BY KUNLE SOLAJA

Peter Chukwuma Osugo, popularly known as “Pecos” who was the manager of the Nigerian football team to the Mexico ‘68 Olympic Games is dead.

According to a press release by the family, Pecos died on 24 January 2022, aged 92.

He made marks in sports management as he was the Team Manager of the famous Stationery Stores of Lagos at its zenith.

The team presented nine of the 11 starting line-up of the Nigeria national team during the Mexico 1968 Olympics.

Possibly, it was the overwhelming number of the Stores players in the team that informed Pecos appointment as the Nigerian team manager to the Olympics.

 He was a journalist of high standing and nicknamed the Nigerian football team as Green Eagles before the name change on 29 March 1988.

He rechristened the Nigerian football team from “Red Devils” to Green Eagles  while reporting on the Nigerian preparation for an Africa Cup of Nations fixtures with Ghana.

In the Daily Times edition of 15 April 1961, he wrote: “I propose to christen the team, the ‘Green Eagles.’ the name stuck and it was under it that Nigeria won the gold medal of the football event of the second African Games in Lagos on 18 January 1973 and the first victory of the Africa Cup of Nations on 22 March 1980.

The name Green Eagles was used for the Nigerian team for 26 years, 11 months and 15 days.

As a journalist, he joined the Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe-owned West African Pilot as a reporter before switching to Daily Times as sports editor.

He was noted his descriptive style and power of expression.

For instance, reporting a Lagos versus Northern Region football match at the Ahmadu Bello Stadium Kaduna in 1965, Pecos began his account as follows:

“Drama of blunders, of indecision and utter violation of rules of the game on the officials’ side nearly marred last night’s match, the second in the flood-lit soccer festival between North and Lagos.”

Eventually, Pecos got round to mentioning the scoreline, 1-1, which obviously was not particularly important to him as nearly everyone who read him, knew the result which the electronic media had flashed.

What was more important to his readers was his point of view on how the result came about. Another story

in 1965, a West’s 2-0 win over Eastern Region, is flowery and liberal with words and images. It could still capture readers’ imagination: “Thunder” Balogun’s bunch of the “unknowns” who formed the bulk of Western Rovers’ team carried with them an element of surprise in the opening match of the flood – lit soccer fes

tival, at the Ahmadu Bello Stadium last night when they slammed the Eastern team 2-0. The stadium gave them resounding cheers – a true acknowledgment of the ravishing, top-speed soccer which thrilled them to the utmost throughout the duration of play.

“Even the Northern Premier, Alhaji Ahmadu Bello, the Sardauna of Sokoto, who was the guest of honour, was so enthused that he sat in throughout in spite of the windy conditions and biting drizzle, which persisted for more than three quarters of play.

“Ayoola, Ajibade, Salami, Falayi and Omowon in the Western attack were moving like quick silver, and from the rear, Oshilowo,  Peter Ali, Boade and Ali (Snr) were supplying the necessary line  which set such a devastating mobility to a point of driving the  Eastern players into a frizzed wreck…”

The influence of the early generation sports jour Pecos found his true calling as a journalist when he joined the West African Pilot as a reporter, rising to become Lead Writer and making his mark with exceptional columns which focused on  nationalism and opposition to the colonial government.

 He joined the Daily Times and became  Sports Editor and then Editor of the Sunday Times which became the largest selling newspaper in Nigeria by 1975.

His incisive writings on Nigerian and Global sports coupled with his previous background as an elite athlete came to the attention of a new breed of Nigerian entrepreneurs

According to a release by the family of Osugo, details of the burial obsequies will be announced later in the obituary notices in the national newspapers.