Defending champs Showstoppers head into quarter-final action tonight

ALL roads lead to the Pouderoyen tarmac tonight when the quarter-final round commences in the Guinness ‘Greatest of the Streets’ West Demerara/East Bank Demerara championship from 19:00hrs at the Pouderoyen tarmac.

The opening quarterfinal will pit Jetty against Up-Top-Bosses, with Bagotstown Warriors engaging Brothers United in the second quarterfinal. In the third fixture, ESPN will take aim at Ballers Empire, with Showstoppers tackling former champions West Side Ballers.
According to an official release, tournament coordinator Travis ‘Zoti’ Bess stated, “Every quarterfinal game should be gruelling where no inch will be given and no yard will be taken. Everyone will be looking to get the upper hand over his opponent to get into the semifinal.

The first quarterfinal will be attack versus defence, whereby Up-Top-Bosses is a more offensive team and Jetty is more organized defensive unit. The game should feature some of Guyana’s brightest stars in Delon Lanferman, Leo Lovell, Kevin Dundas and Amoniki Buntin, while Jetty have the services of former national goalkeeper Oswald Cornett.”

“Next we have Brothers United against Bagotstown Warriors. Basically this is an open game which is hard to call, but Brothers United have experience in Andrew Murray Jr, siblings Adami and Gadi Hoyte, while Bagotstown are a relatively unknown team. The acquisition of Shaka Jones for Bagotstown has provided a wealth of experience heading into the knockout round.”

“This is one of the games of the night in ESPN versus Ballers Empire which is a rematch of last year’s quarterfinal that was won by ESPN. According to Ballers Empire, they are prepared for ESPN this year and all the challenges they pose. This is a clash of styles in offence and defence. ESPN have been more threatening and consistent than everyone else in the event.

ESPN comprises basically a mixture of past and present national players in Pernell Schultz, Trevon Lythcott, Dennis Edwards and Dwayne Lindie, while Ballers Empire possesses emerging talents in Jamal Hamilton, Quincy Dos Santos and Seon Alfred.”
“The feature game of the night is a clash featuring former winners West Side Ballers against current champions Showstoppers. Since the inception of the event, the record is 1-1 in two meetings and this year is expected to be a very exciting one.

Both teams are very offensive-minded, and the team who will defend better will win. Showstoppers will have Marvin Josiah, Dexroy Adams, Trayon Bobb, Stephon Jupiter and Kayode King. On the other hand, West Side Ballers will depend on Quessey Alleyne, Dwayne St. Kitts, Kevin Frank and Morgan Denny. Basically all four quarterfinals are expected to be exciting.”
The event, which is the first of the annual season, features 16 teams battling in an initial round-robin format.

The top two finishers from each group will advance to the quarter-final round. Winners of the event will collect $500,000 and a trophy, while the runners-up will receive $250 000 and the corresponding accolade.

On the other hand, the third- and fourth-place teams will pocket $200 000 and $100 000 respectively and a trophy. The other playing dates are February 1, 6, 8, with the final scheduled for the 15th.