Sports
Rivers Angels Extend Lead In Group B
Mercy Amanze, Chioma
Wogu and Glory Iroka were all on the scoresheet as champions, Rivers Angels inflicted a 3-0 defeat over visiting Delta Queens in a Match Day 7 of the Nigeria Women Premier League at the weekend to remain group leaders.
The visitors thought they had taken the lead in the fifth minute through a close-range strike from Godwin Maureen but the effort was ruled out for an offside.
Both teams continued to knock on the door with the Delta side having most of the ball in the first half.
On resumption to the second half, Mercy Amanze pounced on a rebound after a few seconds of the restart to break the deadlock for the Edwin Okon led side.
With the 46th minute goal, the Port Harcourt side had the upper hand in possession as they continued to press for more goals.
Charity John pulled off a brilliant save in the 65th minute from an Ikehua Oghene Brume’s strike to ensure Angels maintained their lead.
Chioma Wogu added a second in the 71st minute from yet another rebound to compound more woes on the visitors.
In the 90th minute, Iroka sent in a superb strike from outside the box to wrap things up for the champions.
Coach of Delta Queens George Emenetie is still hopeful of topping the group despite the setback on Saturday.
“That’s why it’s a game, our intention was to come and absorb the pressure but it didn’t work that way, but all the same it was a very good match,” he said.
“The goals do not tell the story of the match, we ought to have gone home with a draw but the officiating was questionable because we got a very good goal in the first half which was disallowed.
“That’s why it’s a game and the league is a marathon, we may end up topping the group, that is our belief.” the Delta coach added.
On his part, Technical Adviser of Rivers Angels, Edwin Okon said the victory wasn’t an easy one.
“I’m a happy man because 3 points, 3 goals is not an easy job against a team like Delta and a little pep talk made the girls realized there was something at stake,”
“We had to raise our game in the second half because the match is not won until you bury the ball inside the net,” he said.
With the win, Rivers Angels extend their lead in group B to 13 points from 7 matches and will next take on Taraba Queens this weekend.
Heartland Technical Manager, Emmanuel Amuneke has praised his players for not losing focus at the crucial moment in Sunday’s 2-1 home win over Shooting Stars in a NPFL Matchday 24 fixture in Owerri.
The Naze Millionaires defeated the Oluyole Warriors through Chukwuma Agor and John Bassey goals in the 31st and 88th minutes with Mustapha Adam’s 80th minute spot kick a mere consolation for the visitors.
Amuneke while speaking to journalists shortly after the encounter, said his boys showed the zeal and determination to seal the three points and that despite the shenanigans of the centre referee, Kolawole Emmanuel, the boys were never troubled.l
“We were eager to get the three points and we were aware Shooting Stars are a good side and won’t allow us to have our way easily,” Amuneke told journalists in Owerri.
“We planned for them and almost throughout the entire game, they were never a threat to our team. We were able to control the game from the beginning. It was unfortunate how the game ended. We were just focussed on the three points and we are thrilled we got it. It was a very good game from both sides but we subjected them to constant pressure almost throughout the game.”
While he was asked if he believed his boys could finish the season impressively, Amuneke was evasive but noted that he and his players would continue to work harder.
“Everything in line is possible but we know that nothing happens without hard work. We will continue to work harder and continue to see how we can grow as a team. We have a lot of young players in the team. Some of them just got their topflight breakthrough.
“We didn’t lose focus at the time of the controversies. We continued to do the same thing we have been doing and taking the game to them.”
Former President Goodluck Jonathan, on Monday, turned the sod of the new Olympic-standard 25,000-capacity Bayelsa Stadium project at Igbogene, Yenagoa, as part of the activities marking the fifth anniversary of the Senator Douye Diri administration.
The former Nigerian leader performed the ground-breaking ceremony as Governor Diri restated his appeal to the federal government, the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), oil firms operating in the state and the private sector to join hands with his administration to develop sporting talents.
The Federal Government through the National Sports Commission (NSC) and the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) equally thumped up Governor Diri for initiating the project.
Dr. Jonathan expressed delight over the project, saying as a Bayelsan, he was duty bound to celebrate with the state government for the progress so far achieved.
He lauded Diri’s developmental strides, urging him not to rest on his laurels and that the contractor and the state government should ensure the project met the highest standards.
Jonathan also called on the state and federal governments to set up a sports fund to cater for sportsmen after their active days and encourage younger ones to be involved in sports.
He said: “This is my state and I have to celebrate with the government for the progress so far made. This is an iconic project that will develop the state. Please do not rest on your laurels as we want this stadium to meet the best standards.
“I am happy with the presence of relevant federal government officials. I hope they will guide the state well and support where necessary.
“As a country, we must have a fund to care for sportsmen. The federal and state government can think about it so that the younger generation will be interested in sports.
“I am happy that you gave a target of 24 months and I hope that by that time I will escort President Tinubu to Bayelsa to inaugurate it.”
The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has condoled the family of former Nigeria international midfielder, Ayo Ogunlana, who died in Kaduna on Friday after observing his early-morning walk.
NFF General Secretary, Dr Mohammed Sanusi, showered tributes on the departed midfield pearl, who was a star attraction during a number of important Nigeria FA Cup battles in the 1980s and held sway in the middle for the Super Eagles in the late 1980s, and at the 1990 Africa Cup of Nations finals in Algeria.
“We are very sad to learn of the sudden passing of Ayo Ogunlana, only a couple of weeks after the demise of another former Eagle, Moses Effiong (a member of the 1980 AFCON-winning Green Eagles squad, in far-away USA). Ogunlana was a great midfielder who made playing football look so easy with his majestic touches and turns, and his magnificent free-kicks.
“We pray that the Almighty will grant both of them eternal rest and grant the families they have left behind the fortitude to bear the losses.”
Ogunlana was magisterial in the midfield as Nigeria overhauled Guinea and Zimbabwe to qualify for the 1990 Africa Cup of Nations, and was imperial against Cameroon in a 1990 FIFA World Cup qualifying match in Ibadan that the Super Eagles won with an emphatic 2-0. He also played in the 1990 ECOWAS Cup competition that Nigeria hosted in Kaduna.