St Michael West Central is already back in the swing of community football.
Belfield will come alive with football fever again as the St Michael constituency honours former national player and coach Ras Sipho Onifa with two tournaments culminating on Errol Barrow Day on Monday.
Member of Parliament James Paul announced the launch of the Ras Sipho Masters Classic and a Youth Soccerama yesterday at his constituency office in Grazettes.
“Football in St Michael West Central is something that is very big and we have had a lot people over the years who have participated in it, like Ras Sipho, who has helped a lot of young people through football,” he said.
“He is a household name in the sport in this community so they have come together to honour him on his birthday and recognise his accomplishments and impact on football.
“We also realize that sport is a way of galvanizing the attention of young people in a very positive way and we want to emphasize that, and if we don’t mobilize this talent then we will be failing ourselves miserably,” Paul added.
Beginning tomorrow night at Belfield, the Masters’ Classic – which is expected to field sides like Notre Dame, Wadadah and Empire – will feature eight teams split into two zones playing on a round robin basis. Each half will be 25 minutes.
The top two sides from each zone will advance to the semi-finals, and the winners will play in the final slated for Monday.
The eight-team, nine-a-side soccerama tournament will also be played on that day, with the final preceding the masters’ title game.
“I want to give thanks to James Paul for an initiative like this as sports on the whole help to bring the communities together because sports is a way out in life,” said Ras Sipho Onifa.
“It’s all about the community and the community-based clubs used to help us back when I was playing, so I believe Barbados should get back to having those community clubs, but you have to love the sport first.” (JM)
