Nigerian Football
RIVERS UNITED AIM AT ENDING WOLVES’ UNBEATEN RUN
BY SAMMY WEJINYA
Warri Wolves and Rivers United go toe to toe as the Nigeria
Professional Football League (NPFL) enters Match Day Five.
Wolves are unbeaten in the division but
following three draws from their opening four games of the campaign, they have
amassed six points out of a possible 12.
United on the other hand have garnered five
points from their opening four games of the season and will be looking to post
a creditable performance in Warri on Sunday.
The ‘Pride of Rivers’ are riding the crest of a
wave following their 2-1 win over Enugu Rangers at the Yakubu Gowon Stadium,
Port Harcourt in midweek.
It was a victory that came at a price as Shuji
Oshobe and Victor Chidume both picked up serious-looking injuries before the
game came to a close.
The two men will undergo late fitness tests to
ascertain their readiness for Sunday’s game.
Technical manager of United, Stanley Eguma will
also have to make a decision on whether Ossy Martins will return to the
starting XI after Fortune Omoniwari deputized with distinction against the
Flying Antelopes on Wednesday.
Wolves have been unbeatable this season.
In captain, Goodluck Onamado, the have a leader,
a warrior of many battles, who has CAF Champions League and CAF Confederation
Cup experience under his belt.
Michael Egbeta, Brown Braye and Efe Yahere are
also other dyed in the wool campaigners while Olalere Oluwasegun, Williams
Sunday and Dikoo Mayor represent the new breed of the Warri club.
Club supremo, Etu Moses says he expects a good
match on Sunday.
“We expect a very good match,” Etu told the
official Rivers United website, www.riversunitedfc.com.ng.
“We met in Ijebu-Ode during pre-season but it is
going to be a different ball game this time around,” he said.
Eguma also voiced his sentiments ahead of the
contest.
“We have to perfect our strategy to ensure that
we get points in Warri. We have lost points in Warri and we will try to see
that we pick points in Warri,” 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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