SPORTS
Kwara United Eyes Volleyball Premier League
The Coach of Kwara United Men Volleyball Team, Adewale Badamosi, on Sunday, said the team was eyeing promotion to the premier league.
Badamosi spoke at the ongoing Volleyball Division One League tournament holding in Abuja.
The match played at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, Kwara United defeated Caliphate Spikers of Sokoto, 3-0, having trounced their opponents, 25-22, 25-15 and 25-12 in the three sets.
The coach said his focus was to win all the matches and move to next league in the second phase of the ongoing National Volleyball Division One tournament.
“This is not the first time of meeting Caliphate Spikers, we met them during the first phase and we defeated them 3-0.
“This is the second time we are meeting them and we also defeated them; my boys are here to show their fitness and experience in the game.
“We need to win all our remaining matches. We earlier on tied with Bauchi and we have to win more games to qualify.
“We have to win all our remaining matches so that we can qualify for the premier League,” Badamosi said.
Ibrahim Abdullahi, the Coach of Caliphate Spikers of Sokoto, said that his players did well in spite of the fact that they lost.
“There must be a winning side and losing side in any game.
“We have played two games out of seven. In our next game, we are going to do better than what we did now,” he said.
In another match, Kada Kings of Kaduna defeated Oyo’s Oluyole Spikers, 25-20, 25-20 and 25-13.
The Head Coach of Kada Kings, Jonathan David, said it was “an interesting“ match.
“We have defeated them before in the first phase and definitely we knew that we were going to beat them in the second phase.
“We prepared well for this league and we intend to deliver better results,” he said.
He said his team would be meeting ABM of Katsina on Monday and looking forward to doing well.
“It is quite difficult for a team to get to the top and more difficult to stay on top. To stay at the top we will prepare more, we are not going to take Katsina for granted,” he said.
A total of 10 teams are participating in the league.
The men’s teams are Kada Kings of Kaduna, Wikki Spikers of Bauchi , Kwara United, ABM of Kastina, Oluyole Spikers of Oyo, Spartans Spikers of Yola, Caliphate Spikers of Sokoto and Equity Spikers of Kebbi.
In the female category are Kwara United and Zamfara Babes.
The second phase of the National Volleyball Division One League, which started on Nov. 20, will end on Nov. 28. (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)