Sports
Perm Sec Lauds Information Football Team
In appreciation of the performance of the “Mighty Sparrows” of Information at the recently concluded Head of Service Football Competition, the Management of the Ministry led by the permanent Secretary, Dr. Godwin Mpi, has organised a reception for the player.
Speaking at the reception, the Permanent Secretary congratulated them for their brilliant performance, adding that although they did not lift the trophy, they performed credibly well.
He assured the players of the Ministry’s support and encouragement in subsequent compeitiotns and enjoined them to put in more effort.
Dr. Mpi commended the Head of Service, Mrs Esther Anucha for instituting the competition and for seeing the need for Civil Servants in the State to be involved in Sporting activities.
He thanked the Directors in the Ministry, the General Managers of the Parastatals for their support both morally and financially, and the Coach of the team Mr. Walter Inegbenesie for his effort in training the team and early procurement of kits for the competition.
In her address, the General Manager of Rivers State Broadcasting Corporation, Ms. Medline Tador, commended the players for their collective efforts which placed them in a second position in the competition.
She congratulated the team for not conceding any goal during the match, stressing that although they lost through penalty Kicks to Ministry of Commerce and Industry, they were not losers.
Speaking on behalf of the players, the Captain of the team, Mr. Honour Sirawoo, thanked the Permanent Secretary and the entire ministry for the reception, noting that they never expected a reception having lost the final.
He thanked the players for their cooperation and the management for their support and assured them that the team will do better next year.
The highlight of the progamme was the presentation of a total cash gift of N150,000 to the team.
It will be recalled that the Mighty Sparrows of Information, a team which represented the Ministry of Information at the just concluded Head of Service football competition, lost to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry 4-3 during a penalty shoot out. Before Commerce and Industry, the team encountered various ministries without conceding a goal: the journey began with beating Local Government Commission 4-0, next was Deputy Governor’s Office which bowed 1-0 to them and Ministry of Sports which crashed 2 -0 to them. The Team in addition to being the runner up also produced the highest goal scorer of the league, Mr Francis Edookor.
Athletes competing in an almost empty stadium.
The Kenya Football Federation (FKF) has launched an investigation into allegations that goalkeeper Patrick Matasi has been involved in match manipulation.
The 37-year-old, who plays for Kenyan Premier League club Kakamega Homeboyz, has won over 30 international caps.
His most recent appearance for the Harambee Stars came in October last year, in a qualifier for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.
An undated video posted online appears to show Matasi agreeing a deal to influence the outcome of a league game.
“I have spoken to him. He was also shocked at what he was seeing in the video and he told me he doesn’t know about match-fixing,” Homeboyz owner Cleophas Shimanyula told Tidesports source .
The FKF said it would work with world governing body Fifa, the Confederation of African Football and other “relevant authorities” during its investigation.
“We reaffirm our zero-tolerance policy on match manipulation and are committed to safeguarding the credibility of our competitions,” a statement added.
“This investigation will adhere to FKF’s anti-match manipulation regulations and Fifa guidelines, ensuring a fair, transparent, and thorough process.
“The rights of the player and his club will be respected, and appropriate action will be taken based on the findings.”
Shimanyula backed Matasi, pointing to the fact the veteran has kept three clean sheets in as many games since joining the club a month ago.
“When we watched this video, we found that Matasi has not wronged the club,” he said.
“In a video there can misinterpretations and false narratives and we cannot trust everything.
“He will keep playing for us because there’s no wrongdoing on his part as far as we are concerned – unless there’s evidence or the FKF writes to us to say they are suspecting the player of some wrongdoing.
“He is innocent until proven guilty and then we will act.”
The FKF has called on anyone with credible information to assist its investigation, with any reports to be handled with strict confidentiality.
Shimanyula also challenged the Kenyan footballing community to provide evidence against Matasi.
“Kakamega Homeboyz is against any form of match manipulation,” he said.
Uefa has opened an investigation into allegations of indecent conduct by four Real Madrid players during their Champions League last-16 win against Atletico Madrid.
Antonio Rudiger, Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Jr and Dani Ceballos allegedly made gestures towards the home fans after Real Madrid beat their city rivals on penalties to book their place in the quarter-finals.
TV pictures showed German defender Rudiger appearing to make a throat-slitting motion, apparently towards the crowd after the shootout victory, while Mbappe was shown seemingly making a crotch-grabbing gesture.
Spanish media said Atletico reported the actions to Uefa last week.
The players could be at risk of suspension but there is no guarantee the case will be heard before their quarter-final with Arsenal. The first leg for that tie is at Emirates Stadium on 8 April and the return leg a week later.
In a statement, Uefa said: “[An] ethics and disciplinary inspector has been appointed to investigate allegations of indecent conduct” made by the four Real Madrid players.
“Further information regarding this matter will be made available in due course.”
The Premier League has announced it will have two transfer windows this summer to allow Manchester City and Chelsea to sign players before the Club World Cup.
The window will open between Sunday, 1 June and Tuesday, 10 June, then close for five days before running again from Monday, 16 June until Monday, 1 September.
This summer features the first expanded Fifa Club World Cup, which involves 32 teams and adopts the format of the regular World Cup of the past few years.
Chelsea and Manchester City are the Premier League teams in the tournament which takes place in the United States from Sunday, 15 June.
But the Premier League can only have 12 weeks of a summer window – hence the five-day break in order to run it until 1 September.
Fifa has allowed new players to be registered for the Club World Cup from 1-10 June, and again from 27 June-3 July for the knockout stage.
This is happening firstly, to bring order to the global registration system, world governing body Fifa only permits the transfer window in any individual country to be open for 16 weeks in any calendar year.
In Europe, precedent dictates four of those weeks are for the winter window, leaving 12 in the summer. In 2024, the Premier League transfer window opened on 14 June and closed on 30 August.