Sports
NPFL Youth League: Rangers Chimaobi Upbeat about title Chances
Joel Ajayi
After emerging the Southeast zone Most Valuable Player in the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) Youth League, Rangers International of Enugu Youth team captain, Igwilo Chimaobi has set his eyes at leading the Coal City lads to win the national finals.
Chimaobi netted four goals in three games as Rangers won two matches and drew one to snatch the zonal ticket. He believes that the Young Flying Antelopes can achieve success in Benin given the training routines they have been put through since clinching the ticket to the finals.
“We have been working very hard to ensure that we represent our state very well in the national playoff in Benin”, Chimaobi told the club media.
He however is not under rating other teams in the competition andacknowledged that it would not be an easy contest.”It is going to be a tough championship, but by God’s grace we shall celebrate at the end of the competition”, he predicted.
The Championship finals of the NPFL Youth League for players aged below 17 years will be contested for by five teams including Remo Stars, Rivers United, Katsina United and Plateau United.
The Rangers International squad under the watch of lead Coach, Basil Obeta has been training twice daily since emerging the zonal champions.
At the Rangers camp with Obeta as assistants are illustrious former Rangersplayers including Ejike Uzoenyi (MON) and Okey Odita, a former captain of the senior team.
In his assessment of the players reaction to his training approach, Obeta said, “the boys are reacting well in training and management is fully supporting our training programs and giving us all we need to be fully prepared for the national playoff.
“It won’t be easy but with the quality we have in the team, I am positive of getting something good in Benin.”
The team will be travelling to Benin on February 23, 2024, for their opening match against Katsina United on February 26, 2024, in an early kickoff.
Sports
A Triumphant Close to the 22nd National Sports Festival
…As organisers promise another spectacle at closing ceremony on Thursday
Joel Ajayi
After 11 days of a true showcase of sporting competition in multiple Sports by some of the country’s top and even promising athletes, the curtain will finally be drawn on what many have described as one of the best ever organised National Sports festivals, when the closing ceremony is held on Thursday at the MKO Sports Arena in Abeokuta.
Whilst the quality of the Games’ opening ceremony is still getting tongues wagging, the entire sporting family and beyond is now anxiously looking forward to what the closing ceremony will look like.
The last 11 days have showcased Ogun state as a true Sporting hub with potential to even do more, with the quality of the facilities built for the games and the enthusiasm of the people who made the various venues their second home in the last few days.
A big testament to this was the history-making crowd that attended the male football final between Ogun state and Kwara State, which the host won by 4-1.
The MKO stadium was filled to full capacity while the crowd outside watching from the big screen reminds one of how much Sports is truly the soul of our togetherness as a country.
From the Alake Sports centre in Ijeja and the Baptist boys high school, to the Obafemi Awolowo square and the Remo stadium both in Ikenne, to the NYSC orientation camp in Shagamu, and the Ilisan town hall in Ilisan, the festival never lacked spectatorship throughout the games.
The Games actually lived up to the pre-tournament hype as both the National Sports Commission, NSC and the Ogun state Government pulled out every administrative capacity to ensure both athletes, officials and the media have an unforgettable experience.
The Gateway Games 2024 had been full of exciting drama and intrigues amongst the states and athletes which led to different new records being set and some old records being shattered.
The festival has also produced for the country some new exciting young talents especially with the shocking performance of the 38th state, the Invited Junior Athletes ( IJA), where they ended up winning some surprised medals to justify the Commission’s establishment of the initiative.
As the Closing ceremony holds on Thursday, the leadership of the National Sports commission, NSC, expresses its profound gratitude to the Federal Government of Nigeria and the Ogun State Government for making sure millions of Nigerian youths see a renewed brighter future in the country through the National Sports Festival.
The NSC Chairman Mallam Shehu Dilko said ” our overwhelming gratitude goes to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu,GCFR, for his personal commitment to the development of Nigerian Sports by giving us every support financially and otherwise for the success of this festival”.
” And the Ogun state Governor, Dapo Abiodun also deserves a huge praise for the feat we all recorded with these games. I can’t thank him enough and posterity will surely remember him for good “.
The NSC Director General who is also the Chairman of the Main organising committee of the games, Hon Bukola Olopade also extended his gratitude to all the technocrats behind the scene that are responsible for the successful organisation of the games.
” From all the members of the Main organising committee to the various sub committees, to members of the local organising committees and all our technical officials in the various sports to the media and our athletes, every success that everyone is talking about concerning these Games belongs to you all”.
” Yes it was not a perfect festival because we acknowledged we had also some challenges but let me assure everyone that some of the challenges are already being worked upon ahead of the next Games holding in Enugu state next year”, he concluded.
The Closing ceremony is expected to bring together top Government functionaries to captain of industries while there will also be the rich cultural display of the state as Ogun state will officially pass the barton of hosting to Enugu state for the 23rd edition of the Games come September 2026.
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