POONAI Pharmacy will sponsor the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club (RHTY&SC) U-13 team, one of Guyana’s leading youth and sports organisations, for the second consecutive year.

Proprietor Poonai Bhirooj decided to renew the sponsorship he started in September of last year, when he had handed over the sponsorship cheque to the club’s Patron, His Excellency President David Granger.
Secretary/CEO of the club, Hilbert Foster, was delighted with the sponsorship since the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) has been organising cricket tournaments for players at the Under-13 level.

Foster, who is also the president of the vibrant BCB, hailed the contribution of Bhirooj, whom he described as a role model and friend to every RHTY&SC member.
Since the formation of the Under-13 team, players such as Jonathan Rampersaud, Mahendra Gopilall, Jeremy Sandia, Matthew Pottaya have gone on to play for either Berbice or Guyana. Additionally, the team has been actively involved in more than 60 self-developmental programmes under sponsorship.

These include monthly pensioners project, feeding of the poor, cricket academy and hampers for senior citizens.
According to a release from the club, the Poonai Under-13 team serves as a nursery for the Rose Hall Town (RHT) Farfan & Mendes Under-15 team and Assistant Secretary/CEO Simon Naidu noted that the team had already gone through the semifinals of the BCB Da Silva Under-13 tournament.

The Matthew Pottaya-led team defeated Albion Community Centre outright, obtained first-innings points from Kendall’s Union and held Port Mourant to a draw after losing first-innings points. As runners-up in Zone B, they would play Blairmont Community Centre, winners of Zone A in a semifinal at the D’Edward ground.

The RHTYSC, Naidu proudly stated, has been the dominant club in Berbice during 2018, having won eight major titles and being runners-up in two others at the Under-15 and Under-21 levels.

The Poonai’s Under-13 team is under the management of veteran RHTY&SC executive members Keith Hicks, Ravindra Nauth Kissoonlall and Tyrone Pottaya with Naidu as the team coordinator. National Under-15 players Jonathan Rampersaud, Mahendra Gopilall and Jeremy Sandia serve as mentors. Matthew Pottaya is the captain while Nelroy Hicks serves as his deputy.

Bhirooj, in a brief response, stated that he enjoys a close relationship with the RHTY&SC and has always admired its outstanding work.
He urged the team to develop a culture of discipline and hard work while he praised them for being good ambassadors of his company’s brand.
The sponsorship is worth $150 000.