By Kizan Brumell

The opening of the third annual Fruta Conquerors organized NAMILCO Football Festival unveils tonight with what is expected to be an intriguing double header which kicks off at 6pm at the Tucville playfield.

Flashback! Alpha United’s captain Leon Grumble receives the NAMILCO Trophy from CEO Bert Sukhai (centre) after winning the tournament at the Providence National Stadium last year.

Uprising will go head to head with last year’s third place finisher Sunburst Camptown in the curtain raiser while Pele will meet Riddim Squad in the feature showdown to decide which two teams will move on to the next round.

Riddim Squad replaces 2008 champions, Alpha United, who will not be defending their crown because they indicated that they were not invited to participate. This makes it certain that a new champion will be crowned in the eight-day tournament which will run over a three-week period.

Last year, Alpha United defeated BK International Western Tigers 2 – 0 in the final while the hosts, Fruta Conquerors, lost to Sunburst Camptown 1 – 2 to claim third place at the Providence National Stadium.

The tournament’s first place prize money has been significantly increased from last year so  this year’s winner will take home $500,000 while the other top three finishers will have $200,000, $100,000 and $50,000 respectively.

The match schedule is:
Oct 23 – Uprising vs. Camptown vs. & Pele vs. Riddim Squad
Oct 25 – Bakewell Buxton Stars vs. N/A United & BV Triumph vs. Western Tigers
Oct 28 – Fruta Conquerors vs. GFC & Sewall FC vs. Victoria Kings
Oct 30 – Santos v. Top XX &GDF vs. Buxton United.
Nov 4 – Quarterfinal No. 1
Nov 6 – Quarterfinal No. 2
Nov 11 – Semifinals
Nov 13 – Final & Third place showdown