroSponsor(s): MIG Insurance Brokers (Front of Jersey)Bill Griffin Motors (Back of Jersey)Flomax.ie (Back of Jersey)Greenisle Hotel (Sleeves)


2018 St Patrick's Athletic F.C. season, Club, Kit
The club released a new home kit for the season, with the away kit being retained from the 2017 season. During the season, a new limited edition third kit was released for the friendly game with Newcastle United.


2018 St. George Illawarra Dragons season
The 2018 St. George Illawarra Dragons season was the 20th in the joint venture club's history. The Dragons competed in the NRL's 2018 Telstra Premiership season.


2018 St. George Illawarra Dragons season, Gains And Losses of Squad 2018, Ladder progression
Bold – Opposition's Home gameX – Bye* – Golden point gameOpponent for round listed above margin


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season
The 2018 St. Louis Cardinals season was the 137th for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB), a franchise in St. Louis, Missouri. It was the 127th season for the Cardinals in the National League (NL), and their 13th at Busch Stadium III.


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season
Forbes ranked the Cardinals as the seventh-highest valued team of the 30 teams in 2017 for its $1.9 billion valuation (+6%), with a $319 million revenue, and $40 million operating income. The Cardinals also had baseball's second-highest local television rating, averaging 7.18 on FS Midwest. On September 29, the Dodgers beat the Giants, keeping the Cardinals out of the playoffs for a third consecutive season, a first since 1997–1999.


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season, Off-season, Overview, Busch Stadium update
The Cardinals removed several sections of seats in right field and began construction on a new mingling area like the ones at Coors Field (Colorado Rockies), and Petco Park (San Diego Padres). The area will have bars and open spaces from which to watch games, and it will be open to all fans at the ballpark. The Cardinals sold ticket subscriptions this past year, and such a mix zone in the ballpark would be a place to go for standing-room only. The area is scheduled to open with the 2018 season.


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season, Off-season, Overview, Busch Stadium update
The new space will be called Budweiser Terrace, renovating a 20,000 square feet (0.46 acres) area that cost the club 1,000 seats from six sections on the fourth level. In their place, they will be adding two full-service bars, standing areas, and lounge seating from which fans can still view the full playing field. This area will be used by live bands/DJs and for outdoor games, Cardinals Theme Ticket events and other pregame performances. Seating and lounge areas in the Budweiser Terrace will be available to fans on a first-come, first-served basis and will not require a special ticket for access. The renovations are scheduled to be completed ahead of the Cardinals' 2018 home opener on April 5. The website is: .


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season, Off-season, Overview, Injuries
Adam Wainwright was scheduled to undergo elbow surgery on October 3, 2017, for a bone bruise there; he will have a piece of cartilage shaved down. Doctors said he will need six weeks of recovery before beginning rehabilitation. He last pitched two innings in relief on September 23, 2017, before the Cardinals shut him down for the remainder of 2017. He finished the season 12–5 with a 5.11 ERA. Only eight of his 23 starts registered as quality.


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season, Off-season, Overview, Coaching staff changes
The Cardinals wasted no time making changes to personnel after the October 1, 2017, end to that frustrating baseball season with a third-place finish, their lowest since 2008. Pitching coach Derek Lilliquist and bullpen coach Blaise Ilsley were told on October 3, 2017, they would not be retained for the 2018 season. John Mozeliak, President of Baseball Operations noted that the organization would like to employ a pitching coach who is more willing to utilize advanced metrics and data compiled by the baseball operations staff.


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season, Off-season, Overview, Coaching staff changes
The Cardinals were among a growing number of teams to utilize an eight-man bullpen for the majority of the season, a move that came out of a league wide trend of starters not pitching as deeply into games. That has made in-game pitching decisions more complex and increasingly data driven. After posting a Major-League low 2.94 ERA in 2015, the Cardinals' team ERA jumped to 4.08 in 2016, and 4.01 in 2017. Those represented the club's highest season ERAs since Matheny took over as manager. Mozeliak said he expects the rest of manager Mike Matheny's staff to return in 2018.


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season, Off-season, Overview, Coaching staff changes
The exception to that is Ron "Pop" Warner, who stepped in as "quality control coach" when the organization underwent a midseason 2017 staff shakeup. Warner is likely to return to his previous role of assistant field coordinator. Bench coach for the past three seasons, David Bell, left the team on October 20, 2017, to become the vice president of player development for the San Francisco Giants.


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season, Off-season, Overview, Coaching staff changes
On October 23, 2017, the Cardinals announced that Jose Oquendo, 54, would return as third base coach, after a two-year hiatus in which he recovered from multiple knee surgeries and served as a special assistant to the general manager at the team's Roger Dean Stadium (Jupiter, Florida) complex. Before his March 2016 leave of absence, he served for 16 years in that same job title, and played the majority of his 12-year career with the Cardinals, 1986–95. Former centerfielder and 1985 NL MVP, Willie McGee, 58, joins the coaching staff for the first time, not yet given a job title.


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season, Off-season, Overview, Coaching staff changes
He was a special assistant to the GM in 2013, after an 18-year playing career; 13 with the Cardinals, 1982–90, 1996–99. He has become a regular guest instructor at Spring Training, and he made frequent visits to the organization's affiliates to assist with instruction. Mike Shildt, 48, has been promoted to bench coach from quality control and then third base coach in his 2017 position as a first-year coach, filling the vacancy left when David Bell accepted a job with the San Francisco Giants. Shildt previously managed for eight years in the Cardinals' farm system. Ron ("Pop") Warner will return to his role as assistant field coordinator.


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season, Off-season, Overview, Coaching staff changes
Three days after hiring their third base coach and bench coach, the Cardinals on October 26, hired long-time MLB pitching coach Mike Maddux, 56, older brother of Hall of Fame pitcher Greg Maddux. Mike Maddux was the Washington Nationals pitching coach for the past two seasons. The Cardinals also promoted AAA-Memphis pitching coach Bryan Eversgerd, 48, as their new bullpen coach, who has been a pitching coach for 15 years, including the last five with Memphis.


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season, Off-season, Overview, Player acquisitions and departures
On November 2, LH Zach Duke, RH Lance Lynn, Juan Nicasio, and Seung Hwan Oh elected to be free agents.


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season, Off-season, Overview, Player acquisitions and departures
On November 6, the Cardinals decided to give an unconditional release to RH (former) closer Trevor Rosenthal, making him a free agent. He was in recovery from Tommy John surgery from August, making him unavailable for most of the 2018 season. Rosenthal was under team control for 2018, but the Cardinals would have had to pay him a salary well beyond what he would be able to pitch.


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season, Off-season, Overview, Player acquisitions and departures
Other moves from the 40-man roster included removing SS Alex Mejia and C Alberto Rosario both outrighted to the AAA-Memphis Redbirds, bringing the roster down from 36 to 34, with Rosenthal on the 60-day disabled list. The Cardinals put a higher value on keeping a roster spot open for the coming season and this winter. They have a handful of prospects that must be added to the 40-man roster to be protected from the Rule 5 draft. The deadline to do that is November 20, 7pm CT.


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season, Off-season, Overview, Player acquisitions and departures
As expected, the Cardinals tendered a qualifying offer to RH starter Lance Lynn, 30. The one-year, $17.4-million deal will be rejected by Lynn as he enters free agency. It does mean that the Cardinals will secure a compensatory draft pick if Lynn signs with another team. That pick will come after the second round. Shortstop Paul DeJong is one of the top three vote-getters for the National League Rookie of the Year award. No other free agents with the Cardinals were offered a qualifying offer. Lynn has until 4pm CT on Thu.


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season, Off-season, Overview, Player acquisitions and departures
November 16 to decide whether to accept or decline the qualifying offer. He is expected to decline. If he signs elsewhere, the value of his new contract would not be a factor in determining the slot of that Competitive Balance Round B pick. He made a team-high 33 starts in 2017, finishing with an 11–8 record and 3.43 ERA. His home run rate (1.3 per nine innings) and walk rate (10.1 percent) were career highs, but Lynn's durability and career 124 ERA+ should make him one of the more attractive free-agent starters. Lynn rejected the qualifying offer, and became a first-time free agent, one of nine players in MLB who also rejected the $17.4 million one-year offer.


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season, Off-season, Overview, Player acquisitions and departures
The Cardinals receive a Competitive Balance Round A draft pick (#39), assigned between the first and second rounds because of the reverse order in the standings from the 2017 season. They will also pick #19 in the first round.


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season, Off-season, Overview, Player acquisitions and departures
The Cardinals added four players to the 40-man roster before the 7pm CT deadline on November 20, to protect them from the Rule 5 draft, bringing the roster to 39. The categories are: 19 pitchers, 2 catchers, 9 infielders, and 9 outfielders. Protected are three in the team's Top 20 prospects: RHP Derian Gonzalez (22), LHP Austin Gomber (24 on Nov. 23, 2017; #15 prospect), plus two OF's: Tyler O'Neill (22; #4 prospect), and Oscar Mercado (22, #18 prospect).


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season, Off-season, Overview, Player acquisitions and departures
The most notable player left unprotected by the Cardinals is corner infielder Patrick Wisdom, who slugged .507 with 25 doubles, 31 homers and 89 RBIs for AAA-Memphis last season. He will be available for Rule 5 selection, along with Daniel Poncedeleon, Matt Pearce, Trey Nielsen, Andrew Morales and others. Wisdom has been passed over in the Rule 5 Draft before. O'Neill was acquired in a Trade Deadline swap with the Seattle Mariners in July 2017, and the former third-round pick finished the year with 31 homers and 95 RBIs at the Triple-A level.


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season, Off-season, Overview, Player acquisitions and departures
O'Neill has a career .850 OPS in the Minors. Gomber was a fourth-round selection by the Cardinals in the 2013 MLB Draft, he went 10–7 with a 3.34 ERA, 1.168 WHIP and 140 strikeouts over 143 innings at Double-A Springfield in '17. Mercado was drafted as a shortstop in the 2013 MLB Draft, he became a full-time outfielder for the first time in 2017. He coupled a smooth defensive transition with his best offensive season, slashing .287/.341/.428 with a .769 OPS in 120 games with Double-A Springfield. Mercado, then followed with a standout showing in the Arizona Fall League.


2018 St. Louis Cardinals season, Off-season, Overview, Player acquisitions and departures
Gonzalez went 4–7 with a 4.33 ERA in 18 games (15 starts) for Class A Advanced Palm Beach last season. In 79 innings, Gonzalez struck out 72, walked 30 and posted a 1.37 WHIP. The Cardinals signed Gonzalez as a non-drafted free agent out of Venezuela in September 2012. Eligibility for the Rule 5 Draft is dependent upon how old a player was when he signed with the organization. Players who signed at the age of 18 or younger become eligible after five seasons. Those who were 19 or older have four years before they must be protected. This year's Rule 5 Draft is scheduled for December 14, the final day of baseball's Winter Meetings in Lake Buena Vista, FL.