St Gregory’s ’96 Set To Mark 30th Anniversary With Novelty Match

The 1996 set of St Gregory’s College, Obalende, Lagos, will on Saturday, August 22, celebrate its 30th anniversary with a novelty football match against the 1995 set.

The eagerly anticipated fixture will kick off at 9am at the school’s football pitch, with former students of both sets already trading banter ahead of the clash.

Tagged ‘A Clash of Pride, A Day to Remember’, the novelty match is expected to provide an entertaining start to a weekend of activities marking three decades since the 1996 set left the prestigious Lagos school.

Peter Essien, Chairman of the Central Planning Committee, told newsmen yesterday that preparations for the anniversary celebrations were complete, adding that the organisers had spent the past year planning the reunion.

“We have been planning for this in the past one year and we are excited that the time is here to see ourselves and merry after about 30 years,” Essien said.

He described football as an important unifying force in Nigeria and said the novelty match had consequently become one of the major talking points among members of the 1996 set.

“The football match will be fun and exciting, but we have other activities like a health talk, giving back to the school project and dinner also on the loaded Saturday,” he said.

The anniversary programme is expected to combine recreation with initiatives aimed at giving back to the institution that shaped the alumni.

As part of the activities, the 1996 set will donate a solar power project to St Gregory’s College to support the school’s infrastructure.

Soji Williams, chairman of one of the sub-committees, is overseeing the solar project, which is scheduled to be formally presented to the school on Saturday.

With expectations building among members of both sets, Saturday’s fixture promises to be more than just a friendly match, with pride, bragging rights and three decades of memories at stake.

For the 1996 set, however, the reunion will ultimately be about celebrating friendship, shared experiences and the enduring bond created at St Gregory’s College three decades ago.