Sports
Uganda Spoils Enyeama’s 100th Cap For Nigeria
Goalkeeper and captain
Vincent Enyeama became only the second Nigerian to win 100 caps but his celebrations were spoilt as Uganda won 1-0 in Uyo.
The southern city is where Enyeama hails from but his night was soured when Farouk Miya’s close-range shot deflected in nine minutes from time.
Enyeama, who was presented with a trophy before the match, joins Joseph Yobo on 100 caps for Nigeria.
He can beat that record when the Super Eagles play South Africa on Sunday.
The 32-year-old Lille player is the fourth African goalkeeper to become a centurion after three Egyptians – Essam El-Hadary, Nader El-Sayed and Ahmed Shobair previously achieved the feat.
After the match, Nigeria Football Federation president Amaju Pinnick was highly critical of the Super Eagles squad, which was led by caretaker coach Daniel Amokachi.
“We are supposed to be celebrating with Enyeama on his 100th cap, but your poor performance has ruined the party and Nigerians are very angry,” he told the players after the game.
“When next you receive an invitation letter to come represent Nigeria, you have a critical decision to make: accept it only if you believe you are in the frame of mind to give your everything or decline if you do not feel that way.
“The camp of the national team will no longer welcome average players or good players with poor attitude.”
Elsewhere, Gabon beat Mali 4-3 in a thrilling friendly, with Bruno Ecuele Manga scoring a 90th-minute winner in the French city Beauvais.
Borussia Dortmund’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored twice for Gabon, while West Ham’s Diafra Sakho was among Mali’s scorers.
Frenchman Alain Giresse was back in charge of Mali – who he guided to third place at the 2013 Nations Cup – for the first time since leading Senegal at this year’s finals in Equatorial Guinea.
Meanwhile, South Africa won 3-1 in Swaziland.
Thulani Hlatshwayo celebrated captaining Bafana Bafana for the first time by opening the scoring, with debutant Thabo Mnyamane and Mandla Masango also finding the net for the visitors.
The match marked the return to the starting line-up of controversial South Africa midfielder Thulani Serero from Dutch club Ajax.
He was left out of this year’s Nations Cup by coach Ephraim ‘Shakes’ Mashaba after snubbing a pre-squad announcement training camp.
The first game of the day on Wednesday came in Indonesia where Cameroon, who finished bottom of their Nations Cup group without a win, bounced back with a 1-0 victory.
Porto striker Vincent Aboubakar slotted home after 35 minutes to earn the Indomitable Lions a win in a fixture that 1990 World Cup legend Roger Milla had called ‘humiliating’ given Indonesia’s Fifa ranking of 156.
Burundi equalised twice to draw 2-2 in Mauritius and prevent French coach Didier Six celebrating his debut in charge of the Indian Ocean islanders with a victory.
A 2-0 home win for Botswana over fellow southern Africa nation Lesotho completed a six-friendly schedule designed to prepare teams for the June kick-off of the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
Sports
Football Pundit Lauds Chelle’s Effort In Monitoring Nigeria League Players
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.
Sports
LGA Boss Pledges To Reintroduce School Sports
Sports
Ezechukwu Eyes Double Gold In African Champs
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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