Defending champions of the All Nigeria Secondary Schools Football Championship tagged NNPC/Shell cup, Government Secondary School, Owerri are set to defend the title they won last year as they battle Brilliant Secondary School, Akure in the final today.

The final which comes up today at the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Surulere, Lagos will be preceded by the third place match between Government Day Secondary School, Yola and Government Secondary School, Minjibir, Kano State both of whom lost in the semi finals to the finalists last Friday.

National Co-ordinator of the competition, Shola Akinwale told Sunday Vanguard sports that the Imo champions dismissed their Kano counterparts 4-2 while the Ondo flagbearers had to pull through via 6-3 penalties after full-time ended 3-3.

The NNPC/Shell Cup has now become synonymous with grassroots football in Nigeria little wonder the sponsors won the Grassroots football Promoter of the year award in the last AIT Football Award held in Port Harcourt, Rivers State last month.

Talents discovered from the championship in the past editions have gone ahead to become great football stars and they abound in various leagues across the world and in the Nigerian Premier League.