KUNLE SOLAJA.

With 26 days to a destiny-shaping match between Rwanda and Nigeria, the latest partners of the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, Carloha Nigeria have pledged to drive the Super Eagles to victories.

Super Eagles are lying deep below the summit of Group C of the World Cup qualifying series and are due to face table-toppers, Rwanda in a ‘must-win’ match on Monday 17 March.

Carloha, who are the exclusive dealer and franchise holders of Cherry vehicles in Nigeria signed a strategic partnership deal with the NFF.

The deal is worth N500 million with a renewable tenure of a year.

The firm pledged to support the development of football in Nigeria as the brand Cherry becomes the official automobile partner of the national teams.

The official signing ceremony at the corporate headquarters of the company on Wednesday was attended by Shehu Dikko, chairman of the National Sports Commission as well as the chieftains of the NFF led by Ibrahim Musa Gusau.

Managing Director of Carloha, Sola Adigun expressed enthusiasm about the initiative, stating that the partnership aims to have a long-lasting impact on football growth by providing essential support to grassroots and professional football initiatives.

“We believe in investing in the future of sports development in Nigeria, especially supporting the national teams.

“This partnership is a step towards strengthening football in Nigeria by ensuring that players and teams receive the necessary support to excel.”

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BY JOHNKENNEDY UZOMA, OWERRI

Rejuvenating Heartland scored one of their memorable victories on Sunday when they dramatically beat visiting league title contenders, Shooting Stars 2-1.

Heartland’s coach, Emmanuel Amuneke admitted it was not an easy match as he had to dig deep to get the necessary result.

He remarked that his boys had to take control of the midfield to cut off possible lively ball passing by the Shooting Stars.

He praised his lads for remaining focused on the match plans and subjected the visiting side to intense pressure.

As a result, Shooting Stars had to resort to long balls to locate their strikers up front as the midfield had been condoned off.

“Our target was to pick all the available three points as we steadily climb up the ladder.”

Heartland has now moved up to the 12th position on the log after obtaining 32 points, just six below what the current fourth-placed team, Enugu Rangers has.

He however regretted the penalty controversies that enveloped the encounter in which the referee was believed to have made questionable calls.

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BY ORI MARTINS, Dan Anyiam Stadium Owerri

I expected the Sunday, February 16, 2025, Premier League match between Heartland of Owerri and Shooting Stars of Ibadan at the Dan Anyiam Stadium, to be tough and tension-soaked.

Shooting Stars have a rich history that is more than six decades old. Heartland used to be one of the most respected teams in the country.

As Spartans, they played to the final of the WAFU Cup in 1982 when WAFU used to be respected and had sub-regional cult following. As Iwuanyanwu Nationale, they were five times Nigerian league champions and in 1988 played to the final of the elusive CAF Champions League.

Since metamorphosing into Heartland, they have been Federation Cup winners twice as well as grabbing silver in the Champions League.

The two coaches, Emmanuel Amuneke and Gbenga Ogunbote have proved their worth in their previous duty posts, respectively. Amuneke in the junior national teams, and Ogunbote, with various Premier League clubs.

 Thus, the stage was set for a beautiful game to be enjoyed by the fans.

The two sides were equal to the challenges of the day. Heartland dominated the midfield in the first half while Shooting Stars adapted the long ball strategy to frustrate their host’s dominance in the midfield.

Eventually, Heartland got the curtain raiser before the end of the first half.

However, the referee, Kolawole Emmanuel from Kwara State Sports Council, could not effectively control the game in the second half.

Heartland attackers made the Shooting Stars defence to look ordinary but were on several occasions denied by the ever-calculating goalkeeper of the visitors who combined Emmanuel Okala’s alertness, Best Ogedegbe’s calmness, and Vincent Enyeama’s agility.

About the 84th  minute, the referee committed one of those blunders very clearly associated with most Nigerian referees.

He signalled for a penalty for a foul committed outside the penalty box. It was a most shameful act. It was one of those actions of Nigerian referees that certainly made CAF not shortlist them for continental assignments, particularly the Nations Cup.

When was it last that a Nigerian referee participated in any FIFA-organized competitions?

If not for the maturity of Owerri fans who comported themselves accordingly, the situation would have gone out of hand and the worse might have happened. Thus, why did the referee make that kind of dubious decision?

The authorities of the Nigeria Premier League and the NFF must always ensure that the bad eggs in the Nigeria Referee Association are shown the exit door to make the Nigerian League better, bigger, and more attractive.

The game eventually ended 2- 1 as the referee awarded a penalty to Heartland which was taken twice following the insistence of the referee that Shooting Stars goalkeeper moved before the first penalty was taken.

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