SPORTS
Flamingos Thrash Guinea’s Under-17 Girls, Romp into Final Round
Nigeria’s national under-17 female football team, the Flamingos, were dominant as they trounced their counterparts from Guinea 5-1 at the Agege Stadium in Lagos on Saturday.
Victory helped them to reach the final round of the African qualifying series for this year’s FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup, after an 11-2 aggregate win.
No surprises were expected from the match, following Flamingos’ 6-1 demolition of the Guineans on their home ground in Conakry a week ago.
It looked like a similar scoreline was in the offing as the home girls easily created scoring chance after chance.
But they fluffed so many of them, with Oluwayemisi Samuel and Taiwo Lawal the biggest culprits.
Samuel’s feeble shot could not trouble goalkeeper Haidara Cherif in the 16th minute, then Lawal with only the goalkeeper to beat missed chances in the 17th and 20th minutes.
Binta Conte fired over Nelly Ekeh’s goal at the other end.
But in the 28th minute, Rofiat Imuran, who netted a hat-trick in the 6-1 defeat of the Guineans in Conakry, outpaced the visitors’ defence.
She coolly picked her spot and slotted in the first goal of the day.
On the half hour, Samuel lifted the ball too high as the Flamingos rushed forward again.
But Taiwo Lawal scored in the 34th and 42nd minutes to make it a comfortable 3-0 lead for Nigeria at half-time.
In the second half, Nigeria again missed a hatful of chances, instead allowing Guinea to pull one goal back from the penalty kick spot in the 84th minute.
The goal came through Fatoumata Diallo after Oluwabunmi Oladeji handled in the penalty box.
However, there was still time for two more goals for the Flamingos, as substitute Alvine Dah-Zossu beat the visitors’ offside trap in the 86th minute.
She then beat Haidara Cherif to slot into an empty net.
Chinyere Kalu, who also scored in Conakry, wrapped up a good day’s job for the Nigerians with the goal of the day.
She heaved the ball past Cherif on the stroke of time from a 22-yard free kick.
Having qualified 11-2 on aggregate, the Flamingos will now clash with their Ghanaian counterparts in the final round of the series.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Ghana also whipped Liberia 10-0 on aggregate.
The first leg match of the Nigeria/Ghana pairing will hold in Accra in the first week of May.(NAN)
SPORTS
NPFL: Nasarawa Utd pip Lobi Stars 1-0 in North Central Derby
Nasarawa United Football Club of Lafia on Saturday defeated Lobi Stars of Makurdi 1-0 in a pulsating North Central derby.
The matchday 16 fixture of the 2024/2025 Nigeria Premiere Football League (NPFL) was played at the Lafia Township Stadium, Nasarawa State capital.
The Makurdi side had adopted the Lafia Township Stadium as their home ground for the 2024/2025 NPFL season.
The only goal of the match was scored by Qamar Adegoke in the 12th minute of the match to give all three points to the Lafia side.
Adegoke’s goal, who joined the Lafia team recently, was his second in four matches.
The Nasarawa attacker capitalised on a defensive error by the opponent’s backline and hit the back of the net to give Nasarawa United the advantage.
In a post-match interview, Kabir Dogo, Technical Adviser of Nasarawa United, hailed his players for taking all three points.
He explained that his team had improved by scoring five goals in their last three matches and expressed optimism that they would do better in subsequent games.
“We had a problem in the area of goal scoring in the past, but this has changed in our last three games,” he said.
With the win, Nasarawa United climbed to 14th on the NPFL table, while Lobi Stars remain on 17th position. (NAN)
SPORTS
NTTF Hosts National Coaching Seminar
The Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) is organising a two-day National Coaching Seminar, with the theme: “Leadership and Management Skills”.
The event will take place from Dec. 17 to Dec. 18, at the Additional Sports and Entertainment (ASEP) Pro Limited, in Mowe, Ogun State.
The seminar will enhance the capabilities of Nigerian table tennis coaches, with a particular emphasis on female coaches, aligning with the International Table Tennis Federation’s (ITTF) Gender Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (GEDI) Initiative.
A statement issued by the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation, on Tuesday, said that the seminar was part of the one-week sports and leadership boot camp titled “Awaken the Giant, She Can 4.
0,” proudly supported by NTTF.“This seminar will also represent the third stage of the 2024 “My Gender, My Strength” programme, which has table tennis star Abosede Akinsete, as a beneficiary.
“NTTF President,Tikon Ishaku, Vice President, Adesoji Tayo, and other board members are dedicated to initiatives that support the development of coaches.
“Wahid Enitan-Oshodi, ITTF Executive Vice President, and President of ITTF-Africa, reaffirms his commitment to empowering women in sports, in line with the GEDI Initiative.
He explained that the seminar would feature people, who would speak on leadership and management skills, to enhance the abilities of coaches to identify and develop talents, as well as encourage the development of high-performance table tennis players capable of competing globally. (NAN)
SPORTS
Rivers United Return to NPFL Top Spot after Remo Stars’ Defeat by Katsina United
Rivers United Football Club of Port Harcourt on Sunday returned to the 2024/2025 Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) summit as strong rivals Remo Stars FC faltered on Match Day 13.
Report says that Rivers United beat visiting Abia Warriors of Umuahia 1-0 after an Ndifreke Effiong 58th minute goal from the penalty kick spot.
Effiong’s goal in the match at the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium helped them to move to 25 points from 13 matches, after seven wins, four draws and two losses.
Former leaders Remo Stars dropped to second with 23 points from 13 matches after seven wins, two draws and four losses, following a 0-2 loss to hosts Katsina United.
Plateau United of Jos beat visiting Nasarawa United of Lafia 2-0 to bolster their position.
Shooting Stars Sports Club also struggled to a 1-0 win over visiting Bayelsa United of Yenago.
A 15th minute goal by Anthony Okachi at the Lekan Salami Stadium in Ibadan gave them the win.
El-Kanemi Warriors of Maiduguri had on Saturday beaten Akwa United of Uyo 1-0 to move into third place on the table with 22 points from 13 games.
Enyimba International of Aba remained in fourth place with 20 points from 12 matches, with their week 13 game against Sunshine Stars of Akure on hold.
Rangers International of Enugu are in fifth place with 20 points also, after a goalless draw with hosts Heartland FC ain Owerri on Saturday.
Bendel Insurance of Benin had also beaten Kwara United of Ilorin 3-1, while Lobi Stars of Makurdi drew 2-2 with visiting Kano Pillars in Lafia.
NAN reports that the league will enter Match Day 14 on Wednesday.(NAN)