NAMILCO U17 playoffs: All set for final game today

The Guyana Football Federation-NAMILCO Thunderbolt Flour Power Under-17 National Academy Playoff winner’s trophy was unveiled on Friday at the NAMILCO Headquarters on the East Bank Demerara.
The December 1 presentation ceremony was attended by NAMILCO Finance Controller Fitzroy McCloud, GFF Competitions Director Troy Peters, Berbice Football Academy Head Coach Lennox Adams and Team Captain Sherwin Charles.
This much-anticipated cup final is scheduled to be played today at the Georgetown Football Club (GFC) Ground on North Road. The winner’s trophy will be claimed by either the Upper Demerara Football Academy or the Berbice Football Academy. The game between the East Bank Football Academy and the Bartica Football Academy would decide who gets the third and fourth place trophies.
GFF Competitions Director Troy Peters, in confirming the GFF’s readiness to rollout the final day of competition in the National Academy Playoff, said: “The Federation is fully prepared to execute the final match day of the Guyana Football Federation-NAMILCO Thunderbolt Flour Power Under-17 National Academy Playoff. Players and coaches alike are enthusiastic, and the fans are eagerly anticipating their teams’ battles for the top four spots.”

Meanwhile, players from Upper Demerara and Berbice have spent the last week attending intensive practice sessions, and both teams would be striving for victory on the field on Saturday.
Berbice Head Coach Adams shared that his squad is “very, very excited!”
“We’re preparing for it! We’re looking for a victory. We took one game at a time, and at this point we’re happy to be here, and we want to make our ATC one of the best in the country,” he said.
A confident team captain Charles underscored his coach’s resolve by adding: “It’s the first time (we’re) playing Linden, and it’s going to be a victory for Berbice. There will be a lot of Berbice people out there to support (us), and we aren’t going to let them down either!”
Upper Demerara Head Coach Order Bovell asserted that his players are “focused, and practice session has been great. The players are showing that they need it, and we are ready,” he declared.
His vice-captain Joshua Fleming boldly stated, “The team is putting everything they have into practice. Come Berbice, upper Demerara is ready!”
The NAMILCO Thunderbolt Flour Power Under-17 National Academy Playoff has been established as a platform for Guyana’s emerging young talents to showcase their skills and earn recognition for the national team programme. The tournament kicked off on October 7 with teams placed into two groups. Group A consisted of Georgetown, East Coast, East Bank, the National Under-15 Team, and Berbice; while Group B comprised Upper Demerara, Essequibo, Bartica and West Demerara.
Following the round-robin phase, the top-performing teams from each group secured their places in the championship round.
GFF President Wayne Forde has expressed gratitude to NAMILCO for supporting the Federation’s vision for youth development, and extended well wishes to the four teams competing on Saturday.
“We’ve witnessed weeks of intense football from our up-and-coming talents. I want to thank NAMILCO for believing in our youth development programme, as well as the players, coaches, parents and fans, for their commitment to making this playoff a success,” he said.
The GFF top official has reiterated his call for fans to attend the games and rally behind Guyana’s aspiring young stars. Opening match on Saturday kicks off at 1:00pm, and the final match is slated for 3:00pm.