Football and volleyball enthusiasts in Meru County were thrilled by classical skills displayed by various teams that participated in North Imenti Constituency ball game tournaments under the patronage of area MP Rahim Dawood.
The tournament kicked off on Saturday and ended Sunday where teams from various corners of the constituency were represented.
While addressing the media, Mr Dawood said he was impressed by the talents displayed by the participants adding that there was need to hold more of such events not only to identify them but also to have ways of nurturing them.
“I am very happy to see that our young people have got great talents that can lead them even to participate in international events. We need to sit down as stakeholders and find a suitable way of having these talents nurtured and transformed to sources of income for our young people,” said Mr Dawood.
Unlike usual tournaments where football is the only game that is emphasised, Mr Dawood also enlisted volleyball teams in the tournament who also attracted many fans from all over the county.
The MP said despite the fact that the National Government Constituency Development Fund (NGCDF) directing that sports should no longer be sponsored by the fund, he will seek other partners who will sponsor such tournaments in future to give young people a platform to display their prowess in sporting activities.
“I am already engaging various partners who will in future be sponsoring these tournaments so that we can also keep our young people busy and deter them from engaging in unlawful activities,” said Mr Dawood.
Mwiteria volleyball club won in the men category while Sports club, Gitimbine and YMCA took position two, three, and four respectively.
In the women category, Gachanka carried the day while in men’s football, Al Azizia and RCC participated in the finals and had to go up to penalties after ending up in a draw of 0-0 in the normal time.
However, a disagreement arose between the two teams over a disputed penalty and therefore an outright winner could not be determined at that time.
In all the categories, the winners took home Sh100,000, while position two, three, and four got Sh60, 000, Sh40,000 and Sh10,000 respectively. All the participating teams were given full kits which include t-shirts, shorts and socks.
By Dickson Mwiti
