Despite being plagued by the shortage of grounds, the Guyana Hockey Board’s 2011 season is set to get cracking this Friday with the start of the premier men’s Farfan and Mendes first division league.
Seasoned campaigners Georgetown Cricket Club will do battle with the youthful Old Fort side in the tournament opener at the GCC ground, Bourda, starting at 16:45 hours. Both teams are eager to go into action following a delay to the season owing to the unavailability of key hockey venues earlier in the year.
The youthful Old Fort side will feature experienced national midfielder Aderemi ‘Dove’ Simon as well as sturdy defenders Dwight Sullivan, Dwayne Allen and nippy playmaker Chris Low-Koan as well as the youthful duo of Kevin Melville and Richard Heyliger.
GCC’s strongman in defence Dwayne Scott will once again provide his expertise in marshalling his team’s defence.
Also expected to be in the line up are Orlando Semple and Kevin Spencer who are determined to restore the club to its former dominant days in the early 2000s when GCC was a regular feature in the winner’s row.
The tournament will continue the following week with a clash between defending champions Hikers against the youthful under-21 national squad who will be making their first appearance at this level of competition. The GHB decided to include the under-21s in this year’s competition in order to provide them with the much needed match practice as they prepare for the Pan American Hockey Championships in 2012, President of the GHB Philip Fernandes disclosed.
This has been done in the past and the junior sides have enjoyed solid performances against their senior rivals. This year’s edition of youths intends to better their predecessors with a tournament victory when all the dust has settled.
Young Stephen Xavier, Shaquille Assanah and Eric Hing are the three
remaining players who made the last junior national team in 2008 and together with recent national debutant Reon Brandford will be eager to showcase their skills. Nationals Shane Samuels, Robert Fernandes and Robert France however will spearhead a Hikers side which has a wealth of experience being the most travelled team in the past several years and remain favourites to retain the trophy.
Apart from the coveted Farfan & Mendes Trophy, the winning team of this competition earns the opportunity to represent Guyana at Pan American Club Championships in Jamaica this coming November which features the top club teams in the Americas. Meanwhile, the John Fernandes Insurance second division competition will get cracking next week with several matches.
The competing teams are Old Fort, GCC, Ladies, Hikers, Dragons and Carib All Stars formerly Degenerates.
