Oil giant ExxonMobil, in collaboration with the Petra Organisation and the Education Ministry, has set out to establish Guyana’s first Schools’ Under-14 football league.
The competition, which will cater to both boys and girls, is expected to kick off on June 2 and will conclude by the end of July.
With over 20 schools in and out of Georgetown already on board, the male and female competitions are scheduled to run concurrently with both boys and girls playing on a split field.
Petra Co-Director Troy Mendonca receiving the sponsorship cheque from ExxonMobil’s Kimberly Brassington
Petra Co-Director Troy Mendonca is of the view that ExxonMobil’s sponsorship would allow the organisation to fill a void between the pee wee and senior school competitions.
“For one, ExxonMobil is on board and I think their contribution and support will now fill a void that we’ve been fighting for over the past three to four years, in terms of filling the gap between our Under-11 and our Under-18 tournament,” Mendonca stated.
Mendonca also disclosed that they were looking at having 24 male teams as opposed to eight female teams.
ExxonMobil Public and Government Affairs Guyana Senior Director Kimberly Brassington noted that the company was elated to be on board with such an initiative, stating, “We are lucky as a company; ExxonMobil is proud to be here. And while it’s the inaugural U-14 Tournament, it’s also ExxonMobil’s first instance in sponsoring football.”
Additionally, the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) Youth Development Coach Brian Joseph revealed that this competition would pave the way for larger competitions to come later in the year.
“This particular tournament is going to serve as a real good platform for some things that we’re going to have later in the year,” Joseph said.
The Federation is expecting to participate in the Under-14 Caribbean Football Union (CFU) male and the Under-15 CONCACAF female championships.
With regard to the female competition, Joseph stated that this Under-14 event would create a great pool of female players who have been difficult to identify in the past.
So far, a total of 23 schools have expressed interest in the competition: Annandale Secondary, Marian Academy, Christ Church Secondary, Chase Academy, Dolphin Secondary, East Ruimveldt Secondary, Lodge Secondary, Mae’s Schools, St George’s Secondary, Friendship Secondary, Kingston Secondary, Vergenogen Secondary, Queenstown Secondary, School of the Nations, Uitvlugt Secondary, South Ruimveldt Secondary, St Rose’s High School, Tutorial Secondary, the Bishops’ High School, Charlestown Secondary, Ann’s Grove Secondary, Buxton Youth Developers, and Tucville Secondary.
