Bandhu Enterprise Hockey 5s set for Saturday start

The Bandhu Enterprise 3rd Hockey 5s Academy Cup gets underway on Saturday at the Maulana Bhasani Hockey Stadium, with 13 academies vying for the title.

The teams have been divided into two groups and will first compete in a round-robin league format. The top two from each group will progress to the knockout stage, featuring eliminators and qualifiers. The final is scheduled for April 15 at the same venue.

Each five-a-side match will be played in two 15-minute quarters, Hockey Academy Association of Bangladesh advisor Abdur Rashid Khan Soleman said at a briefing at the venue on Friday. Central committee vice-president Salim Lucky was also present.

The tournament trophy was later unveiled, with captains of all 13 academies posing together.

Hockey Academy Association of Bangladesh president Abu Saeed Chowdhury, general secretary Mohammad Ali Khan Piyal, treasurer Bappi Kumar, along with other officials, coaches and managers of the participating teams, attended the event.