The juvenile football system has remained the backbone of the success story enjoyed by Ghana football until now. And it's certainly part of the Ghana Football Association's business agenda.

Loads of players like Abedi Ayew Pele, Anthony Yeboah, Samuel Osei Kuffour, Stephen Appiah, Michael Essien and Ransford Osei are all products of Ghana’s juvenile football system who were nurtured when young.

Polishing this rough diamonds across the face of the country has been the responsibility of coaches, benefactors, government and the Ghana Football Association, the sport governing body.

However, one major corporate body, Nestle Ghana Limited, beverage producers who have been associated with sports development in Ghana for over three decades now have tied the knot with the Ghana Football Association and the Ghana Education Service to launch the Juvenile Football Development Partnership.

Nestle Ghana managing director, Herve Duranton says the beverage producer wants to play a key role in the development of sports from the grassroots.

“Today, Milo is deepening its commitment to sports development with this strategic partnership with GFA as part of the broad long term strategy of high involvement in grassroots sports development in the country,” Herve Durantonm said at the launch of the Juvenile Football Development Partnership.

“It is our hope that this tournament will assist in unearthing more future champions to take over the mantle from Michael Essien, Stephen Appiah and Co.

“It is our hope that this partnership will become an annually important sport event in the sporting calendar of the Ghana Football Association.”

The programme would see the beverage producers injecting GH 180,000 for a national Under-12 and 15 soccer tournament dubbed ‘Milo Cubs Championship.’ The competition would run from December 2007 to January 2008.

For the Under-12 category, players have been selected from the schools to represent their regions while the Under-15 players are drawn from the colt’s league at the inter-district level.

The Greater Accra and Ashanti regions have additional slots for two teams.

From December 14-16, the Northern Zone with teams drawn from Brong Ahafo, Northern, Upper East and Upper West regions and Ashanti regions two representatives would kick start the competition in Sunyani to select winners for the semi-final event.

Then the Southern Zone begin their tournament on December 19-20 with Eastern, Western, Central and Volta regions together with Greater Accra’s two teams competing for places in the final leg.

The champions and runner ups from each zone will play in the semi-final and finals event scheduled for January 15-16, 2008.