April, 12 2024.
By Paul Akhagbemhe
The upsets at the ongoing Chief Of the Naval Staff U-14 boys and NOWA U-17 girls football tournaments continued Friday at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium as best-loser teams fought their ways to the finals
Not many tipped Imo and Ebonyi girls for the final of the national championships.High riding Osun team fought hard, came from behind thrice against Imo and eventually lost 5-3.They were unable to match the firepower of Imo girls in the explosive encounter.
Also, highly organized Anambra U-17 female team handled by Ex-Super Falçons player Maureen Nmadu swallowed the bitter pills of defeat at the hands of their Ebonyi counterparts Anambra girls were one goal up and due to careless mistakes, they allowed Ebonyi to equalize.Just a minute to the end of the encounter, Ebonyi scored the winning goal to make it 2-1.
It was really sad and painful as the players couldn't believe their eyes.The boys category was more dramatic.All conquering Rivers State that had so much support from the fans ended up poorly.They lost 5-0 to 10-man Enugu team who were at their best.
Kogi team were really unlucky.The highly composed team gave a good account of themselves playing goalless at full time but couldn't convert their penalties and lost 3-2.
The final match will be between Imo and Ebonyi in the girls category while the boys final is between Enugu and Abia.Action will again resume on Saturday at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium Enugu at 3.00 pm.
The Chief Of the Naval Staff and NOWA competitions have actually revealed the presence of abundant football talents in Nigeria.For the national secretary of YSFON Patrick Okpavuerhe, the organization remains grateful to the Nigerian Navy for giving the Youths a formidable platform to exhibit their skills.The experience so far garnered will remain indelible in the hearts of football fans across the Nation.