The 2024 Pocket Rocket Foundation Six-A-Side “Peace Through Sports” Football Competition kicked off on Sunday, uniting Waterhouse and neighboring communities at the Red Stripe headquarters on Spanish Town Road. The event aims to foster peace through sport, creating a space for community building and camaraderie.

The opening ceremony featured a vibrant dress parade, with Basement taking the top spot for best-dressed team, followed by Friends For Real in second place and Boom Riddim in third. This year also marked the first time Corporate Jamaica was invited to field teams, highlighting the tournament's growing influence as a platform for positive community engagement.

The day’s matches saw Ball Spot claim a 3-1 victory over Basic, while Legacy edged past Boom Riddim in a tight 3-2 match. The fixture between Fesgas and Youths United ended in a scoreless draw, showcasing strong defense. In another close game, Friends For Real earned a 1-0 win against Basement.

Ashoka delivered an impressive performance, defeating Dream Team 4-1, while Real City closed out the day with a narrow 1-0 victory over tournament hosts Red Stripe.

The competition, part of Fraser-Pryce’s ongoing commitment to community development, reinforces the power of sports as a unifying force and a way to promote peace among communities.

In a heart-stopping finale at the FESCO Football Field along Spanish Town Road, Real City emerged as the champions of the Pocket Rocket Foundation Six-A-Side Football Competition, clinching victory with a 1-0 win over a resilient Basement team.

The Waterhouse-based football tournament made its return on October 17 after a three-year absence and saw 16 teams competing for the $280,000 winning pot and other prizes.

“I am very pleased with how the competition turned out,” said Pocket Rocket Foundation Founder, Olympian Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce. “We are celebrating our 10th anniversary as a foundation and this competition has been a staple for many years. The community have really come together over the past several weeks to cheer on and support their favourite teams, which is exactly what we wanted to see.”

Real City coach, Lennoy Noble said, despite having to players out with groin injuries, his team played a wonderful game. “It was a good day. Kudos to the basement football team, they put up a good fight, but never-the-less we came out victorious. I just want to say thanks to the team for their excellent work and the best moving forward and also give thanks to Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce for putting this competition together,” Noble said.

Real City's elation was evident. "This win means everything to us," said team captain Ricardo Schafe. "The competition was fierce, and Basement gave us a run for our money, but our determination and teamwork brought us through. We're ecstatic."

The award ceremony saw the top three teams, Real City, Basement and Black Strikers walking away with $280,000, $180,000 and $80,000 respectively. Team Eurotrend added a touch of style to the competition, bagging the Best Dressed Team award and a cash prize of $15,000.

Individual excellence was acknowledged with the Digicel Sponsored Best Defender and Most Valuable Player going to Real City’s Oraine Blackwood and Ackeem Green, respectively.

"Defense is often overlooked, so this award is an honor. It's a testament to the hard work we put in as a team," Green said. Blackwood agreed, saying, "Individual awards are great, but it's the team effort that got us here. This is a victory for all of Real City."

Real City and Basement will contest the final of the 2023 SFP Pocket Rocket Foundation Six-A-Side competition after semi-final wins at the FESCO Field in Waterhouse over the weekend.

Sunday saw Real City secure their spot in the final with a 2-0 win over Lion Den thanks to goals from Nico McLeish and Hakeem Green.

Their opponents in the final will be Basement who beat Black Strikers 1-0 on Saturday thanks to a strike from Taywane Lynch.

The final takes place on Sunday, December 3 at 3:30pm.