Sports
Fans Express Disappointment In Home-based Eagles
Home based Super Eagles led by ex-international, Daniel Amokachi last weekend failed to qualify for the second African Nations Championship slated for Sudan for the second time.
This followed the team’s goalless draw against the Mena of Niger at the Sanni Abacha Stadium, in Kano.
The Eagles needed to score three unreplied goals against Niger to qualify for the tournament afte losing the first leg encounter in Niamey 2:0.
Chibuzor Okoronkwo, had a golden opportunity of at least ensuring that Nigeria scored a goal, via the penalty spot but he missed it.
Not even the six minutes added time could make any difference, as the resolute visitors ensured their defence and goal were not breached.
It would be recalled that prior to Angola 2010 Nations Cup, erstwhile Super Eagles Coach Amodu Shaibu stated categorically that no home based player would make his squad, because they were not good enough. This statement raised dust from different quarters.
While, it seems Shaibu Amodu has been vindicated by the home based Eagles, fans are divided in their opinions concerning the statement accredited to former Eagles’ coach.
Wobo said, Nigeria has the potentials and quality players in the local league that can rule not only Africa, but the world. He went further to say that Heartland FC of Owerri reached last season CAF champion league. Kano Pillars and Bayelsa United both reached the semi-finals of CAF champions league and Confederation Cup respectively.
And about 90% of players in these clubs that achieved these facts are Nigerians that ply their trade in our league.
He believes that the Home based Eagles failed to qualify because they were hurriedly put together. There was no time for early preparation and blending of the players.
In his reaction, Onyekachi, a football fan, should accept the fact that our league is poorly organized, thus given rise to poor players. According to him, twice we have failed to qualify for the same tournament. It simply means that our home-based players are not good enough, he stated.
“I don’t even watch Nigerian League, because of the high rate of insecurity at the stadium, no live telecast of the matches etc. How would I know if we have the potentials or not? He queried.
However, some fans expressed utter disappointment over the outcome of theCHAN qualifier when they said, they were highly disappointed that a country whose league is rated as the best in Africa could not qualify for a tournament meant for players in African League.
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.
