27 January 2014, Lagos – A mouth-watering sum of N8 million has been set aside as prize money for the winners of this year’s edition of all secondary schools NNPC/Shell Cup football competition.
Speaking at a media chat at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos, SPDC’S General Manager, Communication, Dr. Philip Mshelbila, said the overall champion will be rewarded with N3.8 million, the runner up gets N2 million while the third place team will smile home with N1 million.
He also added that the 10 best products of the NNPC/Shell Cup championship will be awarded the JV’s secondary school scholarships. “These students will commence from where the students are in their secondary school journey. On completion of their secondary education, they will be eligible to compete for JV university scholarships,” he said.
Mshelbila noted that the NNPC/Shell Cup has become one of the leading youth grassroots football championships and a regular annual fixture in Nigeria’s educational and sport calendar, stressing that 16 years after its inauguration, the tournament has transformed into a successful reference point for sports development through schools.
He added: “We believe that by its inclusive nature, the NNPC/Shell Cup, being a national competition, has helped to reduce incidence of students dropping out of secondary schools to pursue professional football careers. The successes of a number our alumni have proved that football and education can indeed go hand in hand,” he noted.
Meanwhile, the state finals are slated between February 13 and 14, while the zonal preliminaries are billed to hold in the following nine centres of Yenagoa, Osogho, Benin, Lokoja, Jaalingo, Ilorin, Katsina, Enugu and Akure between February 25 and March 1. The quarterfinals matches are fixed for Port Harcourt, Shagamu, Minna and Kaduna from March 12 to 15, while the semi finals, third place and final is slated between May 2 and 4 in Lagos.
– This Day
