TWENTY-FOUR teams drawn from Georgetown, East Coast Demerara, West Demerara and Linden will contest the inaugural Hamilton Green Knock Out Cup Football Tournament, scheduled to get underway on June 17.
According to organiser of the event, former national player and coach Lennox Arthur, the Cup replaces the Mayor’s Cup tournament, which ran for more than two decades when Green was Mayor of Georgetown.
He no longer holds that office, hence the Hamilton Green Cup was adopted and, hopefully, it will be played annually, with attractive cash prizes at stake.
The tournament gets underway with a double-header card at the Victoria ground, and will see Buxton Bakewell tackle Mahaicony in the opener, while Golden Grove will face Herstelling in the feature event.
The following day, Uitvlugt of West Demerara take on Kuru Kururu, and Den Amstel oppose Soesdyke. Both matches will be played at the Den Amstel ground, West Coast Demerara.
On June 24, the Victoria ground will then host another double-header, with Mahaica battling New Amsterdam United in the opening game and Ann’s Grove clashing with Couigars.
On June 25, the tournament will shift to the Mackenzie Sports Club ground, with yet another double-header, and the feature game brings together Mile Rock and Riddim Squad, while the opening game will be between Silver Shattas and Police.
The winning team will receive $700 000, while the other top three teams will earn $300 000, $200 000 and $100 000 respectively.
According to the rules, only teams that are affiliated to the respective associations will be allowed to participate.
The tournament is an invitational one and clubs are not required to pay an entrance fee.