Nigerian Football
HURRAH! NIGERIA’S PREMIER FOOTBALL LEAGUE IS BACK!
BY APESIN ADEMOLA.
The Nigerian football fields are again set agog. First it went on break shortly before Russia 2018 FIFA World Cup last June. Then it got enmeshed in the protracted legal dispute over the leadership of the Nigeria Football Federation.
To meet CAF deadline for the
submission of teams for its club competitions, a “Doctrine of
Necessity” canvassed by Sports Village Square had to be
adopted.
When that was over, the protest by sections of the top-flight league and the immediate lower cadre about the promotion and relegation processes bedevilled the start of a new season for the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL). Gladly however, all is now finally settled and the 2018/19 NPFL get off the ground on Sunday.
Now divided into two groups of 12 teams each, the top two teams in each group of the regular 22-match season will fight for the title in the round-robin championship phase, while the bottom four in each section will battle to determine which four teams will stay up.
On the opening day, Lobi Stars and Rangers, both in Group A, will be excused from duty because of their continental fixtures. Their league matches (Lobi Stars v Katsina United, Rangers v Niger Tornadoes) will be rearranged.
Also, since the Nigerian National League Super 8, was concluded only last Thursday, the Matchday 1 fixtures of the newly promoted teams will be rescheduled.
Kaduna-based Kada Stars, which won the NNL Super 8, would have been in Port Harcourt on Sunday to face Go Round FC, while Insurance of Benin, runners-up of the Super 8, would have played away to Wikki Tourists.
Also postponed are the matches involving Gombe United and Remo Stars, the other teams just elevated. Gombe United would have had a date in Damaturu with Yobe Desert Stars, while Remo Stars were to be hosted by Rivers United.
Also in Group A with title holders Lobi Stars are Enyimba, Nigeria’s most successful club with two CAF Champions League and as many CAF Super Cup titles in their trophy shelf but who have not won the domestic league title since 2015, their seventh win.
Enyimba will start the campaign at home against Lagos team MFM, who almost won the league in the 2016/17 season dropping out to eventual champions Plateau United in the last two rounds of matches.
The other match in Group A pairs Kwara United against Sunshine Stars in Ilorin, while four matches are to be played another day. These are the earlier mentioned Lobi Stars v Katsina United, Rangers v Niger Tornadoes, Wikki Tourists v Insurance, and Rivers United v Remo Stars.
Last season’s runners-up Akwa United and 2016/17 winners Plateau United headline Group B that also include former champions Kano Pillars.
Akwa United will host El-Kanemi Warriors at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium in Uyo, while Plateau United welcome FC Ifeanyi Ubah to Rwang Pam Stadium, Jos as Kano Pillars engage Heartland at the Sani Abacha Stadium and Nasarawa United v Abia Warriors.
Yobe Desert Stars v Gombe United, Go Round FC v Kada Stars are to be rearranged.
Insurance of Benin, one of the country’s legacy club sides, last played in the top flight 10 years ago, while Gombe Stars and Remo Stars are making a return to the topflight.
Matchday 1 fixtures…
Group A:
- Kwara United v Sunshine Stars (4pm)
- Enyimba v MFM (4pm)
- Wikki Tourists v Insurance (4pm)
- Rivers United v Remo Stars (4pm)
- Rangers v Niger Tornadoes * postponed
- Lobi Stars v Katsina United * postponed
Group B:
- Nasarawa United v Abia Warriors (4pm)
- Plateau United v FC Ifeanyi Ubah (4pm)
- Kano Pillars v Heartland (4pm)
- Akwa United v El-Kanemi Warriors (4pm)
- Yobe Desert Stars v Gombe United *postponed
- Go Round FC v Kada Stars *postponed
The miserable run of Akwa United and Ikorodu City came to an end after six games in the Nigerian Premier League this season. Both teams were initially glued at the bottom of the league table.
They now got respite as Akwa United beat Kano Pillar by 2-0 while Ikorodu City even did what could be considered an upset, beating Bendel Insurance 3-0.
Remo Stars bounced back to the top of the log after a 3-0 defeat of Nasarawa United. Shooting Stars are yet to get their rhythm this season, playing a barren draw with Enyimba in Ibadan.
Kwara United who got their first full points of the season last week after a 1-0 defeat of Remo Stars could not consolidate as they were beaten 1-0 by Abia Warriors.
Heartland under Emmanuel Amuneke are gradually recovering as they got a valuable away draw against El-Kanemi Warriors.
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
It is 75 years since Nigeria’s national football team first played an international match. That was on 8 October 1949 when the first set of Nigeria’s assembly on their return voyage stopped over in Freetown and engaged Sierra Leone in an international football match. Nigeria won 2-0, setting a chain of positive results on 8 October.
The country never lost any competitive duel on that date. More significantly, the Super Eagles first qualified for the World Cup on an 8 October date.
That was in 1993 when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Algeria in the quest for USA ‘94 World Cup.
Nigeria became the first English-speaking African country to qualify for the World Cup. Another significance of the October 8 match at the July 5 Stadium, Algiers is that Nigeria were unbeaten for the first time by Algeria at home.
The only deviation from the 8 October Magic was in 2015 when Nigeria lost 2-0 to Congo in a friendly match.
Twenty-six years after Nigeria’s debut international match, one of Africa’s biggest football nations, Egypt fell to the October 8 magic, losing 4-0 to Nigeria in the last stage of the triangular World Cup qualifying series for Argentina ’78.
Up till October 15, 2013, when Ghana beat Egypt 6-1 in Kumasi, the October 8, 1977 duel with Nigeria remained Egypt’s biggest loss in a World Cup qualifying match.
Before the 1977 duel, Nigeria in 1963 played a friendly match with Liberia in Monrovia. The October 8 magic was active, even in an away match. Nigeria drew 2-2 in their very first encounter with Liberia. It was shortly after the team had, through a protest, upturned a victory by Guinea to pick Nigeria’s very first African Nations’ Cup ticket.
Little wonder then that when FIFA suspended Nigeria in 2010, the world governing body provisionally lifted the ban on October 8!
Nigeria on 8 October
- 1949 – Freetown (Friendly) Sierra Leone 0-2 Nigeria
- 1963 – Monrovia (Friendly) Liberia 2-2 Nigeria
- 1977 – Lagos (World Cup qualifier) Nigeria 4-0 Egypt
- 1993 – Algiers (World Cup qualifier) Algeria 1-1 Nigeria… qualify for USA ‘94.
- 2005 – Abuja (World Cup qualifier) Nigeria 5-1 Zimbabwe
- 2010 – FIFA, in apparent respect to the 8 October magic, provisionally lifted a ban imposed on Nigeria.
- 2011 – Abuja (African Nations Cup qualifier) Nigeria 2-2 Guinea. Although undefeated, Nigeria failed to make it to the 2012 African Nations Cup.
- 2015 – D.R. Congo beat Nigeria 2-0 in Visé, Belgium. The ‘October 8 Magic’ is finally broken.
Rivers United have launched themselves to the top of the log at the end of the match day 5 of the Nigeria Premier League. The Port Harcourt side beat Akwa United 2-1 to go afloat after initial leaders, Remo Stars crumbled to a 1-0 defeat at Kwara United in Ilorin on Sunday.
It was Remo Stars’ first defeat in the season. Rivers United are now with 13 points. Stephen Mayo put Rivers United ahead after 31 minutes. But it turned a temporary lead as Akwa United bounced back almost at the blast of the referee’s whistle for the second half.
Friday Apollos levelled up for Akwa United before Ndifreke Effiong Udo scored the winner in the 85th minute.
Sunday Results
- Kwara United 1-0 Remo Stars
- Rangers International 1-0 Abia Warriors
- Heartland FC 2-0 Niger Tornadoes
- Kano Pillars 2-0 Sunshine Stars
- Plateau United 1-0 Ikorodu City
- Rivers United 2-1 Akwa United
- Enyimba 3-0 Katsina United* Suspended
- Nasarawa 0-0 Bayelsa United
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