…As Rockford
College Emerges Lagos Champion with 7-0 win
32 schools
from across the federation have entered into the regional stage of the 2016
U-15 Copa Coca-Cola tournament, just as Rockford Junior College, Ikorodu
emerged winner of the Lagos grassroots finals.
At the
Legacy pitch of the National stadium where the match was played, Rockford had a
fantastic outing, defeating rival team, Jibowu Junior School 7-0 to make their
way into the next stage of the competition. It was a highly tactical match as
the Rockford boys dominated all through the game scoring seven sensational
goals.
Commenting
on the match, the Marketing Director, Coca-Cola Nigeria, Patricia Jemibewon
expressed her delight at the display of football skills by the teenagers,
noting that Coca-Cola would continually provide platforms that support teenagers’
passions.
Jemibewon
said that, “Coca-Cola is committed to the overall development of young
Nigerians, especially teenagers, and research has shown that, beyond being just
a sporting activity, Football plays a huge role in the development of teenagers
because of the values they learn from playing, which include determination,
friendship, hard work, and responsibility. All of these skills are useful for
the future, hence; Coca-Cola is committed to promoting the game of Football
among teenagers.”
Some of the
ex-international Football stars, including Victor Ikpeba, Tajudeen Disu and
Henry Nwosu commended Coca-Cola for expanding the scope of the Copa Coca-Cola
competition to accommodate more participation.
According to
Ikpeba, “Many of the Football stars you see today began their careers from
competitions such as this. Expanding the scope of the competition to
accommodate 60,000 players is really huge and very commendable, and I am happy
to be a part of a platform that is transforming grassroots Football in
Nigeria.’’
For his
part, the representative of the National President, Nigerian Schools Sports
Federation (NSSF), HRH Dairo J. Olutayo remarked that Coca-Cola’s involvement
in Nigerian grassroots football has created opportunities for thousands of
talented teenagers, giving wings to their passions.
Basking in
the excitement of the moment, 13 year-old Abatan Lekan of Rockford College
enthused, “Although, this is the first time we are participating in the
tournament, but we came into the game with the mindset to nail all our games.
It was not easy playing five matches on the road to the finals, but our
determination spurred us on.”
The 32
qualified schools will be grouped into 8 regions; West, Middle Belt, South,
East, South East, North West, North and North Central, out of which 8 teams
will compete for the trophy in Lagos at the National finals.
Part of the
highlights of this year’s competition is the coaching clinic that precedes the
group matches. The clinic will be conducted by ex-international football stars.
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