A total of 26 teams that emerged champions at the local government levels will from today begin hostilities as the zonal stage of the third edition of the Delta State Principals’ Cup takes centre stage in 10 different venues in the state.
All secondary schools in Delta State were involved in the competition from the preliminary stage which started in October 2018.
The zones with three teams each will produce just one winner while eight teams will come of the process as quarterfinalists for the ongoing edition.
Head of the Organizing Team for the competition, Tony Pemu, said yesterday that all was set for the zonal elimination series slated for between January 21 and January 25.
“It gets tougher as we go on but we are all set in every area of the operations to ensure a smooth running of the tournament. Everything is set. The schools have also been working hard to excel and move into the final stages,” Pemu said.
The Zenith/Delta Principals Cup organizer shed more light on how the eight quarterfinalists will emerge at the end of the zonal series.
“We have just eight zones but 10 centres in the zonal series. Some centres are A and B where only one team will come out. We have been very transparent with all the fixtures and our operations. All the teams are allowed to be part of it,” Pemu added.
At the Hussey College, Warri, Ughelli North champions will tackle Burutu LG winners while at the Ughelli Township Stadium, Ndokwa West Champions will take on the winners of Bomadi Local Government.
In other matches billed for today, Oshimili North champions will clash with Aniocha South at the Pilgrims Baptist Grammar School while Aniocha North and Ika North East will lock horns at the Adaigbo Secondary School, Ogwuashi-uku.
Also at the Oleh Township Stadium, Winner of Udu Local Government and Ughelli South will trade tackles just as Warri South West and Sapele LG winners will battle for honours at the Army Barracks, Effurun.
Quarterfinal matches will be decided on January 28 and 29 while the dates and venues of the semi and final matches are yet to be determined by the organisers.
Delta State Commissioner for Basic Secondary Schools, Chiedu Ebie, has charged all players of the respective teams to be of good conduct on and off the pitch
NCF Hosts Rwanda Female National Cricket Team on a Bilateral Tour
The Nigeria Cricket Federation (NCF) is scheduled to host the Rwandan Female National Cricket Team on a one-week Tour of the country from Wednesday January 23rd to Wednesday January 30th 2019. This is the first time ever they will be coming to Abuja.
The Tour is the first leg of a bilateral international friendly series between both countries and would take place at the newly constructed wicket pitch inside the National Stadium in Abuja. The return leg is schedule for June 2019 in Kigali.
President of the Nigeria Cricket Federation, Professor Adams Yahaya Ukwenya, yesterday described the development as a major achievement for Nigerian cricket and a pointer that the strides being made back home by the federation were been noticed across the continent.
“The relationship we have with Rwandan Cricket is the first of its kind for Nigerian cricket and it is mutually beneficial. We are looking forward to extending it in all ramifications, by exploring different ways we can leverage to grow the game; on the field, including technical and the management capacities for both federations. We also hope the effect would impact the growth of the game across the continent,” he said.
In preparation for the Tour, the Nigeria female national team has been camped in Kaduna State for the last three weeks for players to jostle for slots in the team that will engage the Rwandan team in the six encounters scheduled during the visit.
Vice President of NCF, Uyi Akpata, stressed that the Rwandan Tour of Nigeria provides an opportunity for the national female team to be tested in skill and depth ahead of the busy schedule they have this year.
“We had 24 players camped in Kaduna with the full technical team to train, select and possibly inject newness in the national female team that we are preparing for major events later in the course of the year”
To shore-up credibility of the encounter, the NCF has also invited technical officials from Ghana to be part of the technical team for the Series. The Ghana Cricket Association has also acknowledged and confirmed availability of their officials for the Series.
Among other things, the Rwandan Tour will also be a boost for the growing interest in the female cricket across the country with 25 states currently involved in grassroots development as well as active participation at intermediary and senior level.
Most of the players presently in camp for the Nigeria’s team are drawn from the National youth games for U-15, The National U-17 girl’s championship and that National women’s championship across the country.
The Rwandan Tour of Nigeria will see the visiting team take on the home side on six different occasions. The 6-match series will consist of two (2) ODI 40 overs matches and Three (3) T-20 matches.
The Nigeria National Female team has also been invited for the first time by the International Cricket Council (ICC) to take part in the ICC Women’s World Cup Africa Qualifier later in the year in Zimbabwe.
