Browns Exide, TAFE sponsor Mercantile Hockey Sevens

It’s that time of year again where plummeting temperatures and soaring spirits all come together to create a spectacular display of minor hockey talent.

Now in its 35th year, the Annual Seven-a- side Hockey Tournament organized by the Mercantile Hockey Association will be sponsored by BROWNS EXIDE & BROWNS TAFE for the 5th consecutive year.  The tournament is scheduled to take place on Sunday the 23rd of October 2011 from 8.00am onwards at the P. Saravanamuttu Oval Stadium.

Approximately 100 young athletes from the mercantile sector will be demonstrating their talents and sportsmanship as they compete in a series of games throughout the day - bringing together young hockey players from all over Sri Lanka in a sporting competition designed to promote citizenship and national goodwill.  Considered the “Showpiece” in the calendar of Sri Lanka Hockey, the Sevens will be graced by the presence of Panduka Weerasingha, General Manager - Agriculture/Battery/Porcelain and New business of Brown & Company PLC as the chief guest, while A.P Lasantha Fernando Assistant General Manager Recoveries and Credit Quality Management (President Sports Club) Hatton National Bank and Mrs. Manil Fernando will be the Guest of Honor.

The teams have been categorized in to 5 separate divisions and the cream of Sri Lankan talent will be displaying their skills to bring honor to their respective establishments. The divisions will be as follows.

“A” Division – Dennis De Rosayro Trophy Donated By Janashakthi Insurance Co. Ltd

Commercial Bank “B”, Hatton National Bank “A”, Sampath Bank, Singer SL and Seylan Bank

“A” Division – Dennis De Rosayro Fair Play Trophy Donated By IDAC (Pvt) Ltd – This will be contested only by “A” Division teams. Identical styled replicas awarded to the winners.

“B” Division – Singer Trophy

Commercial Bank “B”, HNB “B”, HSBC and Unilever SL

 “C” Division – AWD Perera Trophy

Airport & Aviation, Browns Group , AWD Group, Arpico and John Keells

“D” Division – Edmund J. Cooray Trophy

 Bartleets Group, MJF group, Aviva and Hayleys.

“E” division – Ceylon Cold Stores Trophy

Hilton Colombo, Glaxo SmithKline and Standard Chartered.

Hemaka D S  Amarasooriya Trophy Most- Outstanding young player of the Team

For 35 years, the Annual Seven-a- side Hockey Tournament has been giving youngsters an opportunity to demonstrate their hockey skills while engaging in a competition geared towards promoting national goodwill and sportsmanship. To date, approximately 20 teams have competed in this event giving more than 100 men and women a chance to be part of a rewarding experience. Over the years, Exide Batteries together with Brown & Company PLC have teamed up with the Mercantile Association to organize one of the best minor hockey events of the year. According to Murali Prakash, CEO and Group Managing Director of Browns Group, “We continue to be a proud sponsor of this tournament year-on-year, as in addition to participating in the tournament ourselves, it is also a great opportunity for us to network with other participants and celebrate sportsmanship with many other Mercantile Companies such as ours.’

Panduka Weerasingha, General Manager - Agriculture/Battery/Porcelain and New business of Brown & Company PLC added, “This tournament has truly become the premier hockey event for island-wide mercantile leaders, and I believe our continued support for the tournament shows how much we stand behind the Mercantile Hockey Association in its quest to demonstrate our nation’s hockey skills - because tomorrow’s stars are seen in today’s competitions”

Following the event, the awards ceremony for the winners of the League, Knock-Out and Sevens Tournament will be held.