Principal’s Cup: Lagos Targets U-17 Players

Organisers of the ongoing Lagos State Principal’s Cup have declared that the focus of the championship this year is on players under 17 years.

Mrs. Babs Akinyeye, Director, Co-curriculum Service, Lagos State Ministry of Education, said that schools taking part in the Principal’s Cup have been warned not to use players above the stipulated age, adding that erring schools will be suspended.

“The era of using mercenaries is over in the Principal’s Cup. All the participating schools are aware of the new rule and they have all agreed to abide by it. The focus this year is on players under 17 years, because this is an age grade tournament that we should use to discover young talents,” she said. Akinyeye said the organisers are concerned about the players’ age so that the objective of the competition will not be defeated.

“The objective of the tourney is to allow these students to showcase their talent. We don’t want cases of age cheats because we believe that the Lagos Principal’s Cup should be an avenue where coaches of the Golden Eaglets can discover players,” she said.

Meanwhile the state draws for the competition will hold on 26 January, while the state preliminaries will be played from 30 January to 3 February.

The semi final of the annual school soccer tournament will hold on 8 and 9 February at centres which will be announced during the draws ceremony.