Goya festive tournament grows
Koketso Kgoboge | Thursday January 7, 2016 12:06
Assistant Minister of Education and Skills Development, Moiseraela Goya sponsored the football tournament in Palapye to the tune of P80,000. The tournament was first played in 2007 and is meant for teams from Palapye and surrounding settlements of Dikabeya, Makoro, Sajwe and Lemone.
The sponsorship package included prize money of P45,000, kits worth P30,000 and medals worth P5,000.
A total of 40 teams participated in the tournament, with 18 teams battling it out in Palapye, four competing in Lemone, six in Dikabeya, seven in Makoro and five in Sajwe. In Palapye, Khurumela were crowned champions and walked away with P9,000 and their runners up Dikwana got P6,000, Thabane won P1,700 in Makoro while Lemone FC retained their title on home turf bagging P1,900. Dikabeya FC were also crowned champions on their homeground and won P2,500.
The top four teams in Palapye will be joined by champions from the settlements for a Top 8 tournament later this year.
Goya, who is also Member of Parliament for Palapye, said the tournament has grown tremendously since inception.
“The tournament has grown in leaps and bounds since 2007 from a mere eight teams tournament to now a 40-team spectacle. It has also grown from a P10,000 tournament to a massive P80,000 tournament and I anticipate it will grow and grow with time,” he said.He added that the tournament was not politically motivated.
“When I started this tournament it wasn’t for political mileage. The main objectives of the tournament were rather to address issues of drug and alcohol abuse and to reduce accidents around Palapye and its surroundings during the festive season by keeping the dwellers of these areas busy,” he added.
The tournament’s organising committee secretary general, Molefhi Obenne said the tournament has significantly contributed to football development in the area. “This tournament has come as a blessing for the Tswapong regional football.
This is where unknown, raw talent is spotted. We have over the years noted that various clubs affiliated to the Botswana Football Association attend this tournament and scout for talent during these games and a lot of youngsters who have participated in this tournament are now playing official league matches in different divisions,” Obenne said.