MARGAO
The five-day tournament will see participation of six teams and several international players who have donned the India colours at both junior and senior levels. The chairman of the organizing committee, Elvis Gomes, has worked overtime and drawn plans to ensure a capacity crowd will witness the match. “There is excitement all around south Goa fans not wanting to give it a miss. The wooden stands have been erected and everything is ready,” declared Gomes. He further said that the Cuncolim Union has created a unique opportunity for the people of Goa to see some of the best volleyball players of India in action.
Besides the lung opener between Cuncolim Union and ONGC Dehradum in Group A, the opening day will also see a Group B fixture between Haryana Police and Punjab Police. Besides Cuncolim Union and ONGC Dehradun, the other team in Group A is SC Railways Hyderabad. Group B comprises of Indian Income Tax alongside the two police teams. The winners of the tournament will be awarded Rs. 1,00,000 along with the trophy while the runners-up will get a purse of Rs 75,000.
A third place finish will fetch Rs 40,000 and there will also be individual prizes given away to the best performers in the competition. The competition may also see the presence of Indian boxer Manoj Kumar who will grace the final as a special invitee for the finals of the tournament.
FIXTURES: May 2: Match 1 - Cuncolim Union vs ONGC Dehradun, Match 2 - Haryana Police vs Punjab Police; May 3: Match 1 - Indian Income Tax vs Punjab Police, Match 2 - ONGC Dehradun vs SC Railways; May 4: Match 1: Haryana Police vs Indian Income Tax AP, Match 2 - Cuncolim Union Goa vs SC Railways Hyderabad; May 5: Semi-finals; May 6 - Finals.
