Sports
CAF Champs League:Al Hilal,Enyimba Seek Away Points
With half of the matches in the group stage of the CAF Champions League played, the battle lines have been drawn and the eight remaining teams in Africa’s biggest club competition know what they need to do to reach the semi-finals of the event.
Group A has shaped up to be a two-team race with Sudan’s Al Hilal and Nigeria’s Enyimba turning in some impressive performances on their way to seven points from three games. The two go on the road this weekend, looking to sew up a spot in the next round before they meet each other at the start of September.
Hilal travel to Garoua in northern Cameroon to face Coton Sport looking to record their second victory in two weeks over their rivals. In the last round, the Sudanese side overcame an early goal to win 2-1 and were fortunate to complete their fightback with a goal from a corner in the 82nd minute after the visitors had been reduced to ten men. After the win, their well-respected coach Milutin ‘Micho’ Sredojevich said his side could still improve. “We still have a long way to go, but it is easier to work with seven points from three matches. I am happy with the points but am not satisfied with my team’s performance,” he said.
Enyimba travels to Morocco to face Raja Casablanca having also just defeated their rivals, 2-0 in Aba. It was a confident performance from the Nigerians, who won this competition in both 2003 and 2004. One of the emerging stars of this year’s tournament, 25-year-old Uche Kalu, opened the scoring for his fourth goal in three group matches as the Nigerians were two ahead before the half-hour mark.
The People’s Elephant are in confident mood, and with their domestic challenge all but over, Enyimba have their focus firmly on continental glory. “We played better than Raja and outclassed them in virtually all departments,” said promising young defender Markson Ojobo about the last match with Raja before adding that the return leg “will be tough, but we will be better.” Raja’s coach, Balaci Ilie, kept up his optimistic view however, saying: “There are still nine points up for grabs. Like I always say, anything is possible in football.”
Even though sitting at the top of Group B on five points, Esperance and Wydad Casablanca will meet with a wary eye on Egyptian giants Al Ahly, who are chasing the two with four points and travel to group bottom-dwellers MC Alger. Esperance, who lost in the final of last year’s tournament to TP Mazembe and have become consistent challengers deep into the Champions League, will have the home advantage in Rades, Tunisia after drawing 2-2 in Morocco a fortnight ago.
Wydad fought back bravely in that match, scoring both their goals in the final half an hour, but they will certainly have greater defensive solidity on their mind against the powerful Sang et Or (Blood and Gold) this weekend.
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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