2016 Sprite Ball Championship: Augusco Defeats Kwabotwe To Lift Trophy

Mfantsipim School (Kwabotwe) entered the 2016 Sprite Ball Boy’s Championship with a huge reputation. They were the defending champions and had won the competition on four previous occasions since its inception in 2007.

A determined St. Augustine's College (Augusco) basketball team on the day put up a splendid display of skills backed by abundant stamina which confounded their opponents, thus beating them by 37 baskets to 22 in a thrilling encounter at the Elwak Stadium in Accra.

Dennis Dugbenu (aka Mantse) of Augusco was voted the most valuable player following his exceptional performance over the two-day tournament. There was no stopping the boys in green from carrying the day as they swept aside all the opposition.

On the way to the finals Augusco defeated schools such as Ghana Lebanon Islamic Secondary School (GLISS), Kadjebi Asato Senior High School, Presbyterian Boys SHS Legon, Prempeh College and Pope John Senior High School (POJOSS).

Mfantsipim settled for the silver medal, while Pope John’s Senior High School (POJOSS) beat Opoku Ware Senior High School (OWASS) to grab the bronze medal.

The girls competition was won by Aggrey Memorial after defeating Wesley Girls High School in the final game.

The Championship was held from 5th to 7th January 2016 and featured 16 boys schools and 10 girls schools.

The competing schools were: Accra Academy, Presbyterian Boys SHS Legon, St. Thomas Aquinas SHS (Greater Accra region); St. Augustine’s College, Aggrey Memorial, Mfantsipim School and Adisadel College (Central region); Koforidua Senior High Technical School (KSTS) and Pope Johns SHS (Eastern region); Mawuli SHS and Kadjebi Asato SHS (Volta region); Prempeh College and Opoku Ware School (Ashanti region) ; Ghana Secondary Technical School and St. John’s SHS (Western region).

The girls school’s were: St. Mary’s SHS, Accra Wesley Girls High School, Tema SHS (Greater Accra), Aggrey Memorial and Mfantsiman Girls (Central region); Nkwakaw SHS (Eastern region); Awudome SHS (Volta region); TI Ahmediya SHS and Kumasi Girls SHS (Ashanti region) and Shama SHS (Western region).

Augusco was sponsored by top Ghanaian indigenous bank GN Bank.

Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom, an APSUnian, is the Chairperson of Groupe Nduom, a privately held business group with member companies in financial services, hospitality, real estate, IT, media and entertainment.

He is a former player and follower of the game who wants to build the capacity of young people using basketball as a tool.

The GN Bank sponsorship covered jerseys and match tickets for travelling supporters.

This sponsorship is the latest philanthropic act from the iconic Ghanaian politician to his alma mater after making several magnanimous contributions to the Cape Coast-based school over the years.

The Groupe Nduom Foundation funded a GHS 500,000 building project for St. Augustine’s in 2014.

The bank was incorporated in 1997 with the primary goal of providing unparalleled excellence in banking service anytime, anyplace and anywhere.