Nigerian Football
TESLIMI ‘THUNDER’ BALOGUN REMAINS NIGERIA’S GREATEST OF ALL TIME, SAYS ONIGBINDE
As the family of Nigeria’s legendary footballer, Tesilimi Balogun, marks the 48th anniversary of his demise, two-time chief coach of Nigeria, Chief Adegboye Onigbinde has emphatically stated that Balogun was the best footballer ever produced by Nigeria.
Balogun died in his sleep his sleep in 1972. Onigbinde, a former FIFA and CAF coaching instructor, noted that: The greatest footballer Nigeria has ever produced was Teslim ‘Thunder’ Balogun.
“There is no doubt about it. As a footballer, he did many things players before his time, those of his time and after and even years to come did not do and have not been able to do with the ball.
According to Onigbinde, the greatest goal scored by any player he had seen was scored by ‘Thunder’ Balogun at the Olubadan Stadium in 1958 during the reciprocal tour of Nigeria by selected England amateur players.
“The English players were always on him each time he received the ball. To beat the pressure off, ‘Thunder’ stood outside the 18-yard box with his back turned at the England goalkeeper.
“A ball was floated to him from the midfield and the English players were waiting for him to bring it down. But against their imagination, he staggered a bit, and in turning, he fired a shot at the goalpost, which saw the goalkeeper diving the other way while the ball was already shaking the net,” Onigbinde stated.
The former Trinidad and Tobago coach stressed that, “the story of ‘Thunder’ Balogun will never die. For those of us who watched him played, we saw him as Nigeria’s greatest footballer.”
Sports Village Square is in possession of a photograph taken in 1961 and has both Chief Onigbinde and Balogun along with Israeli-born Nigerian coach Moshe Berth haLevi and other bourgeoning Nigerian coaches of that era
Onigbinde noted: “He died in his sleep on July 30, 1972 at the relatively young age of 45years old, but the heroics of Thunder Balogun lives forever.
“Everybody called him Thunder Balogun but at birth he was named Tesilim Akanni Balogun. His father was a cricketer. He attained legendary status after he became the first Nigerian to play professional football in England.”
Teslim played for Apapa Bombers, Marine, Railway, Plateau, Pan Bank and Dynamo all between 1944 and 1961. He won the Challenge Cup five times in seven final appearances and was the first player to score a hat-trick in the Challenge Cup final when he put three goals past Warri XI as Pan Bank won the 1952 final 6-1.
In 1949, he was part of Nigeria’s first national team, known as the UK Tourists team that toured the United Kingdom. After that encounter he signed for Peterborough FC, becoming the first Nigerian to play professional football in England.
He also had professional stints with Holbeach and Queens Park Rangers where he played 13 times and scored three goals in 1956.
His playing career lasted from 1945 to 1962 and he was in the coaching crew for Nigeria to the 1968 Olympic Games where the country drew 3-3 against Brazil.
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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