Prima Champions Cup cricket tourney begins on September 10

Sanjaya ARIYARATNE

The Prima Group, in partnership with Sri Lanka Cricket announced its sponsorship of the Prima Champions Cup 2008, Under 15 District Cricket Tournament for the second consecutive year which will be staged from September 10 to October 25, 2008 at 14 different venues in the island. The final round is scheduled to be held in Colombo.

This was revealed at a press conference held at SLC Headquarters on Tuesday. The tournament is organised by Sri Lanka Cricket and powered by Prima Nutrition is titled ‘Bringing the Champions out’ with the objective of recognising young talent as well as inspiring them to become national level cricketers.

All matches will be umpired by the officials of the Sri Lanka Umpires Association, with the best players being judged by the National Coaching Panel.

A total of 24 teams from 21 Districts will be competing in this event. The teams from as far as Vavuniya, Trincomalee, Ampara and Moneragala also have been entered the fray this time, along with other District teams.

The preliminary rounds will see the district teams competing with each other, at the provincial level with the best teams qualifying for the quarter finals. This gives all participants an equal chance to compete as well as showcasing a wider array of talent.

Speaking on this occasion Arjuna Ranatunga, Chairman, Sri Lanka Cricket said, under 15 age category is the best stage to start the game and from that phase onwards it is easy to groom them into top players in the coming years.

He also thanked Prima Group for coming forward to sponsor this tournament generously and he hopes they will continue with their sponsorship for the next few years as well.

He added that school and district level cricket is the stepping stone for youth to embark on future careers in cricket at both the club and national levels.

In our efforts at promoting school cricket, we need to keep in mind that our cricketing talents lie in the rural areas as well as the towns and the cities.”

The tournament will play under seven groups.

The teams from Matale, Kurunegala, Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa have drawn in group ‘A’ which will be held in Welagedara Stadium. Colombo South ‘A’ and ‘B’ with Colombo North ‘A’ and ‘B’ teams will compete in Group ‘B’. The group ‘C’ comprises Galle, Matara and Hambantota district teams. Vavuniya, Batticaloa and Trincomalee districts have drawn in Group ‘D’. Group ‘E’ consists Kandy, Kegalle and Nuwara Eliya.

Group ‘F’ comprises Gampaha, Puttalam, Kalutara and Ratnapura districts while Badulla, Ampara and Monaragala will play in Group ‘G’.

All the players who are taking part in this event will be provided with Prima cricketing gear which includes a cricket bag, cap, and t-shirt. In addition umpires and coaches will also be provided with t-shirts and caps.

Apart from the gear, Prima will be providing lunch and snacks to all participants throughout the tournament In addition sponsoring the Under 15 tournament, Prima will also conduct coaching camps for Under 13 players, under the direction of SLC, for the second consecutive year. This will help to build the

necessary skills of young developing cricketers.

A total of 23 coaching camps were held last year and an equal number or more are being planned for the future under the guidance of Sri Lanka Cricket who will be providing the coaches and resources.