Central braced for explosive action
Ex-Bluebells and North End football great, Mark Alexander, who sponsors the highly popular East London Central Local Football Association Premier Top 8 competition, has promised this season’s event will be the biggest ever.
The association will host the sixth edition of the competition at North End Stadium this weekend. The Premier Top 8 is the first North End senior football event of the season, and involves the top eight Central premier league sides based on last season’s log-standings.
Premier league champions Star of India were the first winners of this event in 2014, before Riverside went about dominating the competition, winning it three years in a row (20152017), until Seagulls ended their domination last season when they triumphed 4-2 in the final against DiRoma.
Alexander, who is currently on a working assignment in Papua New Guinea, has roped in ex-East Londoners and North End faithful Tatiana Alexander, Devlin Ekstein, Shane Christians, Jade Botha and East London-based Mr and Mrs Jones as sponsors of this prestigious competition.
“The sponsors have pledged their support towards this remarkable football institution that has played such a pivotal role in the upbringing of so many of us over the years. We all have fond memories of North End, and it is our contribution in sustaining the legacy of this proud diverse communitybased structure,” said Alexander.
“We will host an exciting weekend of football, which will include razzmatazz entertainment and an exciting Youth Goodwill fixture between the EL Central U15 squad that reached the finals of the 2018 Kimberley-based Sol Plaaitjies LFA Interprovincial Inter-LFA Tournament and the Bush Bucks U15 Academy squad.”
A bumper first round of cup ties is anticipated on Saturday, which will include a Vodacom league fixture involving Duncan Village-based Birmingham City and PE Stars at 3pm.
Premier Top 8 champions Seagulls are the outright favourites to defend their crown, but will have a tricky first round tussle on Saturday evening at 6.30pm when they face the three-time Premier Top 8 champions and 2014 cup finalist, Riverside.
The “blue train”, as Riverside has been dubbed, has appointed former club captain Reiner Frazer as their new head coach since the departure of the association’s most successful club coach, Kelly Smith.
Last season’s losing finalist DiRoma cross swords with Parkridge-based and 2016 cup finalist Swaraj at 5pm in another highly anticipated, riveting cup-tie.
Dark-horse Pride of India, who were a Top 8 finalist in 2015, take on Parkside United at 1pm, and the 2014 Premier Top 8 champions Star of India lock horns with Newlands-based Napoli in the early Saturday encounter at 11.30am.
On Sunday, the semifinals of the event are scheduled at 9am and 10.30am, followed by the Goodwill U15 fixture between an East London Central representative side and Bush Bucks Academy. The third and fourth place playoffs is scheduled for 1pm, and the 2019 Premier Top 8 final will kick-off at 2.30pm.