Robert France will be looking to lead his men to the title once moreAroydy Branford will be a main player in Hikers’ quest for a 7th title
By Romario Samaroo
Since the tournament began in 2004, Pepsi Hikers have won the title six times and in the 13th edition of the Guyana Hockey Board’s (GHB) Diamond Mineral Water Indoor Hockey Festival scheduled for November 24-27, the top local male side is looking to make it seven.
Speaking with Guyana Times Sport, Captain of the Hikers team, Robert France after winning the GHB/GTT Indoor Hockey Tournament (IHT) last Sunday said “The next stop is the Diamond Mineral Water League where international teams will be coming in.”
With six previous titles along with a championship win in the Lucozade IHT and an undefeated run in the GTT IHT, France went on to explain that they are at the top of their game and will be representing the host country with their best, heading into the Festival with “Brute force and Ignorance”
Reflecting on the 2015 edition of the festival where Hikers were dethroned by Canadian team 6IX Men, France pointed out the fact that they “were lacking practice but this time we putting in the works and we going all out,” adding that the plan will be to take the festival “one game at a time.”
France was not hesitant to call on the big guns in the squad heading into the Festival. Young talent, Aroydy Brandford who is an attacking player, Randy Hope, Jamarj Assanah, Andrew Stewart and others make the team one of the more formidable teams in the competition.
This year, the stakes have been tripled with a cash payout of US$3000 for the winners of the male and female divisions and US$500 for the Veterans.
With three divisions in the festival, male, female and veterans, a total of 17 teams, including both local and international, have been confirmed to participate with time and space for more teams to join the festival. Registration fee per team in the male and female categories set at USD$400 while the veterans’ teams are required to pay US$200 each.
Returning to the tournament are four time winners, Canada’s Toronto Hockey who will be spare headed by past Most Valuable Player (MVP) on multiple occasions, Jonathan Roberts which includes gold medal winners from the Canadian team who participated in the last Pan American Cup in Uruguay. Last year’s runners-up, Trinidad and Tobago’s Queens Park Hockey Club (H.C.) and debutants, Ball Washers out of Washington, USA will both be looking for success. Also in the mix are, 2012 winners Toronto Academy, Carib H.C., Malvern H.C. and the top local sides, Old Fort, Bounty GCC, Pizza Hut GCC and others.
The Diamond Mineral Water Indoor Hockey League will be played at the home of Indoor Hockey, the National Gymnasium, Mandela Avenue from November 24-27.
