Nigerian Football
At Last Aiteo Cup Kicks Off
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
The Aiteo Cup kicks off on Tuesday with 10 matches on the card. It is the first edition, but 71st national competition overall as it is an offshoot of the Federation Cup which itself sprang from the preceding national competitions of Governor’s Cup (1945-1954), Challenge Cup (1955-1995) and Coca-Cola FA Cup (1996-2008). Spots Village Square recalls that the national competition has been holding annually with the exception of 1973 which did not hold owing to congested calendar that included the football competition of the first National Sports Festival in which club players featured for the then 12 states of Nigeria which in turn had to produce three teams each of senior, intermediate and junior.
An earlier media release from the NFF was silent on whether there will be a change of trophy. If a new trophy is presented, Sports Village Square can reveal that it will be the 10th trophy to be at stake.
The original trophy that was donated by the then Governor General of Nigeria, Lord Milverton who was then known as Sir Arthur Fredericks Richards was changed in 1970.
The new trophy at the time was bought at cost of £1,000 from the firm Gerard and Company, Crown Jewellers of London. The silver trophy was to mark the silver jubilee of the competition. It was brought to Nigeria in September 29, 1970. Other change of trophies took place in 1979, 1989, 1995, 1996, 2006, 2009 and 2015.
The first on the Aiteo Cup fixtures released on Tuesday by the Communications Department of the NFF is the Minda FC versus Niger Tornadoes Feeders. The teams meet in Jos.
All the 10 matches will feature the lowly ranked teams. A record will be in the offing for the first player to score a goal in the new competition of Aiteo Cup.
Besides that, other posers to look for include the first to get yellow card or even expulsion. Record keepers will look for the first penalty kick or even the first goalkeeper to save a penalty kick.
The Tuesday Fixtures:
- Minda FC (Benue) Vs Tornadoes Feeders (Niger) – Jos
- Moyero FC (Ondo) Vs Fashmog FC (Ekiti) – Ibadan
- Young Talent (Sokoto) Vs Haifa FC (Jigawa) – Kaduna
- Ayade Babes (Cross River) Vs Lexington FC (Taraba) – Lokoja
- Kaka FC (Kaduna) Vs Potiskum Academy (Yobe) – Bauchi
- FC Galadima (Kebbi) Vs Jarma FC (Zamfara) – Sokoto
- Sam Daddy FC (Imo) Vs Coal City FC (Enugu) – Nnewi
- George Turnah FC (Bayelsa) Vs Ngwa FC (Ebonyi) – Umuahia
- Spartan FC (Lagos) Vs JCTC FC (Ogun) – Akure
- IfeanyiUbah Feeders (Nnewi) Vs Cynosure FC (Ebonyi) – Owerri
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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