Sports
K J United Secures First Win In NLO Play Off
United Football Club of Kaduna has returned to winning ways with a 2-1 win over ABU FC of Zaria on Wednesday at the ongoing Nationwide League One (NLO) playoff in Ilorin.
Victory came for them after they lost 2-3 to Remo Stars Academy on match day 1 at the competition.
Suhala Nehemiah put K.J United in the driving seat in the 37th minute with a penalty kick, while Mathias Kato doubled the lead in the 73rd minute.
Jamilu Usman pulled one back for ABU FC from a scramble in the penalty area in the 86th minute to register his third goal of the playoff.
In the other match played at the Kwara Football Academy (KFA) pitch centre, Kaduna United forced Seat of God to a 1-1 draw in an entertaining encounter.
Esson Muse’s goal in the 19th minute only led the game for just 60 seconds when Daniel Philemon levelled the scores in the 20th minute of play.
Ottasolo FC is leading the park in the Kwara Stadium Complex centre with six points and a +5 goals difference.
Remo Stars Academy occupies the second spot with six points and a +2 goals difference.
K.J United is in third place on the log with three points from two games with no goal difference, just as Vet Rovers in fourth place.
But the Kaduna-based team has a superior goal for, than the Vom-based side.
EKSU Galacticaos are at the bottom of the log with no point, having lost their first match on Tuesday to Vet Rovers 1-0.
Both FC Ebedei and ABU FC are languising at the bottom of the log without any point from their first two games.
At the KFA pitch centre, Seat of God is leading with four points from two games while Olukisment FC of Ekiti trails them.
They have the same number of points and same goals difference +1, but they are in the second position.
Hammola International FC is third on the log with three points from one game.
Kaduna United and Mighty Jets are fourth and fifth on the table respectively with one point each.
Knight FC who has played one game less has no point.
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.