Stars celebrate yet another milestone
EAST London Central Local Football Association senior citizens Star of India will be celebrating a unique milestone when they host a prestigious tournament this week at the North End Stadium to celebrate their 115th Anniversary.
The tournament is dedicated to the late Bobby “Siva” Vasi, the club’s former president. This tournament is of special significance as it has been organised to commemorate the extraordinary achievement by a club with a rich football legacy.
The game at North End has grown significantly and this is much due to the dedication and sacrifices of a number of Stars individuals throughout the years at club and Border boardroom level such as Siva Vasi and the late Trevor Augustine who were synonymous with the club.
Current president Warren Vengadajellum now wears the moniker of “Mr Stars” with great pride. He is also the current vice-president of East London Central LFA.
The club also produced a number of great players all in the legends’ mode over the years such as former Bafana Bafana great Brendan Augustine, Malcolm Francis, Roger and Cedric Timothy, the late Allery Bennett and the late Andre Botha and Gary Vengadajellum among others.
Stars hosted the first ever iconic Easter Tournament at North End Stadium in 1951 which was then known as the Joseph Jimmy Memorial Easter Football Tournament in tribute to one of their players who died on the North End football field in the 1950s.
Later it became popularly known as the annual Easter football tournament – an amateur 16-club competition played over that weekend and which grew in stature with the top sides from the major centres in South Africa hankering to enter.
Stars was one of the chief advocators of the non-racial movementduring the apartheid era.
This week’s five-day anniversary football tournament involves a 12club senior as well as an eight-team U16 knockout event.
Vengadajellum said that preparations was well on track. “The senior tournament shall include five visiting sides and seven of our top East London Central club affiliates’, said Warren Vengadajellum.
PE-based Shamrocks, Rangers and Blackpool, Durban-based Wentworth Classic, Breidbach’s Hellenic together with Central affiliates Prides, Buffalo City Sports Academy, Swaraj, Riverside, Seagulls, Parkside United and the hosts will battle it out for the senior prize.
The sides have been split into four groups of three teams with the top two advancing to the quarterfinal championship knockout event. The bottom sides in each group will battle it out in the plate event.
The draw took place last Thursday evening at the North End Clubhouse and provided some interesting drawcards. The host has been drawn in the group of death comprising of archrivals Prides and PE’s Shamrocks – arguably three of the oldest LFA clubs nationally.
Current premier league champions Swaraj will face fierce rivals Parkside United and PE-based Rangers and East London Central’s top premier league side Riverside have tricky encounters against NoelMein Cup champions Buffalo City Sports Academy and Durban’s Wentworth to contend with. CC Lloyd darlings Seagulls, PE-based Blackpool and Breidbach-based Hellenic round off another fascinating crowd-pulling group. The tournament commences today with the U16 KO event and concludes on Monday at the North End Stadium.