Rivers, Bayelsa Basketballers Battle For Zonal Ticket, Today

Team Rivers Female Basketballers will encounter Bayelsa State today in the finals of the on-going zonal elimination competitions of the maiden National Youth Sports Festival scheduled to hold next month in Lagos State.

Team Rivers Basketball Coach Dagogo Okumgba, who disclosed this in a telephone interview with Tidesports in Port Harcourt yesterday said that the female team defeated their Bayelsa counterparts to qualify for the finals.

According to him, the team embarked on a screening exercise at the Zonal elimination camp in Calabar, saying that, the screening was to reduce the number of athletes to nine, both male and female.

They alleged that my athletes were over aged, but for sure I want to the camp with over 20 athletes but they were reduced to nine, four male and five female”, he added.

However, finals of the female and male team is expected to hold today in Calabar.

Meanwhile, Rivers athletes have promised to emerge winners at the finals.

It would be recalled that four team events went for the elimination which include handball, basketball, volleyball and hockey.