By Michaelangelo Jacobus
Last night, the Guyana Hockey Board (GHB) launched its Farfan & Mendes men and Woodpecker Products Limited, women’s first division field hockey leagues at the Providence National Stadium.
It was no ordinary launch as it is the first time that hockey was being played under floodlights and at the venue used more for cricket and football events.
Gracing the occasion was Minister of Culture, Youth & Sport, Charles Ramson Jr., who issued a challenge to the hockey fraternity that challenge being the expansion and decentralization of the sport.
Whilst delivering the keynote address, the minister declared, “It’s a great pleasure to be here to share in the launch of the GHB’s first-division leagues.”
During his address, Ramson Jr., urged the Guyana Hockey Board to consider an expansion plan.
“What I would like to see is the hockey fraternity focusing on an expansion plan. The government will be sharing that commitment with the GHB, to take the sport nationally,” he declared.
According to the sports minister, as part of the National Sports Academy’s core sports, there is a sum of money that is allocated to hockey every year, adding that the GHB could access those funds at any time.
“I am confident that hockey has the potential to, but cannot move forward in the space that it occupies now.
“I therefore issue a challenge to existing clubs to go out there and help establish new teams on a countrywide scale. We at the ministry will make the commitment of supplying all the necessary hockey gear for the new clubs once you the existing clubs help to sustain and nurture the new and upcoming clubs”.
“What I would like to see in the next two years, are 12-15 different teams from various parts of Guyana instead of teams from the five or four clubs that we have now”.
He closed off his address by extending gratitude to the National Sports Commission (NSC), the stadium’s management team, the Guyana Defence Force (Marching Band) and his own ministry for the support of the GHB’s historic launching of its first-division leagues under floodlights.
The leagues, which got underway last evening will run every Sunday at the National Stadium, with its semi-finals slated for Saturday (November 11) and the finals on November 12. Matches will begin at noon on match days. Among the participating teams are the men and women’s teams from Old Fort, GCC, Hikers and Saints.
