Mayor Uy throws full support to football grassroots dev’t program

By City Information Office- Tagum

CITY OF TAGUM, DAVAO DEL NORTE - Mayor Rey T. Uy extended his administration’s full support to the country’s search for the next best football players in time for the kick-off of the National Football Grassroots Development Program undertaken by the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) here last April 22, 2012 at Energy Park, Barangay Apokon, Tagum City.

Speaking to journalists and media men during the press conference prior to the start of the games, the local chief executive stressed the importance of engaging the youth in sports to keep them busy.

Mayor Uy underscored the importance of the strong commitment by local government units to sports development, saying that LGUs play an important role in the training of the future athletes who will compete in national or even international sports competitions.

Venues for training, he said, are very important and cited that under his watch, the City Government of Tagum has provided suitable training grounds like the Energy Park and the Rotary Park which housed the city’s major sports and recreational facilities.

“No matter how we train our kids if there are no available spaces for training, our efforts will be futile.” On Sunday, the vast fields of Energy Park developed by the local government in Barangay Apokon played host to the PFF Suzuki U23 National Cup where Compostela Valley’s Comval Gold went head-to-head with the Tagum Palm City Booters representing the province of Davao del Norte.

Comval Gold reigned supreme against the Tagum Palm City Booters during their duel with the score of 3-2. The said competition is dubbed as the local adaptation of the AFF Suzuki Cup, the highly-celebrated football competition organized by the ASEAN Football Federation for football competing national teams in the Southeast Asian Region.

Several kick-offs were held in key cities in the Philippines including Tagum, and is considered to be a preparation for the country’s bid for the 2013 SEA Games. Philippine Azkals Football Members Ian Araneta and RoelGener added flare to the event with their attendance, inspiring kids and amateur football players to “strive and excel.”

Event organizers said they hoped that the attendance of two star players of the Philippine Men’s football team could sustain the city’s flare for this new emerging.