W Jacobs: Launch of Bayhill Premier Cup

14 April 2006

At the launch of the Bayhill Premier Cup exactly a month ago, I took to the
podium to share with the people present at that function the contribution of
the Department in this prestigious tournament.

Then I talked so passionately about our association with the private sector
and how excited we were for that partnership. At the time I did not even begin
to conceive that our involvement would change so drastically in a space of just
few weeks.

I therefore stand here thrilled that our Department has once again taken
giant strides to prove its commitment in the struggle for a better life for all
our young people. As you might be aware the prospects of this tournament looked
bleak as recent as few weeks ago. The thought of the tournament with such a
proud history spanning about 18 years flopping, because of the lack of
sponsorship, was just too much bear.

For that reason, it excites me to announce that the Department has decided
to come to the rescue of the Bayhill Premier Cup, following the reduced level
of sponsorship. When we learnt of this serious predicament that was threatening
to thwart the smooth running of the Bayhill Premier Cup, we felt obligated to
intervene with immediate effect. Given the fact that we were not fully prepared
to assume this responsibility so soon, we have since resolved to take over the
major sponsorship with effect from next year as our direct intervention in the
development initiatives. The details of the exact sponsorship will be made
public at the appropriate time after carefully considering budgetary
implications.

The Department has been associated with the Bayhill Premier Cup for about
five years already and we remain committed to this partnership and have every
intention to play a more meaningful role in future as we have just
demonstrated.

The history of this tournament from the humble beginnings to where it is
today is overwhelmingly compelling. Our ideals of creating legacies for 2010
for all communities begin right here. This tournament is the platform where the
young players, stars of tomorrow take their very first steps to stardom.

The players taking part in this year's tournament have every opportunity to
be drafted into Bafana Bafana squad that will represent us at 2010 and
therefore we are providing the 2010 hopefuls with a vehicle to realise their
dreams.

The lack of facilities for football in the Western Cape has been a serious
problem for some time but it is now receiving attention from the government. To
this end, we remain married to the idea of constructing a world-class
multi-purpose stadium at Green Point.

To ensure the process of upgrading the Green Point Stadium was free from
political manoeuvring, a Special Purpose Vehicle outside of the City of Cape
Town, the national and provincial governments will be set up, to forge ahead
with this development. The economic spin-offs to be derived from the
development of Green Point are enormous for the people of Cape Town and the
Province as a whole and we are happy that an independent vehicle will be in
place to ensure these economic benefits are realised by our people.

The ongoing upgrading of Athlone Stadium is progressing very well and it is
expected that construction there will eventually close the wind tunnel so that
quality football can be played.

As part of our strategy to deliver facilities for football, the Provincial
Government has approved the construction of a 20 000 setter stadium at
Philippi. This move is critically important to ensure that both Ajax and Santos
do not take their games away from Cape Town because there are no stadiums.

Ladies and gentlemen, I want to take this opportunity to congratulate
Hanover Park Football Club, for upstaging the best in the game of football to
reach the quarter-finals of one of the greatest competitions in the country,
the ABSA Cup. Their achievements are remarkable for an amateur team to reach
this stage and we wish them luck when their lock horns with the mighty Orlando
Pirates on Sunday.

Allow me also to acknowledge the achievements of Santos in the ABSA Cup for
reaching quarter finals. I wish to congratulate them and wish them well in
their match against Tembisa Classic in Durban this weekend.

I want also to acknowledge with great appreciation the real prospects of
Vasco da Gama playing in the Premier League. We all hope they will emerge
victorious in the play-offs that will decide their promotion to the Premier
Soccer League (PSL). With our unwavering support, Vasco will succeed in these
play-offs.

If they do succeed and we hope they do, Cape Town will effectively have
three teams competing in the Premier league. This will auger well for the
future development of football and it would mean more games for the Cape Town
soccer fans.

It was a sad moment for the football community of Cape Town when we lost
Hellenic and we must collectively ensure this does not happen again.

Ladies and gentlemen, we must appreciate the planned re-location to Cape
Town by Manning Rangers and I take this opportunity to welcome them to the
football community of Cape Town. Manning Ranger is a good team with talented
players and we must give them all the support they need to be able to progress
from Mvela league to the PSL. Certainly this move will impact positively in our
efforts to improve the support base of PSL teams at the stadium.

Let me extend a word of welcome to all the teams participating, especially
our international visitors, South Nottingham College from the United Kingdom,
Buckland Beach from New Zealand and Team 2006 from Germany; you are all welcome
to the Mother City.

Ladies and gentlemen, the presence of these teams including the juniors in
both the Premier and Mvela leagues is undoubtedly a vote of confidence in the
ability of Bayhill to organise an event of this magnitude. It also reconfirms
the popular view in the soccer fraternity that the Bayhill Cup is a hunting
ground for talent. I am confident that the scouts present here will not prove
me otherwise, they will return home with their hands full.

I want to express my heartfelt appreciation to the officials of the
Department for being proactive. When they learnt of the sponsorship problems
they did not hesitate to approach me with a plan.

Let me also take this opportunity once again to thank the organisers of this
tournament for not giving up on this wonderful idea when situations were quite
threatening.

The amazing growth of this tournament to a point of attracting top teams in
PSL and international teams is attributed to your professionalism in organising
and running this tournament.

I wish all the teams a good tournament, may the best team win. I declare the
Bayhill tournament open.

Enquiries:
Mandla Yeki
Tel: (021) 483 9804
Fax: (021) 483 9801
Cell: 082 553 3477

Issued by: Department of Cultural Affairs, Sports and Recreation, Western
Cape Provincial Government
14 April 2006
Source: Western Cape Provincial Government (http://www.capegateway.gov.za/)