… Seating accommodation being made for fans

IT’S a fact that the street football phenomenon, known as the Guinness ‘Greatest of the Streets’ competition, is the most anticipated event in the shorter version of the sport, and the 9th Edition is shaping up to provide a wonderful experience for the fans.

The Guinness brand under Manager Lee Baptiste has every intention to make this year’s national playoffs as inclusive as possible and all the stops are being pulled out to ensure that the tournament’s legacy is enhanced and made secure.

Organiser Banks DIH has attempted every year since the tournament’s inauguration to improve some aspect of the experience for the fans and players and this year’s national playoffs will be bigger and better.

Last year saw the introduction of colourful uniforms and balls in keeping with the new trend seen internationally and, apart from a duplication of that effort, the organisers are planning to make seating accommodation available for fans so that more persons could share the wonderful experience of witnessing the games.

Teams have begun to intensify preparations and as usual the quality on display over the three nights is nothing short of fantastic.

With the Bartica Zone just concluded and its representatives decided, players now have the opportunity to showcase the talent of that community against the more established communities of Georgetown, East Coast, Linden and West Demerara and the early whispers are that the newcomers will adequately acquit themselves, judging from the performance of zone winner Disconnection Crew who have a few Brazilians in their lineup.

They will definitely want to prove something against the opposition and vindicate their presence in the tournament.

Linden’s Dave & Celena All Stars who became the first team outside of Georgetown to win the national Guinness will no doubt be aiming to prove that last year’s performance was no fluke, while the Georgetown entries will be looking to reclaim lost glory.

Then there are the dark horses from the other communities who are yet to stamp their authority in the big tournament; but just as the reigning champions showed, the gap is closing among all the teams.

This year could prove to be a blockbuster extravaganza and one that fans will truly enjoy.

At this point it is anyone’s guess what will be the outcome of this tournament with all the teams raring and ready to rumble.

The tournament opens on July 27, at Pouderoyen tarmac, West Demerara and then moves to Haslington tarmac, East Coast Demerara on July 1, before the final showdown set for July 4, at the Guyana National Stadium.

The teams that have qualified are listed below:

Georgetown: Gold is Money (champions), Sparta Boss, Leopold Street and Bent Street.

East Coast: Uprising (champions), Paradise, Melanie-B and Buxton Diamond.

West Demerara: Showstoppers (champions), ESPN and West Side Ballers

Linden: Silver Bullets (champions), Dave and Celina’s All-Stars (National champions) and Swag Entertainment.

Berbice: Trafalgar (champions)

Bartica: Disconnection Crew (champions)