There was excitement and trumpets blast at the Nkambe Municipal Sports Complex as thousands of soccer fans gathered to witness the 2nd Edition of Hon. Awudu Mbaya Unity Cup that seeks to promote unity in Mbumland.
Vuvuzelas trumpeted into the eucalyptus forest of Nkambe highlands echoing down into the low lands of Njap, Tabenken and up to the hills of Chup and Bishua.There was so much excitement and merry making. At about 1pm, the entire Donga Mantung Centre Constituency emptied self. No one would have loved to miss the occassion just to be told.
The female final between Nassara FC and Cosmos FC ended in a tie. When the two female teams moved into the most decisive part which was penalty kicks, the euphoria was at it peak. It was a matter of luck for the winner.
However, as God will have it, Nasara FC scored three of the five penalty kicks to win the female trophy with a cash prize of FCFA 150,000.
Arrival of the Divisional Officers for Ndu and Nkambe at about 3:16pm was indicative that something serious was about to take place. From the four corners of the field and into the eucalyptus forest, drums and other musical instruments as well as supporters of the two giants of the day could be seen rushing not to miss a glimpse of any action.
Veteran FC Beats Formation Sango It was the Divisional Officer for Nkambe Central Abba Abdouraman(personal representative of the Senior Divisional Officer for Donga Mantung Division) who performed the spectacular kick-off.
There was commotion as the central referee Alain Asongwe alias Alain Bosic sound the blast of the whistle. The two teams tussled for 80 minutes without a cutting razer.
Barely 5 minutes to the end of the match, Veteran FC of Ndu benefitted a corner kick on the left flank of the field and it was spontaneously connected into the net. Supporters of Veteran FC went wild in celebration. However, the players of Formation Sango struggled to reduce the goal tallies but were caught by time.
At the end of the 90 minutes, Veteran FC f Ndu went home with the 8 kilograms (symbiotic World Cup Trophy) this time with the inscription Hon. Awudu Mbaya Unity Cup and with an additional sum of FCFA 250.000, while the runners up Formation Sango went home with a cash prize of FCFA 150.000. The most interesting thing is that all the teams that participated also had encouraging prizes ranging from FCFA 20.000 to 50.000 depending on the knockout.
Donga Mantung SDO Applauds Donor Before handing the trophy to the distinct finalists, the Senior Divisional Officer for Donga Mantung Division, Ngone Ndodemesape Bernard who rushed back where he was just to be part of the new way congratulated Hon. Awudu Mbaya Cyprian (MP for Donga Mantung Centre Constituency) for his initiative to promote mutual coexistence through football.
To the SDO even the teams that lost n the field have won something and that even the spectators have won something given that “we were treated to good football”. He said Donga Mantung is the king of the Mountain and with all these prospects there are hopes that Donga Mantung may also produce the King of Football.
He urged the population to copy the fairplay demonstrated by the players in the field so that the Division shall continue to live in peace. He said the tournament gave room for the population to see how much talent is available in the Division.
“At the end of this you would have made new friends and that is how peace, harmony and concord is built”. According to the SDO Donga Mantung ha had it fare share of disorder and this is time for everyone to live like a family.
Mangoh Jones Tanko, Former Mayor of Nkambe Council congratulated Hon. Awudu Mbaya for encouraging young talents. He said that the MP of Parliament has demonstrated that he is a promoter of youth activities. “I hope this tournament will be able to produce a player of the caliber of Eto’o Fils”.
On his part, Samba Kingsley the coordinator of the tournament said he is delighted that the tournament went on very smoothly without hitches. On his part the Divisional President of FECAFOOT, Loya applauded Hon. Awudu Mbaya as well as his collaborator for their organizational skills.