Nigerian Football
NFF PROTOCOL OFFICER, AKPENPUUN GETS AWARD OF HONOUR
Robert Terlumun Akpenpuun, who is the protocol officer of Nigeria national football teams, has been honoured in his local government area in Nigeria’s middle belt region.
Akpenpuun, an officer at the Nigerian Immigration Service is the chairman of the football council of his local government, the Vandeikya Local Government in Benue State.
According to a media release signed by David Ibi, the Head of Media and Publicity of Vandeikya Local Government Football Council, Akpenpuun was presented with the Award of Honour on the last day of 2020.
The presentation which was done by the Mbaduku Development Association (MDA) was to mark an annual celebration. It was held at Community Secondary School in Tsar.
Akpenpuun apart from being a member of the Protocol Committee of the NFF has been a football referee and a Nigeria Professional football league assessor.
According to the press release, the special Award of Honour was in recognition of his sterling qualities that have come to bear on the development of football in not only Mbaduku community, but also in the entire Kunavland and beyond.
His efforts at maintaining peace between the two hitherto warring border communities of Obudu and Tsar through football was specially mentioned and commended by the MDA as deserving of honour as peace was cardinal to development.
Responding, Apenpuun thanked the MDA, the organizers of the 2020 Mbaduku Day celebrations for the honour done him and promised to get as many football talents of Mbaduku extraction out of obscurity and into sporting limelight by the help of God.
He also brought up the idea of a Mbaduku United Football Club that will nurture these youngsters and sell them to more established professional clubs.
“I’ll like to first and foremost thank God Almighty and Mbaduku Development Association for finding me worthy of a special award.
“This honour will propel me to do more in helping talented and disciplined footballers of Mbaduku extraction further their careers in more established clubs at home and abroad.
“But this can only be possible with the formation of Mbaduku United Football Club from where these boys can be trained and exported out to the Big Leagues” he said.
Akpenpuun also commended Mbaduku leaders and elites for identifying with football as a tool for ensuring peace and development and sued for sustainable peace, cooperation and support in order to move the community to greater heights through football.
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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