Organizers of the U-17 male and female Taiwo Afolabi football competition have explained the reasons why the tournament involved grassroots clubs among the Southwest states of Nigeria.
The coordinator of Lagos State Grassroots Soccer Association, Taofeek Ajibbola told Journalists over the weekend that the cup donor as well as Chairman of SIFAX Group of Companies, Dr. Taiwo Afolabi who would clock 60 years on April is well known in Southwest and it would not be good to involve only clubs in Lagos in this year’s edition.
“We should not forget the fact that the cup donor is not only known in Lagos but entire Yorubaland and secondly some club owners from Southwest state wrote a letter to us that they were interested in our competition and we took the matter to officials of the sponsor and they gave us the approval to accommodate them,” he said.
Ajibola said 32 grassroots clubs from both categories would arrive in Lagos to take part in the preliminary stage knockout format which kicks off this weekend at the Gbagada Roundabout football pitch, Lagos.
According to him, only 16 qualified teams from both categories among the Southwest clubs would join 32 teams from Lagos teams to make it 48 teams that would play in the competition proper. The competition proper would commence 19th February to determine the clubs that would progress to the next stage of the tournament.
Action resumes in the preliminary stage this Saturday as Soccer City from Oyo faces Bamise God from Ogun State. On Sunday, Adeoba FC from Ijebu- Ode would face Ultimate FC from Ibadan
