The maiden finals of the National u-17 Cricket Championship came to a glorious end on Sunday 29th September 2019 at the Cricket Oval, National stadium package B, Abuja with South-South as runaway winners. The tournament which saw 5 zones in participation started on Friday 27th September after a zonal elimination series successfully concluded across 5 geo-political zones of the country. Proud partners and Sponsors of the tournament Pricewaterhouse Coopers were also present every day of the tournament which began with a press conference on the 26th of September at the Media center, package A of the National Stadium.

FINAL MATCH: SOUTH-SOUTH vs SOUTH WEST

The final match saw two giants with dominant performances so far in the tournament squared up against each other. Both teams had defeated North West, North Central and South East on their way to this game to stage a winner takes all encounter. South-South who had shown dominance over the last 12 months in women’s cricket in the Nigeria were clear favorites, but the narrow win of 10 runs against South East, gave the South West team a glimmer of hope.
Clear skies, bright Sunday afternoon, South-South won the toss and elected to bat scoring a massive total of 114 runs for the loss of 2 wickets in 15 overs.

 

Igbinedion Victory scored 32 runs off 44 balls, strongly supported by Peace Monday with 29 runs off 28 balls (not out) and Captain Ogechi George with 23 runs off 21 balls.

During the innings break, the Federation also used the opportunity to conduct a mini coaching clinic for schools in attendance. 4 schools participated in the clinic and were put through the basic drills of bowling, bating and fielding.

In the second innings, South West could barely produce a decent partnership and batsmen crumbled like pack of cards to the superior fire power of the South- South bowlers. In the end, South West could only manage a meager score of 30 runs for the loss of 9 wickets in 15 overs.

South-South won by 84 runs and crowned champions of the tournament.

The event was attended by representatives of PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), sponsors of the tournament and led by Mr. Tolu Adeleke.

 

President of the Federation Professor Yahaya Adam Ukwenya , represented by Mr Patrick Erimona, Board member of the Nigeria Cricket Federation, delivered a heartwarming speech on behalf of the board, extending her immense gratitude to PricewaterhouseCoopers for their sponsorship of the tournament. He also thanked every participating zone in the tournament, wishing them safe journey back home.

 

The highlight of the tournament was the presentation of winners and 2nd place Medals, individual and team awards.

FINAL AWARDS
• South-South—————————1st Position
• South West—————————- 2nd Position

INDIVIDUAL AWARD CATEGORIES

• Best Batsman————————–Ogechi George (South-South)
• Best Bowler—————————-Oni Sunmisola (South West)
• Best Fielder—————————-Peace Monday (South South)
• Most Valuable Player—————Peace Monday (South –South)

ZONAL AWARDS

• South-South————————–Edo State
• South East—————————-Ebonyi State
• South West—————————Oyo State
• North Central————————Niger State
• North West—————————Kaduna State

The Boys tournament is scheduled to take place from the 3rd to 6th of October 2019 in Abuja.