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Showing the way with organisational skills

LUSITANIANS Sports Club (LSC) lived up to their billing as a well organised hockey promoter in the country during the LSC one-day 11s tournament for men and women at the Dubai Sports City (DSC) astro turf hockey facility during the weekend.

“After organising the first hockey tournament at DSC, we are very pleased with the positives on both the facility and the event,” said Patrick Vaz.

To justify their reputation in a sport that has locally no structured base or even a national league conducted under FIH rules and formats, LSC led the way with proper handling where schedules, code of conduct and event rules were available in print to all the teams and the media a week before the event at DSC.

Attending the matches was Jude Felix, former India captain, and a host of former Mumbai Hockey League, state, university and Grade 1 club level players.

LSC’s livewire men like co-founding promoter Eusebio Coelho and present organiser Patrick Vaz, and the ever green and fit veteran player and administrator Norbert D’Souza, were just some of the many volunteers who gave the tournament a touch of authenticity unlike many other events for the past 15 years when arguments, player eligibility disputes and bad organisation plagued the sport here.

Mention must be made here about LSC’s gesture of presenting a memento to RM Bernard, who along with his father, Bernard Sr, founded and promoted the Sharjah Tigers Hockey Club, formely the top side in the UAE.

The Bernards were among the few pioneers for genuine grassroot hockey in the UAE for over three decades.

RM Bernard who along with his father selflessly trained and nurtured upcoming talent on a gravel ground in Sharjah once, will be relocating to Canada shortly. They assisted talented youngsters with equipment and other measures to maintain the interest levels of players.

moni@khaleejtimes