Nigerian Football
ABS UNVEILS NEW PLAYERS
BY OLAYINKA OWOLEWA
Abubakar Bukola Saraki (ABS) Ilorin FC, on Thursday unveiled its new players ahead of the commencement of the 2019/2020 Nigeria National League (NNL).
Unveiling the players, the club’s Director of football, Alloy Chukwuemeka, urged the players to be good ambassadors of the club.
He told them that the motto of the club is Discipline and that they must uphold it wherever they found themselves not only on the pitch.
Chukwuemeka assured them that their welfare would be given top priority and asked the new boys to reciprocate with good performances when the league kicks off on Friday.
The Nigeria Premier league Club Owners’ Scribe, congratulated the new players for scaling through the trial processes before they were picked by the coach and asked them to justify the confidence reposed in them by the Technical Crew.
Two of the 17 players unveiled, Sufian Bello and Muri Dagbo were from the youths.
The other 15 players are: Abiola Sabitu, a goalkeeper, Obinna Ezeoha, striker, Abdulraheem Saad,
Eghosa Anderson, Mubarak Akorewe are all wingers.
The others are Saheed Ogunmoye, Elijah Akanmu, Yunusa Nazifi, Ridwan Gafar who are all defenders. Also signed are midfielders: Joshua Obeng, Christopher Chukwujekwu, Taofik Aremu, Azeez Abdulsalam. The club also signed two wingers: Ignatius Goje and
Samaila Bulus.
The Kits Manager of the club, Rasheed Adeniyi, was presented with the staff outstanding award for the year while coach Shuaib Abdulkadir, who was sent to a refresher course by the club, also presented his certificate to the club’s Director of football.
The unveiling was witnessed by the chairman of the Kwara Football Association, Malam Idris Musa, the ABS Head Coach, Yomi Elijah, veteran sports journalist, Bayour Issa, chairman Nigeria Football Coaches Association, Kwara chapter, Coach Tunde Sanni and a host of others.
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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