Nigerian Football

Rivers United’s Ayo Saka Wins Maiden VAT Wonder Goal Award

Published

7 years ago

May 31, 2017

Ayo Saka’s 39th minute goal for Rivers United has been voted the VAT Wonder Goal in the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) Match Day 20.
Saka beat off a still challenge from Enyimba’s Ugochukwu Leonard to emerge with the popular votes cast by fans in the poll conducted on the NPFL twitter handle @lmcnpfl and the official website of the league, www.npfl.ng.
Ugochukwu beat Saka in the twitter polls, earning 47% of the votes while Saka had 38% and Afolabi Abdulwaheed picked 15%.
However, Saka who recently joined Rivers United from Sunshine Stars edged Ugochukwu by a cumulative vote of 89.5% after he picked up 51.5% of the votes cast by fans on the website with Ugochukwu winning 37.9% to end on a total of 84.9%. Abdulwaheed of Gombe United finished third with 25.6%.
In the match against Nasarawa United, Saka had perfectly controlled a pass from Zoumana Doumbia on the left flank and with his second touch of the ball, drove into the 18 yard box past two Nasarawa United defenders before unleashing a left hook from 12 yards to the roof of the net for the only goal of the fixture.
Voters favoured his effort ahead of the long range strike from over 35 yards by Ugochukwu against Remo Stars at the Sagamu Stadium.
Saka thus emerges the winner of the inaugural VAT Wonder Goal, an initiative of the League Management Company (LMC) to enhance club-community engagement and also support the Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS) mass campaign on tax education.
Saka will receive N150, 000 from which he will donate 50% to a charity of his choice in Rivers State where his club is based.
The prize will be presented at the next home fixture of Rivers United after their continental engagement in Uganda this weekend.

Nigerian Football

GTI enlarges coast…spreads from League fund-raising to Federation Cup

Published

18 hours ago

April 19, 2024

Kunle Solaja

BY KUNLE SOLAJA.

Strategic partners of the Nigeria Football Federation, GTI Asset Management and Trust Ltd has expanded their scope of operations from fund sourcing for the Nigeria Premier League to adding the responsibility of getting the national cup competition back into its glamorous days.

The MD of the company, Abubakar Lawal at the unveiling a revamped Federation Cup which has been renamed President Federation Cup remarked that his company decided to take a bold step to support the national cup.

“I am the happiest man today, he said in the opening remark of the rebranding of the national cup through signing of Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Sports and the NFF.

“Our company is also strategically involved in ensuring that the President Federation Cup is given necessary attention to thrive using The Nigeria Football Fund (TNFF) as our vehicle to actualise this dream.

“Therefore, it is our vision that the oldest domestic football event becomes one of the best organised football events in the world in no distant future.”

Nigerian Football

Ikenne’s Beyond Limit Football Academy top goal chart as NNL releases vital statistics

Published

2 days ago

April 18, 2024

Kunle Solaja

The secretariat of the Nigeria National League has released the match statistics of the four conferences of the 2024 season.

With 198 matches so far played in Conferences A and B, 426 goals were scored, with 125 home wins and 26 away wins, representing 63.1%, & 26% respectively. There were 47 draw matches, representing 23.7% of matches. 299 home goals were scored, and 127 home goals.

Beyond Limit FC scored the highest goals of 33 goals, with Stormers FC and Ekiti United conceeding the least goals of 28 goals. Tradesafe and Solution FC scored the least numbers of goals of 11 goals and Osun conceded the least numbers of goals of 8.

In group C & D, 209 goals have been scored in the 106 so far played, with 70 home wins and 14 won away representing 66. 3% and 13.1% respectively.

Teams drew 31 matches representing 29.2% of the matches played. Wikki Tourists scored the highest numbers of goals, with 23 goals, while EFCC FC conceded the least numbers of goals. They conceded 18 goals. Nasarawa United’s 8 goals conceded made them the team that conceded the lowest numbers of goals, while ABS scored the least number of goals of 5 goals.

Nigerian Football

Heartland back to their homeland as they host Shooting Stars

Published

2 days ago

April 18, 2024

Kunle Solaja

BY TOSIN OMOJOLA, OWERRI

The uncertainty surrounding our Matchday 31 encounter against Heartland FC of Owerri, has been cleared with the game eventually slated to hold at the Dan Anyiam Stadium, Owerri, the home ground of the host team

The Nigeria Premier League has given the approval to the stadium after an inspection was carried out on Wednesday afternoon.

The Oluyole Warriors have since arrived the Imo State capital and have settled down ahead of Friday’s clash which will be be shown live on cable television.

Meanwhile, the Technical Adviser of the Ibadan soccer lords, Gbenga Ogunbote, while addressing the players on arrival at their hotel, urged them not to be distracted by the development.

“I want to apologise to you on the change of venue. We got to know about it some hours ago, but be that as it may, I want us to remain focused as and get the desired results we needed”.

In the same vein, the players of the Ibadan soccer lords, said they are not in any way moved by the change of venue, expressing their readiness to get the maximum points, not minding the venue.