Nigerian Football
EXPLOSIONS EXPECTED AS SWIFTLY FLOWING RIVERS UNITED HOST HEART-BROKEN HEARTLAND
BY TUKA LETURA.
Rivers United hope to build on the valuable point they scraped from the challenging duel with one of Nigeria’s football league super powers, the Kano Pillars last weekend as they host Heartland of Owerri this Sunday.
The last time the two sides met in the League, it ended in a routine 2-0 win
for United. Emeka Ogbugh and Koffi Roland netted a goal in each half to give
United the win in April 2018.
The situation is a whole lot different at the moment as Heartland, based on their
post-season re-enforcements, look
stronger and are capable of inflicting damage on any side.
Heartland who have added Super Eagles goalkeeper Ikechukwu Ezenwa and former
Super Eagles Striker Christian Pygbara to their ranks have more experience in
the side.
Chijoke Akuneto and Joseph Onoja also joined to beef up the team alongside 16
other new players who look to strengthen the squad.
Heartland, still smarting from the 0-1 reverse suffered in the hands of MFM FC
on Match Day One in Okigwe, will be looking to bounce back swiftly by posting a
creditable performance and result in Port Harcourt on Sunday.
United are however favourites to claim the win. The Port Harcourt club looks
remarkably solid with new arrivals like Fortune Omoniwari, Lookman Binuyo,
Azubuike Egwuekwe, Shunji Oshobe, Michael Enaruna, Victor Chidume and Stephen
Michael Gopey taking to life at United like a Duck to water.
Mainstays like Festus Austine, Ossy Martins, Malachi Ohawume, Bakary Bamba,
Konan N’gouan and Cletus Emotan all did important things on Match Day One and
will be looking to go for the kill against the ‘Naze Millionaires’.
United’s influential goalkeeper, Akande Abiodun who has kept clean sheets in
his last two league games will be looking to make it three shut outs on the
bounce.
Technical manager of the Port Harcourt club, Azunda Stanley Eguma is full of
respect for Sunday’s opponents but belives his charges will get the job done.
“We expect a tough game at home,” Eguma told the club’s official website, www.riversunited.com.ng.
“Heartland are rivals that know us very well so we expect a tough game from
them.
“We are not afraid. We can contain them and we are going to plan to win because
the three points at stake is very important,” he said.
Heartland’s Director of Media and Communications, Solomon ‘Mourinho’ Onu
however believes the Owerri club will not be beaten in Port Harcourt.
“We had our noses bloodied after the last game against MFM. It was a game we
dominated but we will correct our mistakes in Port Harcourt on Sunday,” 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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