LPRC OILERS WINNING DYNASTY
The Oilers Basketball Squad of the Liberia Petroleum Refining Company (LPRC) is certainly the pride of Liberian Basketball as it continues to make headways.
With a solid and competitive squad that have won several accolades and still hungry for more, the Oilers are no doubt a top notched team not only in Liberia but the whole of Africa.
With a triple championship crown, 2011, 2012 and 2013, the Oilers are kings of Liberian Basketball as they continue to make life uneasy for their opponents in the Liberia Basketball Association (LBA) championship.
After conquering the local scene, the Oil boys as the Oilers are also known, had the opportunity to compete with some of West Africa’s elite teams, mid 2013, in the Federation of International Basketball Association (FIBA) preliminary zone III competition held at the SKD Gymnasium in Paynesville, Liberia.
The team’s virtuoso display took it to a worthy runners up spot which brought to the fore the license to participate in Africa’s biggest basketball Club competition; the Federation of International Basketball Association (FIBA) Africa Men’s Finals, late 2013 in Tunisia.
Through such highly rated competition, the Oilers were able to compete with champion clubs from Tunisia, Egypt, Algeria, Gabon, Nigeria, etc. as the players via tactical instructions from their technical team showed case their talents as they are now among the top ten basketball teams in Africa. “The Oilers basketball team now has no match in the country. To be ranked amongst the top ten teams in Africa where there are more than fifty top teams is quite a monumental achievement that every Liberian must be proud of”, an executive of the Liberia Basketball Association (LBA) noted upon the team’s arrival from Tunisia.
“We learned a lot from both competitions, and we have indeed taken our game to another level”, noted team captain Ben Dixon upon the oilers return from the competition in Tunisia.
The winning Coach Paul Haulsen summed it all by saying “we have won a lot and are happy but not satisfied. We want to win more. Therefore, we will work harder to go another step higher”.
Indeed, it seems the Oilers dominance in the Liberia Basketball folklore is far from over as the hunger for more success is there and the sky seems to be even closer to be their limit.
One can only wish the Oilers all the best in future endeavors as the entire Oilers family of the LPRC congratulates the Oilers in emerging as triple champions in the LBA competition and even added another accolade, the Golden Image Award and raising Liberia’s flag in the continental competitions.
Indeed, special thanks to the Oilers Chief Patron, T. Nelson Williams, II, the Chairman, Jackson Fiah Doe, Jr. and members of the Board of Directors, the president and officials of the Oilers Sports Association (OSA), all employees, contractors, cadets and fans of the Oilers as well as the technical staff and players of the winsome Oilers.
