Nigerian Football
RIVERS UNITED DROWN WARRI WOLVES TO PICK QUARTERFINALS SLOT IN AITEO CUP
BY SAMMY WEJINYA.
Well-taken goals by Ossy Martins and Kehinde Adedipe, either side of half time,
gave Rivers United a 2-0 win over Warri Wolves in a 2019 AITEO Cup round of 16
game on Sunday.
United uncharacteristically made a slow start to the game but Wolves failed to
make their early territorial advantage count.
The Port Harcourt side was always going to up the ante and when it happened, it
was with deadly efficiency.
A Peter Ubakanma free kick caused havoc in the Wolves box in the 14th minute
and with the Warri club failing to clear their lines, predatory forward,
Martins, lurking dangerously in the box, pounced and prodded home to give
Rivers United the lead.
Martins thought he’d doubled United’s lead in the 19th minute when he shot
fiercely into the top corner but the effort was correctly chalked off for
offside.
United were the superior side in the first half and deservedly took the
solitary advantage into the break.
Wolves improved markedly in the second half and just when it looked like they
had gained a foothold in the game, they were hit by a sucker punch by United
who scored their second in brilliant fashion just after the hour mark.
Adedipe was the man on the money as he waltzed past the Wolves defence before
rounding off the spectacular solo effort with a firm strike, which the Wolves
goalkeeper, Mamudu Belema failed to hold.
The United technical manager, Stanley Eguma was pleased with his side’s efforts
on the day which eventually delivered a quarter final ticket as he addressed
the media afterwards.
“First, I commend my players for winning this game which was not easy at all as
Wolves came here (the Samson Siasia Stadium, Yenagoa, venue of the game) with
the intent of winning,” Eguma told the Rivers United official website, www.riversunitedfc.com.ng.
“Wolves gave us a good run for our money but we were better than them in the
end.
“We showed our experience and our tactics was spot on,” he said.
The Wolves coach, Kester Osagie also voiced his sentiments after the game.
“It was a good game when we first started and I wuish them the best of luck
(for the rest of the competition). Rivers United is a good side,” he said.
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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