GCI To Feature In Under-16 South West Hockey Foundation Tournament

The 5th Edition of GCI Quandrangular Hockey Competition, now rebranded as Under-16 South West Hockey Foundation Tournament has been scheduled to come up between Wednesday, 21st of November, 2018 and Saturday, 24th of November, 2018 at the Main-bowl of Lekan Salami Stadium, Adamasingba, Ibadan by 9.00am daily, as announced by Yemi Siyanbola (1991), the GCI Hockey Team Coach.

The tournament, aimed at creating a structural programme from the grassroots levels to the professional stage developing both the players and technical officials of the game, in addition to the hockey competition will have a seminar on 'Effective Management of Education and Sports in Adolescent Stage' which will be delivered by Dr Theophilus Joshua.

The Oyo State Honourable Commissioner of Youth and Sports, Barrister Abayomi Oke will be the Chief Host of the event. The Chief Host and former Hockey player expressed his pleasure over as he extolled the organisers of the event for bringing it to the Pacesetter State. He mentioned it that it would be a thing of joy to have the tournament in Oyo State as it would boost the morale of the students, keep them mentally alert, and enable them to know that one can equally become great in life being a hockey player just like professional footballers. He further reiterated the unflinching support of his office toward the success of the event.

The participating schools are drawn across hockey playing secondary schools in the six south-western states of Nigeria. They are Government College Ibadan, the defending champion; Aquinas College, Akure, Ondo State, and Ado Grammar School, Ado - Ekiti, Ekiti State. Others are Nawardeen Secondary School, Obandolo, Ogun State; Okemagba Junior High School, Epe, Lagos and St. Mark Commercial Grammar School, Osogbo, Osun State.

It would be recalled that the first four editions were hosted in Ibadan by Government College Ibadan, who also won the last two editions.