Sports
Basketball’s Fixtures Promise Thrills
Basketball fans will be thrilled with tough games this weekend as Royal Hoopers of Port Harcourt host debutants, Chariots Basketball Club of Lagos in a week four fixture of the DSTV/NBBF men’s basketball premier league on Sunday.
The match promises to be interesting because Chariots, who have so far lost three games, would be seeking to make an impact by beating the Hoopers.
The Port Harcourt side have played only two matches and won both.
Chariots, however, may be disadvantaged because they will honour a game with Delta Force in Asaba tomorrow before travelling to Port Harcourt.
Hoopers, Atlantic Conference champions last season and second in the final Eight, have promised not to falter in any game.
In the other fixtures, Islanders of Lagos, 2009 Atlantic Conference winners, will host 2010 final eight second runners-up, Union Bank of Lagos.
Other fixtures are Ebun Comets of Lagos will host Dodan Warriors of Lagos.
Commenting on the fixture, Coach Ayo Bakare of Ebun Comets said he was confident his team would carry the day.
He said they were determined to win a place in the final eight this season.
His Dodan Warriors counterpart, Adeka Daudu, also boasted of victory though he admitted that the best of his young team had yet to come.
Daudu said that the club lost its experienced players to other clubs after last season and was only building a new team with young players.
“We have nothing to worry about. I know we will continue to make impact and also be among the best four teams this season,” he said.
Coach Johnson Ayinla of Union Bank told Tidesports’ source that his team was determined not only to lead the Atlantic Conference but the national league this season.
“I am confident with the performance of my boys so far, we are going to lead the league table this year because the end result of hard work is success,” he said.
On Sunday’s match against Islanders, Ayinla said they were fully prepared to maintain their unbeaten run.
Coach Lateef Erinfolami of Islanders said that losing two games did not mean that all hope was lost for his team.
“We can always bounce back to do better.
“It is not yet over for us as we believe we can still do well and make up for our shortcomings.
“The league season is just beginning and we still have a long way to go,” he said.
A well-known football pundit in the State, Chief Christopher Okonkwo has lauded the efforts and vision of the Super Eagles Coach Eric Chelle for going from one venue of the Nigeria Domestic Nigeria Professional Football League match to the other in monitoring Nigerian players, with a view to invite some exceptional good one discovered into the main stream of the Super Eagles team.
Okonkwo, who made the commendation in an interview at the Port Harcourt Club recently, described the positive move by Coach Chelle as a good step in the right direction, noting that the practice was how its been done in the past among any contracted coach assigned to tinker the Super Eagles team.
“Truly, it has been an old tradition in the country seeing any newly engaged Coach to lead the National team, visiting some our Nigeria League venues during the league matches to spot light some good talents that could be used to beef up some grey areas in the department of Eagles team”
He, however, frowned at the current situation where our coaches had continously been over depending on the use of foreign based players during invitation of players to the National camp, thereby, relegating the domestic home based league players to the background as if they have nothing much to offer to the team.
“I can vividly recall that the likes of great players in the mode of Finidi George, Taribo West, Kanu Nwankwo, Austin Okocha, Richard Owobokiri, Emmanuel Osuigwe among others started from Nigeria football league before they graduated to play in Europe through which they later invited to Super Eagles camp to represent Nigeria”
“Besides, I’m also of the view that going to secondary school football competitive games could equally serves as a a good platform to discover budding talents that could be nurtured to become great stars in near future”, Okonkwo frankly added.
Okonkwo, therefore, prayed that any football coach to be engaged by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to tinker the Super Eagles should be told not to confine himself in staying in big hotel alone but to be visiting some of our local league match venues, with a view to discover some good players that can be drafted into the Super Eagles team.
“Indeed, I stand to be challenged that there some young good players in the Nigeria Professional League. If spotted and exposed, could give the some of the invited foreign based players a stiff competitive fight in securing a postion in the team”, Okonkwo emphatically stated.
Ezechukwu, one of the youngest members of the Nigerian contingent at the championship in Ghana, said her ambition was to win the 100m title in style and cap it with a new personal record.
The fresh secondary school graduate explained that she is fully focused on contributing to Team Nigeria’s medal hopes and is determined to deliver strong performances across her events.
“My main objective in Ghana is to clinch the 100m title and the 4×100m,” Ezechukwu told Tidesports source.
“Nigeria can be assured of my very best and my commitment to the Team. I would love to set a new personal best in Ghana, but anything that comes, I will take it. The spirit in the team is high, and I think we are ready to go,” she said.
Ezechukwu, who was part of Nigeria’s women’s 4x100m relay squad at the World Relays in Botswana, said the experience gained from that competition has strengthened her mindset heading into the continental championships.
She admitted that she learned valuable lessons from her previous outing, including a difficult moment during the relay where an early error affected the team’s rhythm, but said she has used the experience to improve her discipline and composure.
“The secret is just being disciplined, training hard and trusting my coach and believing in God, and the result will show,” she added.
The teenager is part of a 41-member Nigerian team comprising 24 female and 17 male athletes competing at the championships, which begin today at the University of Ghana, Legon.
Nigeria are expected to compete across multiple track and field events as they aim for a strong finish against the continent’s elite athletes.
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