Renown-Multilac Inter-Schools Under-10 National Football Carnival, a grand success
View(s):Sri Lanka’s first-ever Under-10s football tournament in the history of over 100 years of schools football, the final stage of the Renown-Multilac Inter-Schools Under-10 National Football Carnival, was held at the Racecourse ground in Colombo last weekend.
More than 1500 boys and girls from all parts of Sri Lanka, participated in the final stage of the first ever Under-10 National Football Carnival, sponsored by Renown Footbal Academy and Multilac Paints. The teams played on eight pitches setup for a 6-a-side match, where all players named in the squad were guaranteed an opportunity to play, according to tournament guidelines and rules.
For those who were present at the Racecourse ground last Sunday, it was more than a competition, as it was a platform for the little kids to showcase their talent. Even the rainfalls, which came scattered during intervals, was not a bother for the youngsters, who played with great passion and enthusiasm in front of their supporters and parents present at the venue.
The tournament was played under a friendly atmosphere sans overall champions as it was a football carnival but organisers rewarded the group champions and runners-up with trophies and certificates, while all participants received a valuable certificate of participation. The tournament organisers, made sure all participating youngsters got an opportunity to showcase their talent in the ground where the national football team plays their international matches.
Renown Football Academy, one of the main sponsors of the event, invited their men’s national players Fazal Naizer, Kavindu Ishan, Dilip Peiris and Mohammed Aakib as well as their women’s national players Parami Rajapaksha, Praveena Perera and Imesha Warnakulasuriya for the opening ceremony to inspire the youngsters, and they were enthralled to see the presence of the national stars.
Multilac Paints, the other sponsor, arranged a large canvas for the kids and all visitors to paint on, which was a great attraction throughout the day with all who contributed with painting receiving a Multilac cap. The tournament was organised by the Sri Lanka Schools Football Association under the supervision of Ministry of Education.
Vincent Sritharan Peeris, the President of Renown Football Academy stated that he was honoured and contended to come forward to sponsor this historic event and give the Under-10 National Football Carnival a slot in the annual event of Sri Lanka schools football calendar.
“I was thrilled to see so many young girls and boys showcasing their football skills and that there is so much talent in the country. We will take further steps to create a pathway for these young kids to develop and hopefully shine through football,” he further stated.
“We are committed to nurturing dreams and fostering the spirit of sportsmanship as the next generation of football stars take centre stage. We are indeed honoured to be a part of this, and we pledge our support in the coming years as well,” a representative of Multilac stated.
The chief guests of the opening ceremony and prize ceremony were V. Sritharan Peeris, President of Renown Football Academy, Rachel Peeris, the Director, Renown Women of Renown Football Academy, Ismail Hussain, the Chief Operating Officer of Multilac, Mihiran Opatha, the General Manager, Sales of Multilac, Upali Amarathunga, the Director of Sports, Ministry of Education, Ruwan Pathirana, the Assistant Director of Sports, Ministry of Education, Bandara Leelarathna, the President of Sri Lanka Schools Football Association and Pubudu Paranagama, the Secretary of Sri Lanka Schools Football Association.
