Fresh off the inaugural hosting of the West Demerara edition, the third annual Guinness Greatest of the Streets East Coast of Demerara tourney was officially launched yesterday at the Banks DIH Limited Boardroom.
The event, which is programmed to begin on March 18th at the Haslington Tarmac, will feature 16 teams competing in an initial group format. Following the conclusion of the round robin stage, the top two teams from each group will advance to the knockout stage.
Defending champs Melanie-A will lead the participating cast which also comprises Ann’s Grove Punters, Buxton, Beterverwagting (BV)-A, BV-B, Church Yard United, Golden Grove Superstars, newcomers Haslington, Mahaica, Melanie-B, Nabaclis, Paradise, former champs Plaisance-A, Plaisance-B, Victoria Eagles and Vryheid’s Lust.
Winners of the event will receive $300,000 and the championship trophy while the second place side will collect $150,000 and the runners-up accolade. The third and fourth place finishers will collect $100,000 and $75,000 respectively.
Guinness Brand Manager Lee Baptiste during brief remarks said: “Banks DIH under the Guinness brand is very proud and thankful for the overwhelming support we’ve gotten to-date and we want to assure all that the Guinness in the Streets tournament is here to stay”.
He further thanked the Petra Organization for their efforts in helping to shape the tournament into the success that it currently is.
Petra Organization Co-Director and Tournament Coordinator Troy Mendonca echoed the sentiments shared by Baptiste noting “The Petra Organization is proud to be associated with the event and that the pleasure comes from the support demonstrated by patrons and the exuberance by players on the field of play”.
He noted the event allows for the generating of camaraderie within the community and amongst the communities in friendly sport while thanking once again the players and patrons for making the event a success.
