From Seyi Tayese, Yenagoa
The Bayelsa State Government has said it would continue to sustain the Governor’s annual grassroots football tournament to consolidate the gains achieved so far from its inception till date.
The Deputy Governor, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, gave the assurance on Thursday at the end of the third place matches in both the male and female categories of the 2025 Bayelsa Governor’s Cup, decided at the main bowl of the Samson Siasia Stadium in Yenagoa.
Senator Ewhrudjakpo, who spoke at the ceremony through his Deputy Chief of Staff, Comrade Gowon Toruyouyei, said government would in collaboration with its sports partners organize the yearly tournament to discover more young, budding football talents in the state.
While emphasizing that sports development was one of the pillars on which the Prosperity Assured Agenda stands, he identified sports as a veritable channels through which the government has been engaging youths of the state to dissuade them from social vices in society.
Senator Ewhrudjakpo informed that through the grassroots tournament, several highly talented young players had been discovered, some of whom have made their way outside the shores of Nigeria pursuing their professional careers in soccer.
The Deputy Governor, who applauded the Director General of the Central Organizing Committee, Mr. Ono Akpe, and members of his team for competently coordinating the tournament, extended the state’s appreciation to corporate organizations for partnering government to bankroll the soccer fiesta.
His words: “I want to also use this opportunity to profusely commend the Chairman and the members of the Local Organizing Committee for their high level of competence in midwifing the largest grassroots football tournament in Nigeria, that featured over 200 teams from across the eight LGAs of the State.
“As you are all aware, sports development is one of the key components of the Prosperity ASSURED Agenda being driven by the Governor Douye Diri-led Administration in Bayelsa State, and football in particular, is very dear to the heart of the Governor.
“Beyond the passion for football, the Bayelsa Governor’s Cup is a tool for engaging the productive energies of our youths, taking their time and attention off cultism, drug abuse and other destructive social vices in society.
“This is why the Bayelsa Governor’s Cup has become a regular landmark event in the sports calendar of the state.”
Also speaking at the event, Hon. Ebizi Ndiomu-Brown, representing Sagbama Constituency 3 in the state House of Assembly, said the female footballers had made the state proud for their superlative performance in their third-place match.
According to her, the future of female football was bright in Bayelsa, even as she encouraged the participants and other young girls to work harder to climb to the pinnacle of their career in women football.
In the first third-place match, Bayelsa Stars Queens FC defeated Bayelsa State College of Nursing (BYSCON) FC by two goals to one to grab the third position, while in the male category, Crusaders FC of Peretorugbene trounced Bayelsa United Feeders FC 4 – 1 to grab the bronze medal.
A total of 231 teams registered and participated in the 7th edition of the Bayelsa Governor’s Prosperity Cup in both male and female categories in what has evolved into the largest grassroots football tournament in Nigeria.
