… GFF approval given as Mid Atlantic Oil and Gas Company to sponsor the first prize

SYSTEMS are falling into place for the return of the Annual Mayor’s Cup 9-a-side Inter-Ward/Village knockout football tournament after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The tournament, organised by former national footballer and coach Lennox Arthur, has been held for some 40 years now and is in recognition of former Mayor of Georgetown, Hamilton Green, who is also a former Prime Minister of Guyana. The current Mayor of Georgetown is Mayor Ubraj Narine.

The event gets underway next Sunday, March 27, with the opening salvo of matches fixed for the Buxton ground on the East Coast of Demerara from 17.00hrs. The tournament is set to conclude on Sunday April 24 at the Buxton ground with the quarter-finals, semis, third-place playoff and grand finale.

At stake are prize money and the respective trophies, with a first prize of $600 000, second prize $300 000, third $200 000 and fourth $100 000 on offer.
Mid Atlantic Oil and Gas Company has committed to providing the winning purse of $600 000 and organiser Lennox Arthur has expressed his pleasure with the company for coming on board.

A number of other business entities have also signalled their intention to aid the event and among them are: IPA, DDL, Digicel, Johil, John Fernandes, General Equipment, Busta, GTT, NAMILCO, Macorp, New Thriving, Sattar Gafoor, B. Megan, Pritipaul Singh, Ready Mix, Eddie Bobcat, Silvie’s, Caribbean Containers, E Networks, SuperBet, Cummings Electrical, China Trading, Dave Lumber Yard and Schlumberger.

Arthur expressed gratitude for all the help he has received so far from the sponsors and those who will come on board.
He noted assistance was much needed following the recent COVID-19 pandemic and is heartened by the return of football and other sports.

He thanked the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) for their approval of the event and noted that many fringe players will be on show along with a few standouts, adding flavour to the event and giving fans the chance to see some of the talent available.

The recent lifting of some COVID-19 restrictions will see the return of fans to the games.
The tournament fixtures, rules and teams competing have been recently released and the teams have ballooned to some 48. games will be played at the Buxton, Georgetown Football Club and Den Amstel grounds on March 27, Buxton April 3, FGC April 10, Den Amstel April 17 and Buxton April 24.

Among some of the teams involved in this Inter-Ward/Village setup are: West Demerara – Den Amstel, Uitvlugt, Pouderoyen, Stewartville, Wales, Sara Lodge, West Side Masters, Belle West All Stars and Back Street Kings.
East Coast – Mahaica, Brush Dam, Buxton Youth Developers, Melanie, Ann’s Grove, Golden Grove, Beterverwagting (BV), Victoria, Plaisance, Lillendaal and Turkeyen.
Georgetown – Charlestown, Campbellville, Bourda All Stars, Road Warriors, Tucville and Sparta Boss.
East Bank – Timehri, Mocha and Agricola.
Berbice – New Amsterdam, Mahaicony and Airy Hall All Stars.
The rules governing this tournament that make it interesting and exciting are the no-offside rule and teams are allowed five substitutions. The games are 20-minute halves for a 40-minute duration.
The tournament is a straight knockout one with no extra time being played. A tie at the end of regulation would result in the teams duelling in the dreaded sudden-death, penalty shootout.
All other FIFA rules apply and the referee is the sole authority of these games. Teams, who show up late beyond a reasonable time determined by the organisers, will be disqualified and their game forfeited via the walkover route.

The opening games on March 27 at Buxton will see Mahaica against 50 United, Church versus Golden Grove, Victoria battle Melanie, Buxton Youth Developers tangle with BV, Friendship Front oppose Paradise and Brush Dam take on Haslington.

The respective winners of these matches will tangle in further elimination action to determine who will advance.

The next playing date; April 3 is set for GFC and will see Timehri versus City Strikers, Soesdyke against Liliendaal, Kuru Kururu battle Turkeyen, Mocha engage Plaisance, Ann’s Grove tackle Agricola and Diamond face Belle West Stars.

The winners will again do battle in a playoff to see who will move forward.