Sports
Rivers Angels Retire Federation Cup Trophy …Enyimba Douses Wolves’ Ambition
Rivers state darling football
club, Rivers Angels FC last Sunday at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos won the women’s 2013 Federation Cup title, courtesy of a commanding 3-0 victory over Nasarawa Amazons.
The victory marked the fourth time, the third on the trot the Angels would be winning the title after triumphing in 2011and 2012. As a result, they have now won the trophy for keeps.
The women’s final kicked off a memorable 68th edition of the Federation Cup which also had Enyimba International FC of Aba contesting the men’s version against Warri Wolves of Delta state.
Apparently motivated by a pre-match pep talk by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Sports, Mrs Comfort Nwihioka, which assured them that the government and people of Rivers State were behind them, and Governor Amaechi’s commitment to rewarding success, the Angels turned on the style to rout the Amazons.
A final that kicked off with a promise of a keen contest, owing to the Amazons’ initial enterprise tapered to a one- sided affair after Gloria Ofoegbu put the Angels ahead in the 45th minute.
On resumption of the second half, Angels further proved their class by dominating proceedings. Elizabeth Addo made it 2-0 in the 58th minute to take the game beyond their opponents, while Ofoegbu grabbed her brace and Angels’ third goal in the 82nd minute to throw their camp into celebration.
In the men’s final, it was a perfect advertisement for Nigerian domestic football as Enyimba and Wolves lived up to their pre- match hype. Both clubs played exquisite football to the admiration of the spectators.
In deed, the final promised to be an attraction as supporters of the clubs struggled to out do each other in colourful demonstration of support for their respective teams. As hostilities began, it was Enyimba that that thrilled with good possession and flair. Warri Wolves, however took the lead in each half, only for the Peoples Elephant(Enyimba) to draw level twice to take the game to penalty shootout.
The ensued shootout saw Super Eagles defender, Azubuike Egwuekwe miss his kick to hand the title to Enyimba 4-5 on penalties.
While Enyimba and their fans celebrated with the usual Enyimba – Enyi song, Wolves’ players mourned the loss of mouth watering largesse, one 2013 toyota Avensis car, each player and two weeks all expenses paid tour of France and one million naira per goal, promised them by the Delta state government.
Other highlights of the final were the honour and recognition given to some of the veterans of the Federation Cup, Muda Lawal, Amusa Shittu, Paul Hamilton, Sebastian Brodericks-Imasuen,Jossy Dombraye,Joe Erico, Toyin Ayinla, Stanley Eguma, Dominc Iorfa and Walter Oyatogun, and the unveiling of the media tribune dedicated to late commentators, Chief Ishola Folorunsho and Ernest Okonkwo by Lagos state governor, Babatunde Fashola.
Hon Dike who spoke with sports journalists shortly after the flag off the 2024 edition of Chairman’s Football Unity Tournament at Botem Tai in Tai LGA, said the tournament is an annual event to promote peace and unity in Tai as well identify budding talents in the area for global competition.
The opening ceremony of the tournament was more like a carnival was witnessed by huge crowd including prominent indigenes of Ogoni Kingdom, sports lovers and people from all works of life.
The LGA boss revealed that special sports committee will be setup in the area to work out modalities to strengthen sports development in Tai.
He advised the participants in the tournament from various wards in the LGA to play the game by the rules and conduct themselves in a peaceful and orderly manner and use the opportunity to showcase their talents.
Hon Dike further disclosed that his administration will also give priority attention to skills development among the youth to enhance their human capacity and promote enterprise development in the area.
Earlier in his address the Chairman of Tai LGA Football Council, Elder Wisdom Gorgor said the annual football competition has been a unifying factor in Tai LGA that need to be sustained to forge more unity and development in the area.
He urged the participants to see the competition as an opportunity to embrace football as a full career and earn sustainable livelihood.
Elder Gorgor who commended the Chairman of Tai LGA, Hon Dike for his visionary leadership and tremendous development achievements recorded in the LGA under his administration, appealled to the Chairman to build a Mini Sports Stadium in the area to promote sporting activities.
The training was held at the Sani Abacha Stadium Indoor Basketball Court in Kano last Saturday.
According to the Vice President and Head of NBA Nigeria, Gbemisola Abudu, the event was part of the league’s commitment to growing broader basketball ecosystem in Nigeria and making the game more accessible across the country.
“Our first Jr. NBA clinic in Kano speaks to our commitment to growing the game in Nigeria and creating more opportunities for boys and girls to learn and play the game,” Abudu said.
“Nigeria has a rich basketball history and abundance of talent, which is evident every time you watch an NBA game. We look forward to continuing to engage with basketball stakeholders, business leaders and members of the community to further the game’s reach and impact on young people around the country,” she added.
The 2024 basketball initiative clinics of NBA Nigeria also included the league’s inaugural Jr. NBA elite camp for 150 boys and age-16 girls held at the American International School in Lagos in July.
Others include the NBA’s building of 1,000 courts in Africa over the next decade, Nigeria’s Festival Coins and Salubata named the top two winning businesses at NBA Africa Triple-Double Accelerator’s inaugural Demo Day in New York City held last September, and the third edition of “NBA Meets Art,” a curated installation celebrating basketball through the lens of Nigerian art and culture as part of West Africa’s premier art fair Art X Lagos, held in November.
Central to this vision is the federation’s investment in capacity building, evident in the just-concluded one-week Level 1 Badminton World Federation (BWF) Coaching Course, which marked a significant milestone for Nigerian badminton.
Held in Abuja, the course brought together 13 young coaches from across Nigeria. The last time such a course was held in the country was in 2017, making this a historic and transformative step.
The training was facilitated by the Badminton Confederation of Africa (BCA) in partnership with the Badminton Federation of Nigeria (BFN) and conducted by Dr. Ahmed Radah, the BCA Development Manager.
Radah, impressed by the talent he witnessed, praised Nigeria’s potential.
“Nigeria is blessed with immense talent and a strong badminton tradition. I believe this country has what it takes to dominate on the global stage,” he remarked.
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