Knife-edge clashes set for inline hockey

THERE’S everything to play for in the final tournament of the Namibian Ice and Inline Hockey Association (NIIHA) League, which takes place at the Coastal Pirates club in Swakopmund this week.

Thirty-seven teams from all over Namibia will bid for championship titles in nine separate divisions, during a marathon tournament from tomorrow until Sunday. Whilst previous championships have been largely dominated by the Pirates, this year’s league has been anybody’s game.Although the coastal club has maintained control of the younger age groups (8 and under, 10 and under and 12 and under), the competition in other divisions has been thrown wide open.Impressive performances by teams from Windhoek (Cazadores, Kamikaze and Badgers) and by Otjiwarongo’s Scorpions earlier in the season have put victory within their grasp.Teams will be fighting tooth and nail this weekend to secure gold, so spectators can look forward to some feverish excitement as the tournament gets underway.A record 83 games will see Swakopmund host the longest inline tournament to date, starting at the SFC tomorrow at 18h00 and ending only at 16h00 on Sunday.The games will be played back to back from 07h00 until nearly midnight (on Saturday night) in this annual inline hockey bonanza, which has once again drawn players and teams from Botswana and South Africa.There’ll be a chance to catch Namibia’s youngest inline talent in action, with players from six years upward already playing at tournament level.Fourteen teams will compete in the three youngest age divisions, showing how seriously Namibian inline hockey is tackling the challenge of broadening access to the sport.At the other end of the spectrum, fans can enjoy the skills and experience of Namibia’s best senior division talent.These are the players who recently represented Namibia at the Ice and Inline Hockey Federation’s (IIHF) World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, performing well enough to re-qualify for next year’s event in Germany.As well as providing four solid days of first-rate sport, the weekend also offers a great opportunity to socialise and relax, with a fulltime bar, food and music.Tournament results (plus the 2006 league standings) will be announced at a prize-giving ceremony after the final game on Sunday.In six weeks’ time, the Coastal Pirates will host another sporting spectacular (October 6 to 8 at the SFC) to showcase Namibia’s youth and development programme in inline hockey.The annual Junior Development Tournament at the coast will focus on fun, thrills, skills and spills with some of the youngest inline players in the country taking to the rink.Whilst previous championships have been largely dominated by the Pirates, this year’s league has been anybody’s game.Although the coastal club has maintained control of the younger age groups (8 and under, 10 and under and 12 and under), the competition in other divisions has been thrown wide open.Impressive performances by teams from Windhoek (Cazadores, Kamikaze and Badgers) and by Otjiwarongo’s Scorpions earlier in the season have put victory within their grasp.Teams will be fighting tooth and nail this weekend to secure gold, so spectators can look forward to some feverish excitement as the tournament gets underway.A record 83 games will see Swakopmund host the longest inline tournament to date, starting at the SFC tomorrow at 18h00 and ending only at 16h00 on Sunday.The games will be played back to back from 07h00 until nearly midnight (on Saturday night) in this annual inline hockey bonanza, which has once again drawn players and teams from Botswana and South Africa.There’ll be a chance to catch Namibia’s youngest inline talent in action, with players from six years upward already playing at tournament level.Fourteen teams will compete in the three youngest age divisions, showing how seriously Namibian inline hockey is tackling the challenge of broadening access to the sport.At the other end of the spectrum, fans can enjoy the skills and experience of Namibia’s best senior division talent.These are the players who recently represented Namibia at the Ice and Inline Hockey Federation’s (IIHF) World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, performing well enough to re-qualify for next year’s event in Germany.As well as providing four solid days of first-rate sport, the weekend also offers a great opportunity to socialise and relax, with a fulltime bar, food and music.Tournament results (plus the 2006 league standings) will be announced at a prize-giving ceremony after the final game on Sunday.In six weeks’ time, the Coastal Pirates will host another sporting spectacular (October 6 to 8 at the SFC) to showcase Namibia’s youth and development programme in inline hockey.The annual Junior Development Tournament at the coast will focus on fun, thrills, skills and spills with some of the youngest inline players in the country taking to the rink.