NATIONAL finalists from the Western Conference at this edition of the Milo Secondary Schools Basketball competition will be targeting nothing but the title when the event begins this month.Specifically looking to extend their dominance in the sport, former winner of the Western Conference final, International School Lagos (ISL), and Ajigbeda Girls School Lagos have set their eyes on the trophy.Coach of the ISL team, Ernest Ijeomah, told The Guardian that his team has dominated in all the basketball championships in Lagos and was yearning for more trophies this year. He said: 'Having picked the ticket for the Western Conference, our focus now is to go all the way and win the trophy for ourselves, the school management, our parents and indeed Lagos State.'We don't want to remain a local champion, but to go all the way to win the grand finale. We tried it last year and could not achieve it, but this year we are ready to give our best to make the school and the state proud. God has been our strength and we will continue to rely on Him.'The Ernest Ijeomah-tutored side reaffirmed its readiness to lift the trophy after beating Ogun State's Excel College in the final of the Western Conference in Ibadan, Oyo State. The team, which won the fair play and the most entertaining team awards at the 2009 grand finale, believes it will be unstoppable in the Lagos final this month.Meanwhile, the coach of Ajigbeda Girls School, Surulere, Lagos, Ayodeji Ayodele, has stressed that the development of youth talents is the best for the sport, adding that more sponsors are needed to support public schools.'We did well at the last competition, which was our first time, and we are hoping to do better by being in the final,' he said. 'Our girls have been training well with the competitions sponsored by other teams and this time we will do better.'From the Savannah Conference in Kano are boys and girls teams from Adamawa and Kano, while the Atlantic Conference has Ebonyi and Enugu. At the Central Conference, Kwara and Benue emerged, while the Western Conference has Lagos and Delta.Speaking at the draws for the competition, Managing Director and Chief Executive of Nestle Nigeria, Martin Woolnough, said the company decided to increase school participation in the championship by 25 per cent, from 4,200 to 5,000 in this edition.He added that first place winners in both male and female categories would receive N150,000 each, second place would get N120,000 third place, N100, 000. He further disclosed that as sponsors, they were proud to support the development of African sports talents through the firm's numerous sponsorship platforms.Woolnough also highlighted Nestle Nigeria's programmes through Milo, which have helped to nurture young talents in sports. According to him, 'Milo, the energy food drink for future champions, has continued to nurture the growth and development of sports in Nigeria.
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