Ikhana Worried About Players'Welfare

Enyimba FC Technical  Adviser, Kadiri Ikhana has bemoaned football administrators in the country for their non-challant attitude towards players’ welfare.
The former African best coach was examining the abject poverty the Nigerian players had been subjected to due to their unpaid wages by their respective clubs.
Majority of the clubs in the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) are still owing  players their entitlements.
Ikhana expressed fear that the state of football in the country would be worse in the next three years if the administrators fail to respond to players’ yearnings.

“The country administrators must take players’ welfare very seriously. The country must ensure that the players dues are been paid as at when due. Owing players salaries is not a good thing and it is not encouraging”, Ikhana told sportinglife.
“Players used all their energy to get results and at the end of the day they are still running after administrators and labour to get their hard-earned money. The players’ welfare should be look at and if the country fails to take player’s welfare as priority the result in the next three years will be worse,” said Ikhana.
Kaduna United owed its players to the tune of fifteen month salaries last season. The likes of Dolphins FC, Sharks FC of Port-Harcourt, Bayelsa United, El Kanemi Warriors as well as Akwa United carried placards to the State Government houses to demand for their money.
It took the urgent intervention of the Akwa Ibom state governor Godswill Akpabio who released the sum of N200million naira to offset Akwa United’s players’ bill after their protest to his office.

LMC Condoles With Lobi Over Sarki's Death

The League Management Company (LMC) has commiserated with Lobi Stars on the death of their player, Audu Sarki who died from injuries sustained from an automobile accident.
Sarki was driving with his wife and child from his home state, Yobe to Bauchi when the accident occurred. 

Chairman of the LMC, Hon. Nduka Irabor described the death of the player as sad and prayed that his soul will repose in peace.
"It is a sad loss to the League and we commiserate with his family, the club and teammates. Most importantly, we pray that his injured wife and child recover fully and have the fortitude to bear this loss of their bread winner", Irabor remarked.

LMC Pays Merit Awards, TV Incentives To Clubs

The League management Committee says all the 20 Clubs that participated in the recently ended 2013/14 Glo Nigeria Premier League season have been paid the Financial Merit Award as well as received their television coverage incentives.
Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the League Management Company (LMC), Salihu Abubakar confirmed that remittance of the N75m set aside for the season’s Merit Award to the clubs have been completed last week.
The LMC had increased by 50% the Glo Premier League annual Merit Distribution Award. It raised the total amount to be shared by the 20 clubs from N50m in the 2012/13 season to N75m in the last season.
“Payment to the clubs was approved by the LMC Management during the last week and we have made the remittance to the clubs' bank accounts based on their standing on the league table with Kano Pillars earning the highest amount of N15m while the lowest earning of N1.5m was by Nembe City.
The merit award represents cash earnings shared to the 20 clubs in the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) sponsored by Globacom Limited relative to their placing on the final league table ratified by the league body.
LMC Chairman, Hon. Nduka Irabor had weeks ago announced the new award value which meant clubs earned 50% higher than what was paid for particular positions on the table.
Abubakar said television coverage incentive was also introduced at the start of the season to encourage the Clubs activate programs that will draw fans to the stadium and build good spectacle and television friendly ambience during live broadcasts.
“The television broadcast incentive seeks to support clubs increase match attendance through fan activation programs that will create the right football spectacle on live broadcast match days. It was also meant to discourage the hostile reception to broadcast partners by the home teams”, explained Abubakar.
The LMC said revenue distribution amongst clubs would continue to increase as the league continues to enjoy friction free and stable seasons and described the 2013/14 season as relatively stable compared to the previous season that was bedeviled by fixture disruptions.
Observers believe that it is only under a stable atmosphere that the league can attract potential sponsors from businesses in and outside Nigeria that would exploit the huge investment market inherent in the league.

Gateway Sack Players, Plan Big For New Season

Nigeria National League Club, Gateway United have sent seven players packing after the conclusion of the 2013/2014 season.
The Ogun State Football Club, who are yet to find a way out of the lower league tunnel since getting relegated in the 2009/2010 season with Wikki Tourists, Bayelsa United and Ranchers Bees, are beginning to put structures in place to stage another Premier League Return.
General Manager of Gateway, Prince Tunji Onatolu revealed that seven players were laid off due to low productivity.
The players are goalkeeper Sunday Afolabi, two defenders; Isa Jafaru and Ganiu Ajenifuja, three midfielders Jerome John, Segun Ajar Akinbo and Femi Emmanuel and striker Ibukun Ojo.
Unlike the 2012/2013 season when Gateway finished third on the league table behind promoted teams Abia Warriors and Crown FC, the Rock City Boys performed below average in the just concluded 2013/2014 season garnering 43 points from 30 games to place 9th on the table.
Gateway United were however impressive in the 2014 Federation Cup. They knocked out Premier League sides Kano Pillars in the Round of 64 and Bayelsa United in the Round of 16 before losing out to Prime FC 2-3 on penalties after a goalless 90 minutes in the quarter final.
Beyond the Federation Cup, the ultimate target for Gateway United Coach Henry Nwosu is to return the club to the Premier League next season.

Ejiogu Dumps Sharks For Enyimba

Goalkeeper Chijioke Ejiogu has dumped Sharks Football Club of Port Harcourt and signed for Enyimba Football Club of Aba.
Popularly known as Arugo Monkey, Ejiogu moved to Aba to be part of their squad that would compete in the Nigeria Premier League next season and the 2014 CAF Champions League.
Ejiogu is undoubtedly one of the best goalkeepers in Nigeria. He became famous when he helped his former club, Imo State Amateur side, FC Arugo to the semi final stage of the 2000 national FA Cup. Arugo eventually lost the match to Heartland of Owerri, but the feat brought him to limelight.


Ejiogu played for Julius Berger and won the FA Cup in 2002. He moved to Port Harcourt where he featured for Dolphins and Garden City rivals, Sharks.
At Enyimba, Ejiogu will compete for The Elephant’s number one shirt with goalkeepers Femi Thomas and Paul Godwin.
 

Kotoko Break Oak’s Hearts In Ghana League Tie

By Moses Owopade, Ghana

*Kotoko player (left) chases a Hearts of Oak star during the tie

Asante Kotoko , the arch rival of Accra Hearts of Oak shocked thousands of the Oak supporters when they came to Accra Sports Stadium to pick the three maximum points in the week two of the GFA/GLO League in Ghana.
Seidu Bansey drive in a tornado from Mohammed Yahaya pass to put Kotoko on a celebration mood. Hearts Players tried all they could but the solid defense of the Porcupine Warrior denied the Fobia the chance.
Kotoko were clearly the better as they maintained their superb start to the new season and have signified their intention to retain the Ghana League trophy. Hearts of Oak Coach, David Duncan did not bargain for the result due to his team’s draws against Kotoko in their previous two games.
Another surprise of the day two games was Ashanti Gold beating Liberty Professionals 2-0 in their second week Premier League encounter at the Obuasi Len Clay Sports Stadium on Sunday.
Both goals came in the first half with Bernard Morrison scoring the first goal in the 17th minute and Francis Adjei sealing the second goal in the 34th minute.
Liberty improved their work rate in the second half but find the defence of AshGold and goalkeeper Robert Dabou unyielding.

Abia Warriors' Coach Dedicates NPL Ticket To Gov. Orji

*Abia State Gov., Theodore Orji

Chief Coach of the newly promoted Nigeria Premier League (NPL) team, Abia Warriors FC of Umuahia, Chijioke Iwuagwu, has revealed that the promotion of the club from the second tier league to the elite division would not have been possible without the financial and moral backing of Abia State Governor, Chief Theodore Ahamefule Orji.

Coach Iwuagwu who took the Nigeria National League (NNL) club to the Premiership in less than one season of joining the Abia state-owned team heaped praises on Gov. Orji, saying that his contributions to the success of Abia Warriors in the just ended season were too numerous to count.According to  Iwuagwu, “the Governor was always on hand to support us during the difficult period as he never stopped to make fund available to the team to compete favorably with other clubs in the Nigeria National League hence we fought gallantly and we were able to pick one of the four promotion tickets to play in the top league next season”.   

The former Assistant Coach of Heartland FC of Owerri also expressed deep gratitude to Abia Warriors FC Board Chairman and Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Executive Board Member, High Chief Emeka Inyama for his immense contributions and dogged fight to ensure that the club got promoted to the Premiership.

“The club is blessed to have a hardworking man like Chief Inyama whose immense experience in football administration were instrumental to the success achieved by the team within a short period of time. In fact, Governor Orji and Chief Inyama are God-sent to Abia Warriors and Abia people”, Iwuagwu concluded.

The highly respected Nigeria League Coach Iwuagwu who has also handled top clubs like the defunct NPA Seasiders of Lagos and Bussdor FC therefore urged both men and other prominent indigenes of Abia state  to rally round Abia Warriors in the quest to take the Nigeria Premiership by storm next season.