By Mohamed Jaward Nyallay
The Independence Day trophy is set to start today at the National Stadium where four teams will be playing for a trophy and a Le100 million-prize money. Organizers say the competition is a way of uniting the country through football during the independence celebrations.
Sierra Leone will mark its 58 Independence anniversary on April 27, the day it regained self-rule from Britain.
The group organizing this football competition is the Independence Family, which is made up of former players, managers and other football stakeholders. This is the maiden edition of the competition, and the organisers want it to be an annual event.
“We found out that we don’t have any sporting activity to mark the Independence, so we thought it fit that having a traditional gala every year will be good to bring everyone together,” said Junior Bio, one of the organizers.
Bio is a former footballer and a leading member of the organizing committee of this year’s event.
The four teams who will participate in this two days football gala are Kamboi Eagles, FC Kallon, East End Lions and Mighty Blackpool.
This competition comes just in time for the resumption of the second phase of the Sierra Leone Premier League. A number of teams are planning to use the competition as a spring board for their final preparations for the national league. This is a sign that the teams are taking the competition very seriously.
The Team Manager for Kamboi Eagles, Ali El Ali aka Aliloma said they are in town to win the trophy and set the tone for their performance in the second phase of the Premier League.
“We want to win this trophy and send a message to all the teams for the second leg. Once we win this competition we will push on and win the premier league,” Aliloma said.
Kamboi Eagles are facing FC Kallon in the opening fixture Thursday afternoon. A win could see the Eagles face East End Lions or Mighty Blackpool in the finals on April 27th, Independence Day.
FC Kallon played East End Tigers in a friendly last weekend, a match that has been regarded by many as a double preparation for the Independence Day trophy and the Sierra Leone Premier League.
There have however been questions surrounding the invitation of just four teams and the criteria for selecting the teams. Organizers explain that three of the teams have the largest following in the Western Area and they needed a team from the regions to participate.
“We took into consideration the stature of FC Kallon, Lions and Blackpool and decided that we need a team from the region to balance the competition. We made a ballot and Kenema were fortunate,” explained Bio.
The Independence Day trophy is the first silverware of the season. This competition will not just be about celebrating the Independence, it will also be about bragging right and a dress rehearsal for what is about to come in the second leg of the Sierra Leone Premier League.
(c) 2019 Politico Online
