Nigerian Football
NIGERIA WOMEN’S FOOTBALL LEAGUE WINNERS TO GET N3M, TRIP TO SPAIN
The Chairperson of the Nigeria Women Football League, Aisha Falode, has disclosed that the eventual champion of the Nigeria Women Premier League Super 4 will go home with a cash prize of N3million and an official trip to Spain on invitation of the La Liga Women’s League.
She noted that the second place team will get N2 million, while the third place team gets N1 million cash prize.
Falode, said Wednesday at the well-attended press conference to herald the 2018/2019 Nigeria Women Premier League Super 4 at the Agege Stadium, Lagos, that, the one-week official trip for the eventual champion of the 2018/2019 Super 4 is one of the technical activations of the La Liga Women’s League partnership with the NWFL, signed two years ago in Spain.
She stressed that, the second aspect of the La Liga partnership, would see the Spanish league management, send technical officials to Nigeria before the commencement of the new season to train coaches in the Women’s League.
“This is the much we have done to further develop the Nigerian league, as we the board members of the NWFL know quite well that, there is no vibrant national team, without a standard and well developed league football in the country.”
The Chairperson of the NWFL urged women football stakeholders in Nigeria to be ready to invest in the country’s women’s football.
“We have not done badly in a little over 2 years since we took office. We have a league that plays the Super 4 and the Champion’s Shield. All we need now for our viable league is a worthy sponsorship. We appeal to the clubs to appreciate the good things done by the board and constructively criticise.
“We want the best for the league. The closing gap being experienced from other African countries at the national team level, means, we need to work hard to regain our pride of place at the top of African football.
Aisha Falode noted: “The Nigeria Women Football family is delighted to have two cabinet ministers and one Deputy Governor at the final of the 2018/2019 Super 4 on Sunday.
“We are honoured to have the Minister of Sports, Sunday Dare, the Minister for Women’s Affairs, Pauline Tallen and the Deputy Governor of Edo State, Honourable Philip Shauibu, at the grand finale.
“We are also grateful to the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo Olu, for partly supporting the Super 4 to hold in Lagos.”
In the Super 4 Match Day One, Adamawa Queens will confront Confluence Queens in the ‘Battle of the Savannah, while defending champions Bayelsa Queens will slug it out against Rivers Angels in the ‘Battle of the Niger-Delta’.
The winners of the two games will play in the final, while the losers will play in the third place match all on Sunday.
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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