BSP backs PNG U18 football team ahead of Oceania meet

BANK South Pacific (BSP) presented a cheque for K5,000 and merchandise valued at K3,000 to the national Under-18 men’s soccer team ahead of the inaugural Oceania Football Confederation Youth Development Tournament.
“We recognise that soccer like any other sports has played a significant part in the social and personal development of young Papua New Guineans,” BSP corporate sponsorship manager Amelia Minnopu said during the presentation to the Papua New Guinea Football Association (PNGFA).
“We are pleased to be a part of the team, as they fly the PNG flag during the tournament (which will be held at Korman Stadium in Port Vila, Vanuatu, from Aug 15-24).
“As a community-oriented bank, we commit to develop the health and wellbeing of young elites through sports.”
PNGFA general secretary Dimirit Mileng and president John Kapi Natto thanked BSP for the support, saying that “the support will go a long way to assist and motivate these talented footballers develop into senior players in the future”.
For the first edition of the tournament supported by the Union of European Football Associations, six teams have been invited to participate in the cross-confederation event which will feature not only New Caledonia, Tahiti, Papua New Guinea and host Vanuatu, but also Estonia and India.
PNG have been drawn alongside Tahiti and Estonia in Group A.
Group B is made up of New Caledonia, India and hosts Vanuatu.
This is the second time the leading bank of the Pacific have come to the aid of PNGFA.
Leading up to July’s Pacific Games in Apia, Samoa, BSP provided soccer boots and merchandise to the tune of around K8,000 to the national women’s soccer team who brought back gold for the fifth consecutive time under co-captain Deslyn Siniu.